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UNIVERSITY  OF  MASSACHUSETTS 
LIBRARY 


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CARD 


BIOGRAPHICAL  REVIEW 


VOLUME   XVIII 


CONTAINING  LIFE  SKETCHES  OF  LEADING  CITIZENS  OF 


PLYMOUTH     COUNTY 


MASSACHUSETTS 


"  Biography  is  tlie  home  aspect  of  history " 


BOSTON 
Biographical  Review  Publishing  Company 

1897 


ATLANTIC   STATES   SERIES   OF   BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEWS. 


The  volumes  issued  in  this  series  up  to  date  are  the  following: 


I.  Otseco  Countv,  New  York. 

II.  Madisox  County,  New  York. 

III.  Ijroome  County,  New  York. 

IV.  Coi.u.MBu  County,  New  York. 
V.  Cayuo.^  County,  New  York. 

VI.  Delaware  County,  New  York. 

Xn.  Livin(;ston     and     Wyu.ming     Counties, 
New  York. 

VIII.  Clinton  and  Essex  Counties,  New  York, 

IX.  Hampden  County,  Massachusetts. 

X.  Franklin  County,  Massachusetts. 


XI.     Hampshire   County,  Massachusetts. 
XII.     Litchfield  County,  Connecticut. 

XIII.  York  County,  Maine. 

XIV.  Cumberland  County,  Maine. 

XV.     Oxford     and     Franklin     Counties, 
Maine. 

XVI.        CUMMERLAND    COUNTY,    NEW    JeRSEY. 

XVII.     Rockingham     County,     New     Hamp- 
shire. 
XVIII.     Plymouth   County,  Massachusetts. 


March.   1S97. 


B.   R.   PU15.  CO., 

15  Court  Square,  Bo.stox. 


PREFACE. 


AVAILING  ourselves  with  all  diligence,  and  in  good  faith,  of  the  material 
kindly  placed  at  our  disposal,  we  have  pushed  forward  to  its  completion  a 
new  volume  of  contemporary  biography, —  the  eighteenth  in  our  Atlantic 
States  Series, —  which  we  take  pleasure  in  tendering  to  our  subscribers,  the  friends 
and  patrons  who  have  aided  in  our  work,  feeling  confident  that,  however  it  may  fall 
short  of  the  ideal  excellence  striven  after,  it  will  be  found  to  meet  a  real  want, 
gratify  a  natural  taste  of  the  times,  and  occupy  a  place  hitherto  unfilled.  The' 
generation  that  fails  to  write  its  own  records  will  seldom  get  a  fair  showing  on  the 
pages  of  history.      Here  on  these  western  shores,  where  first 

"Common  men  began  to  own  the  world," 

the  inherent  dignity  of  human  nature,  the  worth  of  the  individual,  have  been 
strongly  emphasized.  Genealogy,  which  traces  descent,  and  helps  to  show  the 
origin  and  transmission  of  personal  traits,  has  become  an  attractive  and  popular 
study,  and  biography,  which  shows  individual  character  and  action,  a  favorite  form 
of  literature.  The  average  newspaper  gives  undue  prominence  to  the  evil  done 
by  men  of  ill-will  or  misguided  passion.  To  the  writer  of  select  biographies  falls 
the  cheerful  task  of  setting  down  what  is  best  deserving  of  remembrance  and 
emulation   in  the  virtuous  lives  of  earnest  workers  in  divers  fields  of  usefulness. 

These  pages  show  what  manner  of  men  and  women  are  now,  two  hundred 
seventy  and  more  years  after  the  landing  on  Plymouth  Rock,  dwelling  in  the  old 
homes  and  haunts  of  the  Pilgrims.  Many  of  the  worthies  here  commemorated 
are  "Mayflower"  descendants,  kinsmen  and  kinswomen  of  that  good  and  valiant 
band,   through    various   lines   of    ancestry.      Others    trace    from    the    '"  Fortune,"    the 


PREFACE 


"Ann,"  the  "Little  James,"  the  "Diligent,"  or  later  venturous  barks,  some  being 
valued  American  citizens  of  foreign  birth,  3'et  as  truly  imbued  with  the  Pilgrim 
spirit  as  was  the  poet  whose  forceful  lines,  already  quoted  from,  choicely  set  forth 
the  saintly  and  rugged  virtues  of  the  forefathers :  — 

"A  saving  remnant  they; 
Dreamers  who  work,  adventurers  who  pray ! 


■  They  trusted  first  the  universal  vote  ; 
The  first  were  they  to  practise  and  instill 
The  rule  of  law,  and  not  the  rule  of  will ; 
They  lived  one  noble  test, —  who  would  be  freed 
Must,  give  up  all  to  follow  duty's  need." 


Biographical  Review  Publishing  Company. 


M.^RCH,     1897. 


^"I'^l^ 


BIOSRAPHIGAL. 


1821, 
town. 


UFUS  PACKARD  KINGMAN, 
late  President  of  the  Home  Na- 
tional Bank,  of  Brockton,  was 
for  years  closely  identified  with 
the  most  vital  interests  of  this 
city,  where  he  was  an  honored 
resident.  He  was  born  in  what 
was  then  North  Bridgewater 
(now  Brockton),  November  4, 
a  few  months  after  the  birth  of  the 
He  was  a  son  of  Benjamin  and  Re- 
becca (Packard^  Kingman,  Benjamin  being 
si.xth  in  descent  from  Henry  Kingman,  who 
with  his  wife,  Joanna,  and  five  children, 
landed  in  Weymouth,  Mass.,  July  10,  1636, 
coming  from  Weymouth,  England. 

North  Bridgewater,  in  the  early  part  of  the 
century,  was  a  small  settlement  of  farmers  and 
shoemakers.  Benjamin  Kingman  was  engaged 
for  some  time  in  the  manufacture  of  shoes, 
but  about  1833  he  erected  a  public  house  on 
the  present  site  of  Washburn's  Block,  and 
went  into  the  hotel  business.  Later  he  gave 
his  attention  chiefly  to  farming.  He  was  for 
a  number  of  years  agent  for  the  Hingham 
Mutual  Fire  Insurance  Company,  of  Hingham, 
Mass.  Mr.  Benjamin  Kingman  took  an  active 
part  in  political  affairs,  and  was  elected  to  a 
number  of  offices,  serving  for  some  time  as 
Selectman  of  North  Bridgewater,  and  attend- 
ing the  General  Court. 

Rufus  Packard  Kingman  attended  the  public 
schools  of  his  native  town,  and  also   received 


private  instruction  from  some  of  the  early 
teachers  of  the  place  —  Mrs.  Nathan  Jones, 
Deacon  Heman  Packard,  the  Rev.  Jonathan 
Coe,  and  others.  He  was  twelve  years  old 
when  his  father  erected  his  public  house,  and 
he  began  at  that  time  to  make  himself  useful. 
He  afterward  worked  on  the  farm  until  he  was 
eighteen  years  old,  and  in  1840  he  entered  the 
employ  of  William  F.  Brett,  proprietor  of  the 
leading  dry-goods  and  variety  store  in  the 
town.  This  store  was  in  the  hotel  building, 
corner  of  School  and  Main  Streets.  In  1846 
Mr.  Kingman  was  made  a  partner  in  the  busi- 
ness, and  the  firm  name  changed  to  Brett 
&  Kingman.  He  was  never  physically  strong, 
and  in  1854  he  was  obliged  to  retire  from 
active  business  for  a  while  on  account  of 
feeble  health.  While  in  the  dry-goods  trade, 
Mr.  Kingman  in  1850  erected  the  first  brick 
building  in  the  town,  on  the  site  of  the  old 
Centre  schoolhouse,  south  of  the  hotel.  It 
was  named  Kingman's  Block,  and  is  now 
occupied  by  Howard  &  Caldwell,  clothiers. 
Soon  after  the  dissolution  of  the  firm  of 
Brett  &  Kingman,  there  was  a  demand  for 
banking  accommodations,  and,  a  bank  being 
established,  Mr.  Kingman  was  chosen  Cashier. 
He  filled  his  position  with  such  signal  ability 
that  the  bank  was  a  great  success,  and  was 
only  abandoned  on  the  establishment  of  the 
United  States  Banking  Laws.  It  was  closed 
in  1866,  on  the  decision  of  the  Directors  that 
they  would  not    change    to    a    national    bank. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


In  1874  a  new  bank  was  chartered,  called  the 
Home  National  Bank;  and  Mr.  Kingman 
being  unanimously  elected  President,  filled  his 
office  with  honor  and  signal  ability  for  twenty 
years.  In  1876,  when  the  North  Bridgewater 
Savings  Bank  was  closed,  Mr.  Kingman  and 
Ellis  Ames,  of  Canton,  were  appointed  Trus- 
tees by  the  Supreme  Court  of  Massachusetts 
to  wind  up  its  affairs.  They  performed  their 
duty  in  such  a  faithful  and  judicious  manner 
that  they  were  able  to  pay  the  depositors 
ninety-four  and  ninety-six  one  hundredths 
per  cent. 

Mr.  Kingman,  on  the  death  of  his  father,  be- 
came agent  for  the  Hingham  Mutual  Fire  In- 
surance Company,  and  in  1871  he  was  elected 
to  the  Board  of  Directors.  Affairs  of  great 
importance  were  often  intrusted  to  him,  and 
he  was  never  found  wanting  in  honesty  and 
integrity  of  purpose.  His  personal  success 
did  not  warp  or  narrow  his  nature.  Often 
consulted  on  matters  of  finance,  his  advice  was 
always  freely  and  honestly  given.  When  the 
North  Bridgewater  Board  of  Trade  was  estab- 
lished he  was  elected  a  Director;  and  in  1890, 
when  the  Brockton  City  Hospital  was  or- 
ganized, he  was  elected  Vice-President.  In 
1874  he  was  one  of  the  corporate  members  of 
the  Brockton  Agricultural  Society.  He  was 
one  of  the  first  Directors  of  that  body,  was 
two  years  Treasurer,  and  for  some  time  Vice- 
President;  and  in  January,  1893,  when  the 
Commercial  Club  was  organized,  Mr.  Kingman 
was  elected  President. 

He  belonged  to  a  family  well  known  for 
their  prominence  in  local  affairs,  and  betook  a 
personal  interest  in  the  welfare  of  his  native 
place.  In  politics  he  was  a  stanch  Whig  and 
Republican.  While  acting  as  Cashier  of  the 
first  bank,  he  was  elected  Town  Treasurer  of 
North  Bridgewater,  and  faithfully  performed 
the  duties  of  his  office  for  nine  years;   in  1872 


he  was  chosen  Assessor;  in  1873  and  1874 
was  re-elected;  and  in  1881  he  was  a  member 
of  the  Retiring  Board  of  Selectmen,  it  being 
the  last  year  of  the  town  government.  He 
had  much  to  do  in  arranging  affairs  for  the  in- 
auguration of  the  new  city  government,  and 
under  Brockton's  new  order  of  things  he  was 
elected  to  the  Board  of  Aldermen  from  Ward 
2,  being  made  Chairman  on  the  organization 
of  the  l^oard ;  and  he  was  unanimously  re- 
elected three  times.  The  Hon.  William  L. 
Douglas,  when  mayor  of  the  city,  appointed 
him  Chairman  of  the  Board  of  Sewerage,  May 
31,  1890;  and  he  was  efficiently  discharging 
the  duties  of  this  office  at  the  time  of  his 
death,  which  occurred  on  Tuesday,  P"ebruary 
20,   1894. 

Mr.  Kingman  was  married  August  30, 
1852,  to  Abby,  only  child  of  Captain  Win- 
throp  Sears  and  Sally  (Hawes)  Baker,  of  Yar- 
mouth, Mass.  "  He  was  fond  of  home,  the 
life  of  the  social  circle,  tender  and  affection- 
ate," says  Bradford  Kingman  in  his  History 
of  Brockton,  from  which  the  facts  here  given 
are  taken.  "He  was  plain  of  speech,  honest, 
straightforward,  firm,  and  decided  when  deci- 
sion was  needed;  had  excellent  judgment  in 
all  matters  of  business.  .  .  .  He  had  no  ambi- 
tion for  public  honor  or  notoriety,  and  was 
never  active  in  political  strifes,  though  he  was 
ever  ready  by  his  vote  to  promote  the  public 
good.  .  .  .  He  was  most  genial  and  interesting 
in  private,  fond  of  company,  had  some  wit, 
was  always  cheerful  and  buoyant,  and  quick  at 
repartee.  .  .  .  He  took  great  delight  in  look- 
ing over  the  personal  history  of  the  King- 
mans,  and  when  the  Kingman  Memorial  Asso- 
ciation was  organized  he  took  a  prominent 
part,  and  was  elected  its  Treasurer,  filling  the 
office  until  his  death.  He  caused  an  elegant 
monument  to  be  erected  at  his  own  expense  in 
Union  Cemetery,  Brockton,  to  the   memory  of 


ROBERT    B.    HALL. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


the  ancestors  of  the  Kingman  family  in  Amer- 
ica. He  had  further  plans,  which  were  pre- 
vented from  fulfilment  by  his  death." 


|YRUS  HOWARD,  one  of  the  old  and 
respected  citizens  of  Brockton,  repre- 
senting a  prominent  and  long  estab- 
lished family,  was  born  in  North  Bridgewater, 
November  14,  18 17.  He  is  a  son  of  Cyrus 
and  Sylvia  (Howard)  Howard,  both  descend- 
ants of  John  Howard,  one  of  the  early  colo- 
nists of  New  England,  and  whose  first  home  in 
this  country  was  near  that  of  Miles  Standish. 
Further  information  concerning  the  Howard 
ancestry  may  be  found  in  the  sketch  of  George 
B.  Howard. 

Cyrus  Howard,  Sr.,  a  well-to-do  farmer  of 
North  Bridgewater,  who  owned  a  good  farm 
of  one  hundred  acres,  spent  his  life  in  this 
place,  and  died  at  the  age  of  eighty  years. 
His  wife,  Sylvia,  was  a  daughter  of  Colo- 
nel Caleb  Howard,  of  North  Bridgewater, 
who  was  descended  from  Ephraim  and 
Mary  (Keith)  Howard,  througli  I^phraim, 
born  March  25,  1697,  and  George,  son  of 
Ephraim,  born  January  31,  1731.  The  latter, 
who  died  April  3,  1815,  was  married  in  1745 
to  Abigail,  daughter  of  Jonathan  Copeland. 
She  was  born  December  9,  1724,  and  died 
March  26,  1809.  George  and  Abigail  (Cope- 
land)  Howard  were  the  parents  of  eleven  chil- 
dren, namely:  Hannah,  born  July  26,  1746; 
Abigail,  September  26,  1748;  Betty,  May  g, 
1751;  George,  September  8,  1753;  Oliver, 
December  21,  1755;  Job,  May  17,  1758; 
Caleb,  December  15,  1760;  Rachel,  April  20, 
1763;  Patte,  August  2,  1765;  Asaph,  March 
19,  1768;  and  Nehemiah,  born  August  20, 
1770.  Colonel  Caleb  Howard,  who  was  an 
officer  in  the  State  militia,  and  served  in 
many  town  offices,  died  January  4,   1831.      He 


was  married  December  7,  1780,  to  Sylvia, 
daughter  of  Daniel  Alger.  She  was  bcrn  No- 
vember 13,  1 76 1,  and  died  September  17, 
1819,  at  the  age  of  fifty-seven.  Her  children 
were:  Hannah,  born  May  9,  1782;  Apollos, 
August  23,  1784;  Abigail,  March  23,  1786; 
Sylvia,  June  9,  1788;  Vesta,  May  17,  1790; 
Chloe,  January  19,  1793;  Nancy,  January  10, 
179s;  Welcome,  April  17,  1797:  Olive,  July 
24,  1799;  Caleb,  June  8,  1802;  and  Thomas 
Jefferson,  July  20,  1804.  IVIrs.  Sylvia  (How- 
ard) Howard  died  February  14,  1822.  She 
was  the  mother  of  two  children,  of  whom 
Cyrus  was  the  younger. 

Cyrus  Howard  was  educated  in  the  common 
schools  of  North  Bridgewater.  He  first 
worked  at  shoemaking,  the  leading  industry 
of  this  section  of  Plymouth  County.  After 
several  years  of  indoor  labor,  he  found  a  more 
healthful  occupation  as  driver  of  a  market 
wagon.  In  managing  sales  for  another  he  saw 
the  oppoi'tunities  for  profit  in  the  produce 
trade,  and  eventually  started  a  market  of  his 
own,  which  he  successfully  managed  for  fifteen 
years.  Mr.  Howard  is  now  retired  from 
active  business.  He  was  married  November 
6,  1844,  to  Hannah,  daughter  of  Zopher  Field, 
of  Brockton.  She  died  October  14,  1873, 
leaving  two  children.  Of  the  latter,  Isabella 
A.,  the  wife  of  Thomas  W.  Frost,  of  Wolfe- 
boro,  N.H.,  now  survives.  Mr.  Howard  has 
been  long  affiliated  with  the  Republican  party 
and  its  lineal  predecessors,  having  cast  his  first 
Presidential  vote  for  William  Henry  Harrison 
in  1840.  He  attends  religious  service  at  the 
New  Jerusalem  (Swedenborgian)  Church. 


ON.    ROBERT    B.    HALL,    formerly 
of    Plymouth,    who    during    his    life- 
time served   his  fellow-men    in  the 
double  capacity  of   minister  of   the  gospel  and 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


legislator,  was  born  in  Boston,  Mass.,  in  the 
year  1812.  He  acquired  his  education  in 
Boston  and  in  Yale  University,  where  he  grad- 
uated from  the  School  of  Divinity.  Early  in 
his  life  he  was  a  member  of  the  Congrega- 
tional church,  in  whose  ministry  he  spent 
seven  or  eight  years.  His  religious  views  un- 
derwent a  change  some  years  later,  and  he 
entered  the  Episcopal  church,  receiving 
orders,  and  becoming  a  priest  according  to 
its  rites  and  canons.  For  some  time  after  his 
ordination  he  was  rector  of  the  church  in 
Newport,  R.I.,  and  also  had  charge  of  the 
parish  of  Plymouth,  where  through  his  efforts 
a  church  edifice  was  erected. 

The  logical  force  of  iiis  reasoning,  anil  the 
conscientious  motive  of  his  efforts,  gave  him 
the  same  strong  influence  in  municipal  affairs 
that  he  exerted  from  the  pulpit.  When  he 
was  elected  by  the  people  of  his  district  to  rep- 
resent them  in  the  legislative  halls  of  the 
State,  he  was  as  potent  in  advocating  a  high 
standard  of  national  morals  as  he  had  been  in 
inculcating  purity  of  individual  life.  Closing 
his  connection  with  the  State  legislature  with 
a  year  of  service  in  the  Senate,  he  was  elected 
member  of  Congress,  the  duties  of  which  office 
he  discharged  faithfully  and  honorably  for 
four  years.  The  Senator-Priest  of  Plymouth 
delivered  his  message  to  the  world  from  plat- 
form, ]nilpit,  and  press,  enunciating  the  doc- 
trines of  truth,  purity,  and  honesty,  and 
pointing  steadily  to  the  one  perfect  type  of 
humanity.  The  contributions  from  his  pen  to 
various  American  magazines  remain  to  in- 
struct and  tell  what  manner  of  man  he  was. 
(3ne  of  his  most  eloquent  addresses  was  de- 
livered at  the  dedication  of  the  Masonic 
Temple  in  Boston. 

Mr.  Hall  married  Miss  Abbie  N.  Davis,  a 
daughter  of  Nathaniel  M.  Davis,  whose  only 
sister    married     the    distinguished     historian. 


George  Bancroft,  in  1843.  ^Villiam  T.  Davis, 
the  historian,  and  Judge  Davis,  of  Plymouth, 
both  well  known  in  the  world  of  letters  and 
jurisprudence,  were  cousins  of  Mrs.  Hall. 
Mrs.  Hall  has  one  child,  a  daughter.  Mr. 
Hall  died  in  April,  1868,  aged  fifty-si.\ 
years.  Mrs.  Hall  is  still  a  resident  of  Plym- 
outh, where  the  memory  of  her  husband's 
good  deeds  lives  after  him. 


ON.      PELEG     McFARLIN.  — Pelef 


McFarlin,  son   of   Sampson  and  Polly 

is  ^_ ,  (Sh'urtleff)    McFarlin,    was  born   in 

Carver,  Plymouth  County,  Mass.,  October  18, 
1843.  His  early  education,  acquired  in  the 
public  schools  of  his  native  town,  was  supple- 
mented by  private  study,  and  by  attendance  at 
a  commercial  college. 

At  the  age  of  nineteen  years  he  accepted  a 
position  as  clerk  in  the  Boston  office  of  Mat- 
thias Ellis  &  Co.,  iron  founders,  whose  manu- 
fatory  was  located  at  South  Carver.  Mr. 
Mcl-'arlin  developed  strong  traits  as  a  business 
man,  and  came  to  occupy  such  a  prominent 
position  in  the  administration  of  the  affairs  of 
the  company  that  in  1S70  he  was  admitted  to 
partnership  by  the  firm  which  seven  years 
before  had  first  employed  him  as  an  inexperi- 
enced clerk.  Mr.  McFarlin  then  returned  to 
his  native  town,  and  practically  assumed  full 
charge  of  the  iron  foundry,  and  for  more  than 
a  quarter  of  a  century  he  has  guided  and  con- 
trolled its  interests. 

These  works  constitute  a  sort  of  historic 
landmark.  They  antedate  the  Revolution, 
having  been  established  as  far  back  as  1757, 
and  having  been,  it  is  said,  in  almost  contin- 
uous operation  since  that  period.  It  is 
claimed  that  the  first  iron  tea-kettle  manu- 
factured in  this  country  was  cast  at  these 
works.      Shot    for    the    Revolution    was    made 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


13 


here,  also  for  the  War  of  1812-14.  A  mem- 
ber of  the  company  also  engaged  in  supplying 
shells  for  the  suppression  of  the  Rebellion  of 
1 861.  Of  course,  the  foundry  has  passed 
through  many  vicissitudes  incident  to  the 
march  of  progress,  and  its  products  to-day, 
under  Mr.  McFarlin's  management,  are 
strictly  modern,  consisting  of  ranges,  fur- 
naces, parlor  stoves,  improved  hollow  ware, 
etc.,  while  no  vestige  remains  of  those  anti- 
quated and  now  obsolete  commodities,  the 
production  of  which  once  engaged  the  full 
capacity  of  the  works. 

A  public-spirited  citizen,  Mr.  McFarlin 
since  his  return  to  his  native  town,  has  recog- 
nizeii  his  civic  duties,  and  has  been  active 
along  various  lines  of  usefulness,  having  been 
called  by  the  votes  of  his  fellow-citizens  to 
occupy  many  positions  of  responsibility  and 
honor.  P"or  more  than  twenty  years  he  has 
served  as  sole  Trustee  of  the  Benjamin  Ellis 
School  I'"und.  He  has  likewise  served  as  a 
member  of  the  School  Committee,  and  in  other 
town  ofifices.  He  has  been  Postmaster  of 
South  Carver,  without  interruption  for  twenty 
years.  Governor  Talbot  appointed  Mr.  Mc- 
Farlin a  Justice  of  the  Peace,  and  his  com- 
mission as  Justice  has  never  lapsed,  having 
been  renewed  by  Governor  Robinson,  and 
again  renewed  by  Governor  Russell.  Mr. 
McFarlin  is  a  Trustee  of  the  W'areham  Sav- 
ings  Bank   Corporation. 

In  the  memorable  Garfield  campaign  of 
18S0,  Mr.  McFarlin  was  nominated  as  a  can- 
didate for  Representative  to  the  General  Court 
from  the  Fourth  Plymouth  District,  then  in- 
cluding the  towns  of  Carver,  Plympton, 
Kingston,  and  Duxbury.  He  was  elected, 
and,  at  the  opening  of  the  legislative  session, 
was  appointed  a  member  of  the  Committee  on 
Manufactures.  He  was  prominent  in  the  de- 
bates of  the  session,  and  served  with   such  ac- 


ceptance that  the  following  year  he  was  taken 
up  by  the  citizens  of  the  P'irst  Plymouth  Dis- 
trict as  a  candidate  for  Senatorial  honors,  and 
with  such  unanimity  that  he  received  every 
vote  in  the  nominating  convention.  For  three 
years  he  remained  a  member  of  the  State 
Senate,  and  enjoyed  the  rare  distinction  of 
being  thrice  nominated  without  a  dissenting 
vote,  and  thrice  elected  by,  large  and  increas- 
ing majorities.  He  served  as  Chairman  of 
the  Committee  on  Manufactures  in  1S82  and 
1883,  and  as  Chairman  of  the  Railroad  Com- 
mittee in  1884. 

The  Hon.  Charles  T.  Gallagher,  the  dis- 
tinguished Boston  lawyer,  published  in  the 
Middleboro  Gazette  a  review  of  the  Senate  of 
1882,  of  which  he  was  himself  a  member,  and 
in  it  paid  the  following  graceful  tribute  to  Mr. 
McFarlin:  "I  desire  to  express  my  admiration 
for  the  sterling  qualities  of  character  and  at- 
tainment that  he  exhibited  all  through  the 
session.  To  speak  of  his  genial  good  nature, 
his  manly  character  and  bearing,  his  sterling 
integrity,  and  his  business  ability,  would  be 
but  to  repeat  what  is  already  well  known  by 
his  constituents  and  friends.  But,  as  a  legis- 
lator, he  shone  out  as  an  unusually  bright  and 
efficient  man  in  the  right  place,  not  only  for 
his  general  good  judgment  and  knowledge  of 
affairs  of  legislation,  but  as  a  debater  on  the 
floor,  where,  from  the  delivery  of  his  speech- 
on  the  presentation  of  the  General  David 
Cobb  portrait,  early  in  the  session,  to  his  able 
and  lucid  argument  on  the  Judge  Day  case 
near  its  close,  in  the  many  times  that  he 
spoke  at  the  Senatorial  Board,  he  was  recog- 
nized as  one  of  the  clearest,  most  interesting 
and  conscientious  speakers  of  our  number: 
and  he  added  to  his  record  of  diligence  in 
committee  work  the  capacity  to  present  his 
reports  with  clearness  and  ability  before  the 
full    Board.      As   a    companion,    his    beaming 


14 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


good  nature,  his  ready  wit,  liis  off-liand  prac- 
tical references  and  original  productions 
passed  around  the  Board  at  some  incident  oc- 
curring in  the  process  of  business,  won  him 
to  the  hearts  of  all  his  associates." 

Mr.  McFarlin  has  been  a  contributor  to 
current  literature,  and  is  more  or  less  in  de- 
mand as  a  public  speaker.  His  Memorial 
Day  addresses,  his  speeches  on  political  topics, 
and  his  literary  productions,  notably  his  con- 
tribution to  King's  "Tributes  to  Garfield," 
have  given  him  prominence  before  the  public 
as  a  speaker  and  writer.  Mr.  McFarlin  was 
married  in  Carver  in  1875  to  Eldoretta,  daugh- 
ter of  Levi  and  Elizabeth  (Look)  Thomas. 
Of  this  union,  two  children  are  now  living — ■ 
Donald  and  Helena  McFarlin.  VVinthrop,  an 
infant  son,  died  January  10,   1889. 

Mr.  McFarlin's  home  life  is  all  that  could 
be  desired.  He  has  a  fine  residence  at  South 
Carver,  situated  amid  scenes  of  great  natural 
attractiveness.  Here  he  is  content  to  dwell, 
with  his  well-cultivated  farm,  his  well-stocked 
library,  with  troops  of  friends,  and  an  inter- 
esting family  zealously  devoted  to  his  happi- 
ness. 

In  preparing  this  brief  biography,  we  are 
forcibly  impressed  with  the  thought  that  Mr. 
McFarlin's  career  demonstrates  anew  that  we 
live  in  a  land  where  a  young  man  may,  from 
comparatively  feeble  beginnings,  by  diligence 
and  force  of  character,  constantly  improve  his 
condition,  and  crown  his  life  with  worthy 
achievements. 


'red  F.  FIELD,  junior  member  of  the 
well-known  shoe  manufacturing  firm  of 
Packard  &  Field,  Brockton,  was  born 
in  the  part  of  Brockton  known  as  Montello, 
May  II,  1861.  He  is  the  youngest  child  of 
William    L.    and    Mary    Dennison    (Holmes) 


Field.  William  L.  Field  was  for  many  years 
extensively  engaged  in  farming  in  Montello, 
where  he  owned  a  large  tract  of  land,  much  of 
which  is  now  occupied  by  thriving  factories. 
Another  of  his  sons,  Daniel  Waldo  Field,  who 
is  a  wealthy  shoe  manufacturer,  erected  and 
gave  to  Montello  its  pretty  Congregational 
Church,  and  is  identified  with  many  other 
public  enterprises. 

Fred  F.  Field  received  his  early  education 
in  the  common  schools  of  Brockton.  His 
father  had  a  large  milk  route,  and  the  boy  was 
early  put  on  the  wagon  to  serve  customers, 
thus  learning  practical  business  methods  when 
quite  young.  He  subsequently  took  a  course 
of  study  at  Bryant  &  -Stratton's  Commercial 
College,  Boston,  and  then  entered  the  employ 
of  Burt  &  Packard,  of  Brockton,  in  answer  to 
their  advertisement  for  an  office  boy.  His 
diligent  attention  to  business  won  the  confi- 
dence of  his  employers,  and  he  was  promoted 
step  by  step  from  the  position  of  office  boy  and 
porter  to  that  of  assistant  to  Mr.  Packard  in 
his  factory.  He  was  afterward  made  superin- 
tendent;  and  when  he  had  filled  that  position 
some  two  or  three  years,  Mr.  Burt  having  re- 
tired on  account  of  ill  health,  Mr.  Field  be- 
came junior  partner,  under  the  firm  name  of 
Packard  &  Field.  The  firm  of  Burt  &  Packard 
was  well  known  to  the  public  through  its 
phonetic  form  of  advertising,  "  Korrect 
shape,"  and  controlled  an  extensive  and  pros- 
perous business.  It  has  been  still  further  de- 
veloped since  Mr.  P'ield  became  actively  con- 
nected with  the  business.  He  is  active  man- 
ager of  the  concern,  buying  all  the  stock,  and 
attending  to  all  financial  details,  Mr.  Packard 
acting  as  silent  partner.  The  firm  employs 
some  three  hundred  men,  and  turns  out  about 
six  hundred  pair  of  shoes  daily,  supplying  cus- 
tomers both  in  this  country  and  abroad. 

Mr.  Field  was  married  February  20,   1884, 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


'5 


to  a  daughter  of  Fred  Packard,  of  Brockton, 
and  has  now  one  child,  Fred  F.  In  politics 
he  is  a  Republican,  but  he  takes  no  active  in- 
terest in  political  affairs.  He  is  an  honored 
and  popular  member  of  the  Commercial  Club, 
and  has  been  on  its  Executive  Committee 
since  its  organization.  In  religious  belief  he 
is  a  Unitarian,  and  he  attends  the  Church  of 
the  Unity. 

4^  •m-^ 

(ff^YOHN  A.  RICE,  an  old  and  honored 
resident  of  Rockland,  was  born  Janu- 
ary 29,  1830,  at  North  field,  Vt.,  a  son 
of  Alphonso  and  Mary  (Cardell)  Rice.  His 
father,  Alphonso  Rice,  who  was  a  manufact- 
urer of  Northfield,  and  later  a  farmer  of 
Brookfield,  in  his  later  years  moved  to  Brook- 
lyn, la.,  where  he  died  at  the  age  of  seventy- 
eight.  His  wife,  Mary,  was  a  native  of  New 
York  State,  having  been  born  near  Lake 
George. 

John  A.  Rice  was  the  eldest  of  a  family  of 
nine  children.  He  was  brought  up  on  the 
farm,  working  in  the  summer,  and  attending 
the  district  schools  in  the  winter.  At  the  age 
of  seventeen  he  began  to  teach  school,  an  ex- 
ample which  was  subsequently  followed  by  his 
brothers  and  sisters.  He  taught  in  his  native 
State  for  four  winters,  and  afterward  in  Massa- 
chusetts for  two  winters.  At  the  age  of 
twenty-one,  desiring  to  begin  life  for  him- 
self, he  went  to  the  West,  where  he  spent 
some  time  in  various  employments.  Return- 
ing home,  he  went  to  work  in  the  general 
store  of  his  brother-in-law  at  East  Stoughton, 
now  called  Avon.  As  this  relative  of  Mr. 
Rice's  was  also  the  Postmaster  of  the  place, 
Mr.  Rice  attended  for  a  while  to  the  work 
of  the  post-office.  Leaving  East  Stoughton, 
he  went  to  New  York  City,  where,  however, 
he  remained  but  a  short  time,  returning  in 
a  few  months  to   Vermont.      At   this   time   he 


was  recommended  to  Nahum  Moore,  a  dealer 
in  dry-goods  and  furniture  in  the  town  of  East 
Abington,  now  Rockland,  by  a  mutual  friend, 
for  the  position  of  the  clerk  Mr.  Moore 
needed  to  take  charge  of  his  business  while  he 
was  attending  to  his  legislative  duties.  The 
upshot  was  that  Mr.  Moore  offered  Mr.  Rice 
the  position,  and  Mr.  Rice  accepted  it,  and 
came  to  East  Abington  (Rockland).  He  soon 
proved  to  his  new  employer  that  he  possessed 
the  right  qualifications  for  a  successful  busi- 
ness man.  At  the  end  of  one  year  Mr.  Moore 
took  him  into  partnership.  Shortly  after  Mr. 
Rice,  in  company  with  a  Boston  man,  bought 
out  Mr.  Moore's  interest  in  the  business,  and 
both  conducted  the  place  together  for  two 
years  under  the  firm  name  of  Rice  &  Eldridge. 
At  the  end  of  that  time  Mr.  Rice  sold  out  his 
interest  to  his  partner,  antl  took  a  position  as 
clerk  with  him,  which  he  held  for  a  period  of 
two  years.  During  the  Civil  War  he  went  to 
St.  Joseph,  Mo.,  with  a  stock  of  goods,  which 
he  disposed  of  there  at  a  great  profit.  This 
was  owing  to  the  fact  that  in  that  city  public 
feeling  on  the  subject  of  the  conflict  was  about 
equally  divided,  and  Southern  partisans  were 
as  anxious  to  get  rid  of  the  "greenbacks"  as 
the  other  side  was  to  get  hold  of  them.  Owing 
to  Mr.  Rice's  shrewdness,  he  reaped  a  veri- 
table harvest,  especially  during  the  last  year  of 
the  war.  Upon  his  return  to  Vermont,  he 
purchased  the  old  home  farm,  and  took  up  his 
residence  there,  but  remained  only  one  year. 
Returning  to  Rockland,  he  resumed  his  old 
business.  Shortly  after,  his  store  was  burned 
out.  Not  discouraged,  he  continued  business 
elsewhere  until  a  new  building  was  erected. 
About  this  time  his  brother,  Charles  L.,  came 
back  from  the  war,  and  went  into  partnership 
with  him.  They  continued  together  for  some 
time,  but,  upon  the  business  increasing,  they 
separated    and   divided    it,    John    A.    retaining 


i6 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


the  original  dry-goods  de|3artment,  and  his 
brother  taking  the  furniture  line.  They  have 
both  achieved  success  —  the  logical  result  of 
their  enterprise,  sagacity,  and  business 
talents.  Athough  the  business  continues,  Mr. 
Rice  retired  from  active  participation  about 
twelve  years  ago. 

On  May  30,  1857,  Mr.  Rice  married  Sarah 
S.  Soule,  a  native  of  Rockland,  and  a  daugh- 
ter of  Josiah  and  Sophronia  J.  Soule.  They 
became  the  parents  of  four  children,  of  whom 
three  are  deceased;  namely,  J.  Willard,  Eddie 
Lawrence,  and  Lester  Howard.  The  survivor 
is  John  Wesley,  who  is  at  present  a  student  at 
Harvard,  and  resides  with  his  parents.  In 
political  action  Mr.  Rice  is  a  Republican. 
He  has  strong  Prohibition  tendencies,  but 
does  not  believe  that  the  Third  Party  is  an 
available  factor  in  practical  politics  at  the 
present  time.  Besides  his  hatred  of  the 
saloon  as  a  demoralizing  agency,  he  has  a 
strong  aversion  to  tobacco,  which  he  is  not 
afraid  to  express  in  a  manly  way  to  those 
about  him.  His  advice  on  the  subject,  if  not 
always  followed,  is  always  listened  to  with  re- 
spect, because  of  his  disinterested  motives. 
His  religious  views  identify  him  with  the 
Congregational  church,  of  which  he  is  a 
strong,  earnest,  and  useful  member,  and  of 
which  he  has  been  a  Deacon  for  a  quarter  of  a 
century.  He  has  long  been  a  member  in 
good  standing  of  the  Masonic  order.  A  pub- 
lic-spirited citizen,  Mr.  Rice  is  ever  interested 
in  any  practical  movement  to  promote  the 
moral,  social,  or  intellectual  interests  of  the 
town. 


jAJOR  SAMUEL  H.  DOTEN.— 
Occasionally  in  the  walks  of  life 
one  meets  a  man  whose  energy, 
courage,  and  general  force  of  character,  are 
such  as  to  draw  to  him  a  train   of   followers  in 


whatever  enterprise  he  may  choose  to  embark. 
Such  a  man  is  Major  Samuel  H.  Dot  en.  of 
Plymouth,  who  was  born  in  the  old  Colonial 
town,  June  15,  1812,  of  genuine  "Mayflower" 
pilgrim  ancestry.  His  parents  were  Samuel 
and  Rebecca  (Bradford)  Doten. 

Samuel  Doten,  whose  father  had  three 
wives,  was  one  of  a  family  of  twenty-three 
children.  He  was  born  in  IMymouth,  and 
followed  the  sea  for  a  number  of  years  in  the 
merchant  service.  During  the  War  of  18 12 
he  was  a  privateersman,  and  was  so  fortunate 
as  to  capture  a  prize.  He  retired  from  the  sea 
when  past  middle  age,  and  was  in  the  lumber 
business  for  a  while  in  Plymouth,  where  he 
died  in  1862,  aged  seventy-nine  years.  His 
wife,  Rebecca,  was  a  daughter  of  Nathaniel 
Bradford,  of  Plymouth,  who  was  a  Revolution- 
ary soldier,  and  a  lineal  descendant  of  Gover- 
nor William  Bradford.  She  was  the  mother  of 
nine  children,  si.x  of  whom  are  yet  living,  the 
subject  of  this  sketch  being  the  eldest. 

Samuel  H.  Doten  was  educated  in  the  com- 
mon schools  of  Plymouth.  Reared  amitl 
seafaring  men,  he  went  to  sea  when  quite 
young,  and  at  the  age  of  twenty-four  was  mas- 
ter of  the  packet  "Atlanta."  After  sailing 
in  that  capacity  for  five  years,  he  succeeded 
his  father  in  the  lumber  business  in  Plymouth, 
and  erected  a  number  of  the  best  buildings  in 
the  town,  including  the  Miles  Standish 
Block — both  the  original  edifice,  which  was 
destroyed  by  fire,  and  the  present  fine  struct- 
ure—  the  Masonic  Hall,  the  large  dwelling- 
house  on  the  corner  of  Mayflower  and  Robin- 
son Streets,  and  his  own  residence.  The 
Miles  Standish  Block  he  still  owns.  The 
Masonic  Hall  he  sold  to  the  Masons.  He  was 
in  the  lumber  and  coal  trade  some  twenty 
years,  and  then  turned  his  attention  to  real 
estate  business,  in  which    he   is   now  engaged. 

F"rom  early  youth  he  was  interested  in  mill- 


SAMUEL    H.    DOTEN. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


19 


tary  matters,  and  in  1S36  he  joined  the  Stan- 
dish  Guards  of  Plymouth  as  a  musician. 
Chosen  Captain  in  1842,  he  declined  to  serve 
in  that  capacity,  but  in  1844  he  accepted  the 
rank  of  Lieutenant-Commander.  The  Stan- 
dish  Guards  made  a  fine  figure  on  gala-days, 
with  military  pomp  and  display,  for  a  number 
of  years;  but  the  crucial  test  of  soldiership 
did  not  come  until  the  attack  on  P'ort  Siunter 
awakened  so  many  American  citizens  to  a 
sense  of  the  awful  duty  before  them.  When 
Lincoln's  first  call  for  seventy-five  thousand 
three-years  men  reached  the  homes  of  New 
England,  old  Plymouth  was  aroused,  and  a 
mass  meeting  was  called.  E.xcitement  ran 
high,  and  Major  Doten,  with  characteristic 
enthusiasm,  leaped  over  the  footlights  onto 
the  stage,  and  was  the  first  to  put  his  name  on 
the  list,  signing,  for  aught  he  knew,  his  own 
death  warrant.  Si.xty-five  men  followed  his 
lead,  and  in  the  course  of  a  week  a  company 
was  formed,  and  he  was  elected  Captain  of  the 
Plyniouth  Rock  Guards,  which  was  attached  to 
the  old  Third  iWassachusetts  Regiment. 

They  were  sent  first  to  Fortress  Monroe, 
where  they  remained  some  three  months,  and 
were  later  in  Colonel  Barnes's  command, 
attached  to  the  Twenty-ninth  Massachusetts 
Regiment.  During  their  term  of  service  they 
covered  nearly  the  whole  seat  of  war,  cam- 
paigning for  a  while  in  the  West,  fighting 
under  McCIellan  in  the  seven-days  battle 
before  Richmond,  retreating  to  Harrison's 
I^anding,  and  thence  into  Maryland,  doing 
brave  service  on  the  bloody  field  of  Antietam, 
camping  at  Harper's  Ferry,  entering  Burn- 
side's  command  at  Warrenton,  and  from  there 
going  to  F"redericksburg,  where  they  wintered. 
While  at  Fredericksburg  they  made  a  sortie 
and  were  driven  back,  but  the  repulse  only 
whetted  their  courage  for  the  next  engage- 
ment.     They   were   at   \'icksburg   under   Gen- 


eral Grant,  and  after  the  famous  surrender 
were  detached  to  Jackson,  Miss.,  thence  to  the 
Yazoo  River,  and  subsequently  to  Cincinnati, 
whence  they  marched  down  to  Paris,  Ky. , 
being  the  first  Massachusetts  regiment  to 
enter  the  Blue  Grass  State.  From  Paris  they 
marched  over  the  Cumberland  Mountains  to 
Knoxville,  Tenn.,  and  participated  in  the 
battle  of  Fort  Saunders.  The  taking  of  P'ort 
Saunders  ended  Major  Doten's  campaigning 
for  a  while;  for,  weakened  by  the  Southern 
scourge,  fever  and  ague,  he  was  obliged  to 
return  home.  As  soon  as  able,  he  returned  to 
the  army,  but  saw  no  more  active  service. 
Discharged  in  1864,  with  the  rank  of  Brevet- 
Major,  he  was  commissioned  by  Governor  An- 
drew to  recruit  a  regiment  in  Tennessee;  but 
his  family  were  so  opposed  to  his  going  that 
he  yielded  to  their  entreaties  and  remained 
at  home. 

Major  Doten  was  married  in  September, 
1836,  to  Miss  Abbie  D.  Virgin,  of  Plymouth, 
who  died  April  19,  1844.  She  was  the 
mother  of  three  children,  one  of  whom  sur- 
vives; namely,  Priscilla  A.,  who  married 
Nelson  R.  Scovel,  of  Albany,  N.Y.,  but  is 
now  residing  at  Mattapan,  Mass.  In  1848  he 
was  again  married  to  Laura  M.,  daughter  of 
Gorham  Lane,  of  Lancaster,  N.H. 

Major  Doten  represented  the  town  of  Plym- 
outh in  the  State  legislature  during  the 
years  1858  and  1859.  He  cast  his  first  Presi- 
dential vote  for  Martin  Van  Buren,  and  since 
early  manhood  has  been  a  strong  Republican. 
The  Major  has  no  desire  for  public  office,  and 
has  refused  to  accept  nomination;  but  he  was 
Registrar  of  Probate  some  seven  years,  being 
appointed  in  1856  under  Governor  Gardner, 
and  was  Collector  of  the  port  of  Plymouth  for 
seven  years.  He  was  instrumental  in  organiz- 
ing Collingwood  Post,  No.  j6^  Grand  Army 
of  the  Republic,  his  name  heading  the  list   of 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


members,  and  he  was  the  first  Commander  of 
the  post.  He  is  now  a  member  of  the  Grand 
Encampment.  A  Master  Mason  for  many 
years,  he  is  a  member  of  Plymouth  Lodge, 
A.  F.  &  A.  M.  He  helped  to  organize  Samo- 
set  Chapter  in  1S73,  and,  in  recognition  of 
his  services  as  its  first  and  only  Secretary, 
was  presented  by  the  chapter  in  1890  with  an 
elegant  diamond-studded  charm.  Asa  Knight 
Templar  he  belongs  to  the  Old  Colony  Com- 
mandery  at  Abington. 

The  first  Odd  Fellow  in  Plymouth,  having 
been  initiated  in  1S44  at  Bangor,  Me.,  he 
helped  to  organize  Mayflower  Lodge  in  his 
native  town,  of  which  he  was  the  first  Vice 
Grand  and  the  second  Noble  Grand,  and  is  the 
only  surviving  charter  member.  He  is  also 
a  member  of  Sagamore  Encampment,  and  was 
District  Grand  Deputy  to  the  Grand  Encamp- 
ment in  1872. 

In  the  early  days  of  temperance  reform  he 
was  an  active  worker  for  the  cause  of  prohibi- 
tion, and  was  largely  instrumental  in  organiz- 
ing the  Plymouth  branch  of  the  Sons  of  Tem- 
perance, established  in  1847,  being  appointed 
D.  G.  W.  P.  Major  Doten  attends  the  Uni- 
tarian Church.  His  whole  life  has  been  char- 
acterized by  self-reliance  and  fearlessness  in 
danger;  and  as  an  incident  of  his  dashing 
bravery  it  is  related  that  when  he  was  a 
young  man  he  helped  to  rescue  si.'c  of  a  ship- 
wrecked crew,  battling  a  heavy  surf  in  a  life- 
boat. 

^CfJ)/lLLIAM  E.  REALS,  a  member  of 
\5V  the  firm  of  Reals  &  Orcutt,  prosper- 
ous merchants  of  Brockton,  was 
born  in  Middleboro,  Mass.,  June  11,  1S55, 
son  of  Isaac  and  Lavinia  (Waldron)  Reals. 
The  family  originated  with  John  Reals,  who  in 
1639  settled  in  Hingham,  where  several  gen- 
erations of  it  have   lived   and   died.      Some   of 


the  race  settled  in  Stoughton,  and  of  that 
branch  William  E.  is  a  descendant.  The 
family  has  given  to  politics  and  science  sev- 
eral noted  men.  William  E.  Reals's  grand- 
father, Isaac,  a  son  of  Isaac  Reals,  was  born 
in  Stoughton,  and  died  in  Ro.xbury  compara- 
tively young.  He  married  Cynthia  Keith, 
who  also  was  a  member  of  one  of  the  old  fami- 
lies of  this  county.  Isaac  Reals,  Jr.,  father  of 
William  E.,  was  in  the  shoe  bnsiness  during 
the  greater  part  of  his  life,  and  for  some  time 
was  foreman  of  a  leather  room.  He  died  at 
the  age  of  forty-two.  His  wife  was  a  daugh- 
ter of  Billings  and  Polly  (Briggs)  Waldron. 
Mr.  Waldron  was  an  extensive  farmer,  and  a 
prominent  resident  of  Dighton,  Mass.  Isaac 
Beals,  Jr.,  and  his  wife  reared  two  children, 
namely:  William  E.,  the  subject  of  this 
sketch;  and  Alice,  the  widow  of  Clement  D. 
Gardner,  of  Brockton. 

William  E.  Reals  acquired  his  education  in 
the  schools  of  Middleboro  and  Rrockton. 
When  fifteen  years  of  age,  he  commenced  to 
work  for  his  living  in  the  shoe  factory  of  Peleg 
Leach,  of  Rrockton,  and  was  employed  there 
for  three  years  in  the  cutting-room.  He  was 
subsequently  engaged  in  the  sole-leather  room 
of  Martin  Wilds,  in  Calkins's  manufactory, 
and  in  the  grocery  store  of  Thompson  &  Pack- 
ard, si.\'  months  previous  to  their  failure. 
After  this  he  worked  in  the  shoe  store  of  Joel 
T.  Packard  for  eight  months,  and  in  the  same 
place,  after  George  H.  Jameson  became  the 
proprietor,  for  eleven  years.  Mr.  Reals  then 
started  in  business  with  William  D.  Wilder  as 
partner,  the  firm  name  being  Reals  &  Wilder. 
The  partnership  was  dissolved  at  the  end  of 
three  years,  and  Hosea  M.  Orcutt  took  Mr. 
Wilder's  place.  Under  Mr.  Reals's  able  and 
judicious  management  their  trade  has  in- 
creased from  year  to  year.  The  present  store 
is  twice   the   size  of  the  original   one.      They 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


keep  fresh  and  seasonable  goods,  and  deal 
honestly  and  courteously  with  customers.  A 
self-made  man  in  ail  respects,  Mr.  Reals  fully 
merits  the  esteem  generally  accorded  to  him. 
He  has  been  a  resident  of  this  place  since 
October  14,   1865. 

Mr.  Beals  was  married  January  11,  1880, 
to  Carrie,  daughter  of  Horace  Beals,  a  distant 
connection.  He  has  two  children  :  Arthur  E., 
fifteen  years  of  age,  attending  the  Brockton 
High  School;  and  Edgar  N.,  a  pupil  of  the 
Winthrop  School  in  this  city.  Mr.  Beals 
votes  the  Republican  ticket,  but  takes  no 
active  part  in  politics.  He  was  Chaplain  of 
Paul  Revere  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of 
Brockton,  and  is  a  member  of  the  Patrons  of 
Plusbandry  of  Brookville.  As  a  member 
of  the  Franklin  Methodist  Episcopal  Church 
he  has  held  every  office,  except  that  of  class 
leader,  being  at  present  Trustee,  Steward, 
Secretary  of  the  Quarterly  Conference,  and  a 
teacher  in  the  Sunday-school.  At  one  time 
he  officiated  as  first  superintendent  of  the 
Sunday-school.  He  is  Secretary  and  Treas- 
urer of  the  Methodist  Social  Union;  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Associa- 
tion, of  which  he  has  been  Director;  and  a 
zealous  member  of  the  Epworth  League,  in 
which   he   has   held  various    important   offices. 


"ENRY    L.   CRANE,   Town  Clerk  and 
Treasurer  of   Bridgewatcr,    is   also   a 

L^  V, ^  member  of  the  firm  Crane  &  Burrill, 

who  are  successful  merchants  of  this  town. 
He  was  born  here,  January  31,  i860,  son  of 
the  Hon.  Joshua  Eddy  and  Lucy  A.  (Reed) 
Crane.  His  grandfather  on  the  paternal  side, 
also  named  Joshua  Eddy,  was  a  soldier  in  the 
Revolutionary  War. 

The   Hon.    Joshua   E.    Crane   was   born   and 
reared    in    Berkeley,    Mass.      In    1848   he    ob- 


tained a  clerkship  in  a  store  at  Bridgewater. 
Within  a  year  or  two  from  that  time  he  started 
a  business  of  his  own  at  the  stand  now  occu- 
pied by  his  successors,  Crane  &  Burrill. 
Here  he  conducted  a  prosperous  business  until 
the  month  of  August,  1888,  when  he  died. 
His  career  as  a  business  man  was  marked  by 
probity  and  good  judgment,  and  he  was  elected 
to  a  number  of  offices  of  trust.  He  was  a 
Trustee  of  the  Bridgewater  Academy,  of  the 
Bridgewater  Savings  Bank,  and  of  the  Plym- 
outh County  Agricultural  Society.  He  was  a 
stanch  Republican,  and  served  the  community 
for  a  number  of  years  as  Town  Clerk.  He 
also  represented  the  district  in  the  Lower 
House  of  the  State  legislature  and  in  the 
State  Senate.  Mr.  Crane  was  a  member  of 
the  Congregational  church,  and  a  Mason  in 
good  standing.  His  wife,  who  was  born  in 
Weymouth,  Mass.,  in  1825,  is  a  member  of 
an  old  and  highly  respected  Weymouth  fam- 
ily. Quincy  Reed,  her  father,  and  his 
brother  were  pioneer  shoe  manufacturers  of 
Massachusetts.  She  now  resides  in  Bridge- 
water,  and  is  also  a  member  of  the  Congrega- 
tional church.  She  has  borne  the  following 
children,  namely:  Joshua  ¥-.,  the  City  Libra- 
rian of  Taunton,  Mass.  ;  Charles  R.,  who  is 
in  the  leather  business  in  Boston,  and  resides 
in  Bridgewater;  Moulton  E. ;  Annie  IL,  a 
music  teacher  residing  in  Bridgewater;  and 
Henry  L. ,  the  subject  of  this  sketch. 

Henry  L.  Crane  was  educated  in  the  public 
schools  and  at  the  Bridgewater  Academy. 
He  went  to  work  in  his  father's  store  when 
si.xteen  years  old,  and  literally  "grew  up  in 
the  business,"  becoming  familiar  with  all  its 
details.  After  his  father's  death  he  formed  a 
partnership  with  Henry  T.  Burrill,  and  for 
eight  years  the  firm  of  Crane  &  Burrill  has 
taken  a  leading  part  in  the  mercantile  life  of 
Bridgewater.      Mr.  Crane  was  married  in  1884 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


to  Lizzie  A.  Cole,  daughter  of  Charles  H. 
Cole,  of  Brockton,  Mass.  In  politics  he 
favors  the  Republican  side.  First  elected 
Town  Clerk  and  Treasurer,  respectively  in 
1887  and  1888,  he  has  been  re-elected  every 
year  since  to  both  offices.  An  active  member 
of  the  Masonic  brotherhood,  he  is  Past  Master 
of  Fellowship  Lodge,  of  Bridgewater,  Past 
High  Priest  of  Harmony  Chapter,  and  a  mem- 
ber of  Bay  State  Commandery  at  Brockton, 
Mass.  He  is  a  member  of  Pioneer  Lodge,  In- 
dependent Order  of  Odd  Fellows,  of  Bridge- 
water,  having  the  rank  of  Noble  Grand. 
Endowed  with  much  natural  ability  and  pleas- 
ing social  qualities,  he  is  respected  as  a  busi- 
ness man,  and  esteemed  as  a  member  of  so- 
ciety. 

ILISHA  T.  HARVILL,  Treasurer  of  the 
Rockland  Welt  Company,  is  one  of  the 
old  and  influential  business  men  of 
Rockland.  He  was  born  in  South  Weymouth, 
Mass.,  December  19,  1841,  son  of  Arterius 
and  Caroline  (Thayer)  Harvill.  Arterius 
Harvill,  who  was  a  native  of  the  State  of 
Maine  and  a  mechanic,  died  at  the  age  of 
seventy-five.  His  wife,  a  native  of  Holbrook, 
Mass.,  passed  away  in  her  fifty-first  year. 
They  were  the  parents  of  five  children,  three 
of  whom  attained  maturity.  These  were: 
Augusta,  Anna,  and  the  subject  of  our  sketch. 
Losing  his  parents  when  quite  young,  Elisha 
T.  Harvill  was  thrown  on  his  own  resources  at 
an  age  when  most  boys  are  thinking  of  nothing 
but  play.  He  was  then  bound  out  to  a  farmer 
in  East  Abington  until  he  was  sixteen  years 
old.  In  that  period  he  attended  school  only 
during  the  three  winter  months.  After  leav- 
ing the  farm  he  worked  in  a  shoe  shop  in 
Rockland.  In  1861,  at  the  outbreak  of  the 
Rebellion,  he  enlisted  in  Company  G,  Forty- 
third   Massachusetts    Volunteer    Infantry,    and 


later  in  Company  A,  Sixtieth  Massachusetts 
Regiment.  He  served  for  a  year  and  a  half 
in  the  North  Carolina  campaign:  and,  though 
he  participated  in  no  great  battle,  he  experi- 
enced all  the  hardships  of  a  soldier's  life, 
marching  and  countermarching  on  bad  roads 
in  all  kinds  of  weather,  running  the  ganntlet 
of  rebel  ambuscades,  standing  fire  in  skir- 
mishes, and  fighting  against  the  lassitude 
caused  by  the  enervating  climate  of  the  South. 
During  a  large  part  of  the  time  he  was  en- 
gaged in  guarding  property  and  persons.  On 
his  return  he  engaged  once  more  in  the  shoe 
business.  Thereafter,  solel}'  by  his  own  ef- 
forts, he  acquired  a  large  business  and  a  place 
among  the  leading  financiers  of  the  county. 
The  Rockland  Welt  Company  is  an  enterprise 
of  his.  Its  main  business  is  now  managed  by 
others,  but  as  Treasurer  Mr.  Harvill  looks 
after  its  financial  interests.  He  retired  from 
business  about  two  years  ago,  after  having 
manufactured  shoes  for  twenty-three  years. 
As  a  financier  he  has  many  interests,  both  in 
Massachusetts  and  elsewhere.  For  the  past 
ten  years  he  has  been  President  of  the  Rock- 
land Savings  Bank.  He  has  been  a  Director 
of  the  Rockland  National  Bank  since  its  or- 
ganization, about  eight  years  ago.  He  is 
President  of  the  Rockland  Building  Associa- 
tion; and  it  is  known  that  he  is  President  of 
a  corporation  controlling  a  paper  pulp-mill 
in  Maine,  a  large  enterprise  employing  two 
hundred  men. 

On  November  12,  1865,  Mr.  Harvill  mar- 
ried Miss  Caroline  Packard,  of  Charlestown, 
Mass.,  and  he  has  now  one  child,  Esther  T. , 
born  October  30,  1873.  Politically,  he  favors 
the  Republican  side,  and  he  takes  a  deep  in- 
terest in  public  affairs.  I'or  some  time  he 
has  been  on  the  Board  of  Water  Commis- 
sioners. He  is  a  member  of  the  Rockland 
Commercial  Club,  of  which   he   has   filled   the 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


President's  chair;  and  lie  has  been  Com- 
mander of  Hartsuff  Post,  No.  74,  Grand  Army 
of  the  Republic. 


'ETH  SPRAGUE,  the  Postmaster  of 
Hingham  Centre,  was  born  here  on 
St.  Valentine's  Day,  1S37,  son  of 
Daniel  and  Tamar  (Stoder)  Sprague,  of  Hing- 
ham. 

Josiah,  his  grandfather,  was  twice  married, 
the  second  wife  having  been  a  sister  of  the 
first.  Daniel  Sprague,  Josiah's  second  child 
by  the  second  wife,  Susan  (VVhiton)  Sprague, 
was  a  tanner  and  currier  for  many  years  in  this 
town,  where  he  was  born,  lie  continued  to 
work  at  his  trade  until  the  time  of  his  death, 
which  happened  at  the  age  of  eighty-seven 
years.  His  wife,  Tamar,  had  ten  children, 
six  of  whom  are  living.  Three  died  in  early 
life;  and  I'ranklin  died  in  August,  1896,  at 
the  age  of  seventy -one  years.  The  surviving 
children  are:  Emeline  A.,  Daniel  W.,  Josiah, 
Seth,  Su.san  W.,  and  Henry.  Emeline  mar- 
ried Loring  Jacobs,  of  this  town.  Josiah  has 
been  twice  married.  His  first  wife,  Adrian 
(Eincoln)  Sprague,  had  one  child,  I'red  L. 
His  second  wife,  in  maidenhood  Sarah  Eeavitt, 
also  had  one  child,  Myra.  Susan  \V.  married 
R.  H  Carthell,  of  this  town,  and  they  have 
one  child,  Susie  L.  Daniel.  The  father, 
Daniel  Sprague,  was  an  old-time  Whig  in  pol- 
itics. Both  he  and  his  wife  were  members  of 
the  Unitarian  church.  She  died  in  August, 
1892,  at  the  age  of  ninety-one. 

Seth  Sprague,  after  obtaining  his  education 
in  the  schools  of  his  native  town,  learned  the 
carriage  and  house-painting  trade,  and  subse- 
quently followed  it  until  1882.  He  was  sub- 
sequently engaged  in  the  paper-hanging  busi- 
ness for  six  years.  In  1888  he  was  appointed 
Postmaster,  which  position  he  still   satisfacto- 


rily fills.  His  political  view-point  is  Republi- 
can. He  has  been  a  member  of  Old  Colony 
Lodge,  A.  E.  &  A.  M.,  since  1866.  On  Oc- 
tober 5,  1862,  Mr.  Sprague  was  united  in  mar- 
riage with  Melissa  Sprague,  daughter  of  Josiah 
W.  Sprague,  of  Gardiner,  Me.  They  have 
had  three  children ;  namely,  Charles  E.,  Wal- 
lace W.,  and  Marion  W.  Charles  and  Wallace 
died  when  young. 


ORERT  H.  PACKARD,  a  well-to-do 
farmer  of  Brockton,  and  a  descendant 
^  »■  -of  one  of  the  earliest  families  of 
North  Bridgewater,  was  born  April  29,  1832, 
upon  the  farm  he  now  owns  and  occupies,  son 
of  Robert  and  Betsey  (Howard)  Packard.  He 
is  a  descendant  in  the  sixth  generation  of  the 
original  settler  of  the  Packard  homestead. 
His  grandfather,  Robert  Packard,  who  in  his 
turn  inherited  the  property,  and  carried  on 
farming  during  the  active  period  of  his  life, 
was  an  active  member  of  the  Orthodox  church, 
a  Captain  of  militia,  and  a  prominent  man  in 
his  day. 

Robert  Packard  (second),  Mr.  Packard's 
father,  was  born  in  North  Bridgewater,  and 
occupied  the  homestead  farm.  One  of  the 
stirring  and  successful  farmers  of  his  day,  and 
a  useful  and  highly  respected  citizen,  he  kept 
the  ancestral  estate  in  an  excellent  condition.  " 
His  wife,  Betsey,  who  was  a  native  of  Mon- 
tello,  the  northern  part  of  this  town,  became 
the  mother  of  four  children,  of  whom  the  only 
survivor  is  Robert  H.,  the  subject  of  this 
sketch. 

Robert  H.  Packard  attended  the  common 
schools  of  North  Bridgewater  for  the  usual 
period.  His  education  was  afterward  com- 
pleted at  the  Loomis  Academy.  He  began 
life  as  a  farmer  at  the  homestead,  where  he 
has  always   resided.      Here    he   zealously  sus- 


24 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


tains  the  reputation  of  ills  predecessors  by 
keeping  his  property  up  to  a  high  standard, 
thereby  making  it  one  of  the  best  and  most 
profitable  estates  in  this  locality. 

In  1857  Mr.  Packard  wedded  Ellen  A. 
Howard,  a  daughter  of  Lewis  Howard,  of 
North  Bridgewater.  Mrs.  Packard  is  now  the 
mother  of  two  children,  namely:  Walter  T., 
who  resides  at  home;  and  Lizzie  J.,  who  was 
married  in  June,  1885,  to  Harry  Dunbar,  of 
West  Bridgewater,  and  now  resides  in  Brock- 
ton, close  by  the  homestead.  In  politics 
Mr.  Packard  supports  the  Republican  party, 
and  he  is  a  member  of  the  Orthodox  church. 
He  is  also  a  charter  member  of  the  West 
Bridgewater  Grange. 


LBERT     GARDNER    BOYDEN,    son 

of  Phineas  and  Harriet  (Carroll)  Boy- 
den,  was  born  in  South  Walpole, 
Norfolk  County,  Mass.,  February  5,  1827. 
His  father  was  a  man  of  sterling  worth,  and 
by  trade  a  blacksmith.  His  mother  was  a 
woman  of  fine  character,  and  set  before  her 
children  the  ideal  of  a  noble  life.  Albert 
was  the  oldest  of  a  family  of  three  sons  and 
three  daughters.  I'roni  his  early  boyhood  he 
was  required  to  rise  early,  and  be  actively 
employed  until  bed-time.  He  was  a  leader  in 
the  sports  of  his  fellows,  and  knew  the  prod- 
ucts of  all  the  fields,  woods,  and  streams  in 
the  neighborhood  of  his  native  village.  He 
attended  the  district  school  summer  and  win- 
ter until  ten  years  of  age,  and  in  winter  until 
eighteen.  At  fourteen  years  of  age  he  de- 
cided to  be  a  teacher.  Strongly  desiring  to 
go  to  college,  but  unable  to  get  the  funds,  he 
gave  his  evenings  to  study,  determined  to  do 
what  he  could  for  himself.  He  worked  on  the 
farm  and  in  his  father's  blacksmith  shop  until, 
at   twenty-one  years   of   age,  he   had   mastered 


the  trade,  and  in  the  mean  time  had  taught 
three  winters  in  the  town  of  Foxboro.  On 
reaching  his  majority  he  had  good  health, 
good  habits,  his  trade,  and  the  assurance  of 
success  in  teaching. 

Having  saved  some  money  toward  paying 
his  expenses,  Mr.  Boyden  entered  the  State 
Normal  School  at  Bridgewater,  paying  the 
remainder  by  serving  as  janitor.  He  was 
graduated    from    this     school     in     November, 

1849,  and  taught  a  grammar  school  in  Hing- 
ham  during  the  next  winter.  He  received 
the  appointment  of  assistant  teacher  in  the 
Bridgewater    State     Normal    School    in    July, 

1850,  and  held  the  position  three  years,  under 
the  wise  counsel  and  sympathetic  help  of  the 
distinguished  founder  of  the  school,  Nicholas 
Tillinghast;  was  principal  of  the  English 
High  School  for  Boys  in  Salem  three  years; 
sub-master  of  the  Chapman  Grammar  School, 
Boston,  one  year;  first  assistant  again  in  the 
Bridgewater  Normal  School  three  and  one- 
half  years,  under  the  able  tuition  of  the  second 
principal,  Marshall  Conant;  was  appointed 
principal  of  the  school  in  August,  i860,  and 
received  the  honorary  degree  of  Master  of  Arts 
from  Amherst  College.  He  was  a  diligent 
student,  studying  under  private  tutors,  and 
during  the  time  he  was  assistant  in  the  Nor- 
mal School  he  was  called  upon  to  teach  nearly 
all  the  branches  of  the  course,  and  to  make  a 
careful  study  of  the  principles  and  method  of 
teaching.  He  started  in  life  with  the  deter- 
mination to  do  everthing  intrusted  to  him 
with  the  best  of  his  ability,  and  has  never 
sought  a  position  as  teacher. 

Mr.  Boyden  has  filled  the  position  of  princi- 
pal of  the  Bridgewater  Normal  School  with 
eminent  ability  and  fidelity.  Under  him  the 
number  of  students  has  steadily  increased,  the 
course  of  study  has  been  expanded,  the  build- 
ing,  grounds,   and    equipments   of    the    school 


•?>^ 


..^y^/l^£y^^^l^e^^^3:^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


27 


have  been  greatly  enlarged,  and  the  profes- 
sional spirit  of  the  school  has  been  greatly 
developed.  In  the  fall  term  of  i860,  when  he 
assumed  charge,  there  were  sixty-seven  pupils. 
In  the  fall  term  of  1S94  there  were  two  hun- 
dred and  fifty-three.  In  i860  the  course  of 
study  extended  through  three  terms  of  twenty 
weeks  each.  At  the  present  time  four  courses 
are  in  operation:  a  two  years"  course,  a  four 
years'  course,  a  post-graduate  course  for  col- 
lege graduates,  and  special  courses  for  teachers 
of  long  experience. 

The  first  six  years  of  its  life  the  school  held 
its  sessions  in  the  Town  Hall.  In  1846  it 
moved  into  a  new  building,  the  first  State 
Normal  School  building  erected  in  America. 
In  1 861  this  building  was  enlarged,  increas- 
ing its  capacity  seventy  per  cent.  In  1871 
the  building  was  again  enlarged  by  adding  a 
third  story.  In  1S81  a  building  for  chemical, 
physical,  and  industrial  laboratories  was  built. 
In  iSgo  these  buildings  were  removed,  and  a 
massive  brick  structure,  eighty-six  teet  in 
front  by  one  hundred  and  eighty-seven  feet  in 
length,  three  stories  above  the  basement,  was 
erected.  In  1894  this  building  was  extended, 
increasing  its  capacity  fifty  per  cent.  In  1869 
the  boarding  department  of  the  school  became 
a  necessity,  and  a  residence  hall  was  erected, 
accommodating  fifty-two  students  and  the 
family  of  the  principal.  In  1S73  it  was  en- 
larged to  accommodate  one  hundred  and  forty- 
eight  students.  In  1891  the  laboratory  build- 
ing was  converted  into  a  residence  hall, 
accommodating  thirty-two  students.  The 
present  school  building,  with  its  equipments, 
is  not  surpassed  by  any  normal-school  build- 
ing in  the  country  in  its  adaptation  to  its  pur- 
pose. It  will  accommodate  two  hundred  and 
fifty  normal  students  and  a  practice  school  of 
five  hundred  pupils.  The  grounds  have  been 
increased  from  one  and   one-quarter    acres  to 


si.xteen  acres,    including  a  beautiful   park  and 
grove  of  six  and  one-half  acres. 

Mr.  Boyden  has  given  his  best  thought  to 
the  study  of  man,  to  find  the  principles  of  edu- 
cation which  determine  the  method  of  all  true 
teaching,  and,  to  the  application  of  these  prin- 
ciples in  co-ordinating  the  work  of  the  school, 
to  make  it  a  thorough  normal  training  school 
in  all  its  course.  He  has  sought,  with  the 
more  than  thirty-five  hundred  pupils  who  have 
come  under  tuition  in  his  school,  to  set  before 
them  a  high  ideal  of  what  life  should  be,  to 
awaken  the  conscience  to  the  responsibilities 
of  the  teacher,  to  give  them  command  of  them- 
selves, of  the  philosophy  of  teaching,  and  of 
the  subjects  to  be  used  in  teaching,  and  such 
a  knowledge  of  children  that  they  shall  be 
able  to  practise  wisely  the  art  of  teaching. 

The  school  has  a  national  reputation.  Its 
graduates  are  engaged  in  all  lines  of  educa- 
tional work  —  as  teachers  in  common,  high, 
and  normal  schools,  as  superintendents  of 
schools,  State  agents,  and  State  superintend- 
ents. Some  have  become  prominent  as  law- 
yers, physicians,  clergymen,  and  in  business. 
Many  as  wives  and  mothers  exert  a  strong 
educational  influence.  Some  are  missionaries 
in  distant  lands. 

As  teacher  and  citizen,  Mr.  Boyden  is  held 
in  the  highest  esteem.  He  has  been  President 
of  the  Plymouth  County  Teachers'  Associa- 
tion, of  the  Massachusetts  Teachers'  Associa- 
tion, of  the  Massachusetts  Schoolmasters' 
Club,  of  the  New  England  Normal  Council; 
Vice-President  of  the  American  Institute  of 
Instruction;  Secretary  of  the  National  Council 
of  Education;  Trustee  of  the  Bridgewater 
Savings  Bank;  clerk  of  Central  Square  Con- 
gregational Society  since  1863;  President  of 
the  Old  Colony  Congregational  Club;  editor 
of  Massac/iiisrtts  Tcaclicr;  and  author  of 
numerous  educational  addresses. 


28 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Mr.  Boydcn  was  married  in  Newport,  Me., 
November  i8,  1851,  to  Isabella  Whitten 
Clarke,  daughter  of  Thomas  and  Martha  Lou- 
isa (Whitten)  Clarke.  Miss  Clarke  was  a 
graduate  of  the  Bridgcwatcr  Normal  school, 
and  a  successful  teacher.  Of  this  union  were 
three  sons:  Arthur  Clarke  J^oyden,  A.M., 
Vice-President  Bridgcwatcr  Normal  School ; 
Walter  Clarke  Boyden,  who  died  in  infancy; 
and  Wallace  Clarke  Boyden,  A.M.,  sub- 
master  Boston  Normal  School. 

Mr.  Boyden  has  been  invited  to  take  charge 
of  normal  schools  in  other  States,  with  larger 
compensation,  but  has  preferred  to  remain  in 
Bridgewater  that  he  might  carry  forward  his 
plans  for  the  development  of  this  school. 


/^3)eORGK  a.  WOOD,  proprietor  of  one 
\  P  I  of  the  best  markets  in  Brockton,  was 
born  in  Westport,  Bristol  County, 
Mass.,  January  26,  1857,  son  of  Alexander 
and  Bathana  B.  (Manley)  Wood.  The  Wood 
family,  which  is  an  old  one,  was  connected 
with  that  of  Captain  Miles  Standish,  "the 
doughty  warrior  of  Plymouth.'"  Mr.  Wood  is 
of  the  third  generation  of  his  family  born  in 
Westport,  that  place  having  been  also  the 
birthplace  of  his  grandfather,  Captain  Nathan, 
who  was  a  son  of  William  Wood.  The  Cap- 
tain devoted  much  of  his  life  to  the  pursuit  of 
agriculture.  He  was  one  of  the  prominent 
citizens  of  Westport,  held  several  town  offices, 
and  commanded  a  company  of  State  militia. 
He  lived  to  attain  the  advanced  age  of  eighty- 
nine.  Annie  Gifford,  of  Westport,  became 
his  wife,  and  bore  him  si.\  children — Alex- 
ander, Nancy,  Clarinda,  Amanda,  Angel ine, 
and  Nathan  W. 

Alexander  Wood  was  born  in  Westport,  and 
educated  in  the  common  schools  of  the  town. 
He  learned  the  cooper's  trade,  antl  went  to  sea 


as  cooper  on  a  whaling-vessel.  Attracted  by 
the  adventurous  life,  he  learned  the  principles 
of  navigation,  and  was  subsequently  first 
officer  of  a  vessel  for  a  number  of  years.  At 
the  age  of  thirty-nine,  having  followed  the  sea 
for  twenty  years,  he  retired  and  settled  on  a 
farm  at  Westport  Point,  where  he  died  at  the 
age  of  seventy-three.  His  wife,  who  was  a 
daughter  of  John  Manley,  of  Little  Compton, 
R.I.,  died  at  the  age  of  sixty-two.  He  had 
seven  children,  three  of  whom  are  living. 

George  A.  Wood  attended  the  common 
schools  of  Westport  until  fifteen  years  of  age. 
He  then  took  up  the  business  of  designing  and 
engraving  on, silver,  at  the  same  time  attend- 
ing the  Taunton  Art  School.  He  was  with 
the  Taunton  Silver  Plate  Company  about  five 
years,  at  the  end  of  which  they  went  out  of 
business.  Then  for  three  years  he  was  in  the 
employ  of  the  Meriilen  Britannia  Company  of 
Connecticut.  His  next  engagement  was  as 
foreman  of  a  room  for  Steen,  Son,  &  Hall, 
successors  to  the  Taunton  Silver  Plate  Com- 
pany, the  establishment  being  in  New  York 
City.  Having  remained  five  years  with  them, 
he,  in  Sei^tember,  1884,  opened  a  meat  market 
at  his  present  location  in  Brockton,  in  partner- 
ship with  D.  V.  Hathaway,  of  Fall  River. 
The  firm,  which  was  known  as  Wood  &  Hath- 
away, was  dissolved  at  the  end  of  two  years, 
Mr.  Wood  purchasing  his  partner's  interest, 
and  since  that  time  he  has  carried  on  the  busi- 
ness alone.  He  now  employs  four  clerks,  and 
uses  three  delivery  teams.  He  has  also  an  in- 
terest in  the  Brockton  Building  Association. 

In  November,  1878,  Mr.  Wood  was  married 
to  Mary  J.  Davol,  daughter  of  Albert  D. 
Davol,  of  Taunton,  Mass.  They  have  had 
four  children,  namely:  Harold  A.,  who  at- 
tends the  Brockton  High  School,  and  is  a 
member  of  the  High  School  Cadets;  Bessie 
May,  who  died  in    infancy;   Plorence  D. ,  now 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


29 


eight  years  old;  and  Mildred  B.,  aged  five. 
In  politics  Mr.  Wood  is  a  Republican. 
Though  taking  an  active  interest  in  political 
affairs,  he. has  not  accepted  public  office,  pre- 
ferring to  devote  his  time  to  his  business.  He 
is  a  member  of  Paul  Revere  Lodge,  A.  F.  & 
A.  M.;  of  Massoit  Lodge,  Independent  Order 
of  Odd  P'ellovvs;  of  Damocles  Lodge,  No.  16, 
Knights  of  Pythias,  of  which  he  was  Treasurer 
for  a  number  of  years;  of  Brockton  Division, 
No.  II,  Uniform  Rank,  Brockton  Council, 
Royal  Arcanum,  of  which  he  is  also  Trustee; 
a  charter  member  of  the  Senate  of  the  Ancient 
Kssenic  Order,  and  a  Trustee  of  the  First 
l-5oard ;  and  a  charter  member  of  LI  Katif 
Temple,  No.  44,  Knights  of  Karassum. 
While  in  Taunton  he  was  connected  with  the 
Taunton  Hook  and  Ladder  Company  some 
three  years,  and  was  Sergeant  of  the  Taunton 
City  Guards.  When  he  left  the  State  for  New 
York  he  severed  his  connection  with  the  mili- 
tia. He  is  now  an  associate  member  of 
Fletcher  Webster  Post,  No.  13,  (irand  Army 
of  the  Republic,  of  Brockton.  Mr.  Wood 
attends  the  Universalist  church,  and  has  for  a 
number  of  years  been  a  contributor  to  the 
Young  Men's  Christian  Association,  which 
has  done  much  for  him.  His  business  success 
is  due  entirely  to  his  own  exertions,  as  he  has 
never  received  any  outside  help. 


ILLIAM  AUGUSTUS  THOMP- 
SON, a  prosperous  farmer  of  Brock- 
ton, and  a  representative  of  an  old 
and  highly  reputable  family  of  this  section, 
was  born  in  North  Bridgewater,  now  Brockton, 
December  14,  1824,  son  of  John  and  Sarah 
(Jones)  Thompson.  The  family  is  of  Irish 
origin.  Its  founder  in  America  was  Archibald 
Thompson,  who,  with  his  wife  and  son,  emi- 
grated from  the  north  of  Ireland    in    1724,  and 


first  settled  in  Abington,  this  county.  A 
short  time  later  he  moved  to  Bridgewater,  and 
was  one  of  the  first  settlers  in  the  North 
Parish.  It  is  claimed  that  he  made  the  first 
spinning-wheel  constructed  in  New  England. 
He  died  in  1776,  aged  eighty-five.  He  reared 
a  family  of  eight  children,  of  whom  Thomas, 
the  second  born,  was  William  A.  Thompson's 
great-grandfather.  In  1754  Thomas  Thomp- 
son married  lilizal^eth  Strowbridge,  and  he 
died  May  28,  18 10,  aged  eighty-one  years. 
His  wife  died  October  18,  181 1,  aged  seventy- 
nine.  Of  their  eight  children.  Captain 
Thomas,  the  sixth  born,  was  William  A. 
Thompson's  grandfather. 

Captain  Thomas  Thompson  was  born  in 
North  Bridgewater,  July  4,  1767.  He  was 
engaged  in  farming  and  the  manufacture  of 
spinning-wlieels,  and  died  November  10,  1835, 
aged  sixty-eight  years.  On  August  5,  1792, 
he  wedded  Martha  Kingman,  daughter  of 
Matthew  Kingman,  and  she  became  the  mother 
of  six  children;  namely,  John,  Charlotte, 
Sophronia,  Jane  S.,  Martha  Kingman,  and 
John  (second).  The  mother  died  December 
28,  1840,  aged  seventy-five  years.  John 
Thompson,  Mr.  Thompson's  father,  was  born 
in  North  Bridgewater,  March  16,  1795.  He 
was  engaged  in  tilling  the  soil  during  the  ac- 
tive period  of  his  life,  and  died  May  25,  1866, 
aged  seventy-one  years.  His  wife,  Sarah, 
whom  he  married  November  18,  1S19,  was  a 
daughter  of  Captain  Asa  Jones.  She  died 
F"ebruary  20,  1853,  aged  fifty-three  years, 
leaving  one  son,  William  A.,  the  subject  of 
this  sketch. 

William  Augustus  Thompson  received  his 
education  in  the  common  schools  of  North 
Bridgewater  and  at  a  private  school  in  Shrews- 
bury, Mass.  He  has  followed  agricultural 
pursuits  since  young  manhood,  and  owns  a 
farm    containing    seventy    acres    of    excellent 


3" 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


tillage  land.  He  works  occasionally  in  his 
sons'  shoe  factory,  as  the  opportunity  serves: 
but  his  time  and  attention  are  chiefly  devoted 
to  his  farm,  which  he  carries  on  very  success- 
fully. 

In  1844  Mr.  Thompson  was  united  in  mar- 
riage to  Almira  J.  Hayward,  of  Bi-ockton,  by 
whom  he  became  the  father  of  five  children. 
These  were :  George  Hayward,  who  was  born 
September  27,  1848;  Alma,  who  was  born 
September  26,  1851,  and  died  September  6, 
1852;  Abby,  who  was  twin  sister  of  Alma, 
and  died  June  28,  1852;  John  Franklin,  who 
was  born  September  9,  1857;  and  Sarah  Rus- 
sell, who  was  born  November  Q,  1861.  Mrs. 
Thompson  died  August  27,  1883,  aged  fifty- 
eight  years  and  three  months.  George  H. 
and  John  F.  Thompson,  under  the  firm  name 
of  Thompson  Brothers,  conduct  a  shoe  factory 
near  the  family  residence.  The  father  is  a 
Republican  in  politics.  His  ancestors  were 
noted  for  ability,  thrift,  and  industry  —  the 
characteristics  of  himself  and  his  sons. 


•AMUEL  L.  BEAL,  A.M.,  an  en- 
terprising business  man  of  Brock- 
ton, was  born  in  Jefferson  township, 
Switzerland  County.  Ind.,  June  24,  1840,  son 
of  Lewis  W.  and  Mary  (Lester)  Beal.  After 
acquiring  his  elementary  education  in  his  na- 
tive place,  he  prepared  for  college  at  Hills- 
dale, Mich.  Graduating  from  the  Free  Bap- 
tist College  there  in  1868,  he  entered  the 
Congregational  Theological  .Seminary  at 
Bangor,  Me.  Here,  before  he  had  finished 
the  course,  his  religious  opinions  underwent  a 
change,  and  he  completed  his  theological 
course  at  St.  Lawrence  (Universalist)  Uni- 
versity at  Canton,  N. Y.,  graduating  in  the 
class  of  1870. 

His  first  pastoral  charge  was  the   Universal- 


ist church  at  Westminster,  Mass.,  which  was 
under  his  direction  some  two  and  a  half  years. 
His  next  was  the  Universalist  Church  at 
Provincetown,  this  State.  Here  he  had  sjient 
two  years  and  a  half,  when  he  resigned. 
Later,  complying  with  a  recall,  he  labored 
there  for  six  months  more.  On  April  12, 
1876,  he  moved  to  Brockton,  and,  about  a  year 
after,  he  became  connected  with  the  Universal- 
ist Society,  which,  at  that  time  was  ruptured 
by  internal  schisms.  Mr.  Beal  took  the  rem- 
nants of  the  society,  founded  an  independent 
movement,  and  for  six  years  was  engaged  here 
in  active  and  unceasing  labor.  During  three 
summers  of  that  time  he  preached  also  at 
South  Easton  for  the  Unitarians,  and  in  Avon 
to  a  small  independent  congregation.  The 
severe  strain  caused  his  voice  to  fail  him,  and 
his  physician  advised  him  to  abandon  the 
pulpit.  He  followed  this  advice,  and  was 
afterward  engaged  for  some  time  in  book  can- 
vassing. He  then  became  interested  in 
Spiritualism  in  Brockton,  and  about  the  year 
1884  joined  the  ranks  of  the  Spiritualists.  In 
this  new  field  he  became  as  enthusiastic  and 
energetic  as  in  his  former  charges.  During 
the  past  six  years  he  has  presided  at  different 
Spiritualist  camp  meetings  at  Ocean  Grove, 
Harwichport,  and  has  spent  much  time  in  the 
lecture  field.  Mr.  Beal  also  acts  as  agent  for 
several  property  owners,  and  is  the  proprietor 
of  a  news-stand  and  a  circulating  library.  In 
connection  with  his  newspaper  business  he 
sells  about  five  hundred  papers  daily,  em- 
ploying several   boys  on   paper  routes. 

On  March  2y,  1875,  ^I''-  ^^^^"^1  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Lizzie  P.,  daughter  of  Albert 
and  Martha  Johnson  Sweetser,  of  Province- 
town,  Mass.  The  union  has  been  blessed  by 
four  children.  Their  eldest  son  graduated 
from  the  Brockton  High  School  in  1895,  and 
is    now  studying    at    Brown    University;     the 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


31 


eldest  daughter  graduated  from  the  high 
school  in  1896;  and  the  other  children  are  at- 
tending school  in  this  city.  Mr.  Beal  votes 
the  Prohibition  ticket.  In  Westminster  and 
Brockton  he  has  served  on  the  school  Commit- 
tee. He  has  been  Assessor  of  Brockton  since 
1 89 1.  In  the  temperance  movement  he  has 
taken  a  prominent  part,  and  was  nominated  by 
the  Prohibition  Party  for  Mayor  at  one  time. 
He  is  a  member  of  the  Independent  Order  of 
Good  Templars  in  this  city,  and  was  Chaplain 
of  the  Grand  Lodge  at  one  time.  He  was 
made  a  Mason  at  Gardiner,  Mass.,  and  took 
chapter  degrees  at  Provincetown.  He  has  also 
affiliation  with  Massasoit  Lodge,  No.  69,  In- 
dependent Order  of  Odd  Fellows,  of  Brockton. 


-OSIAH  A.  TORRKV,  a  well-known 
manufacturer  and  merchant  of  Rock- 
land, was  born  December  31,  1835, 
son  of  Josiah  and  Iilizabeth  D.  (Estes)  Tor- 
rey,  both  natives  of  Plymouth  County.  The 
family  is  a  distinguished  one,  and  of  English 
e.xtraction.  Its  founder  was  Captain  Will- 
iam Torrey,  of  Combe,  St.  Nicholas,  County 
of  Somerset,  England,  who  settled  in  the 
town  of  North  Weymouth  as  far  back  as  1640, 
and  established  the  family  seat,  where  his 
descendants  have  since  resided. 

Phillip  Torrey,  the  great-grandfather  of  Jo- 
siah A.,  was  a  farmer  of  North  Weymouth,  in 
which  place  he  spent  most  of  his  life.  His 
son  William,  the  grandfather,  who  was  there 
born  and  educated,  married  Elizabeth,  daugh- 
ter of  Captain  David  Hersey,  of  Abington. 

Josiah  Torrey,  William's  son,  also  a  native 
of  Abington,  was  born  November  29,  1798, 
and  spent  all  his  life  in  that  place.  At  first 
a  farmer,  he  subsequently  engaged  in  the 
manufacture  of  soap.  He  married  Elizabeth 
D.    Estes,    a  native   of    Hanover,    Mass.,    who 


came  of  good  Italian  ancestry,  and  was  a 
woman  of  great  personal  attractions  through- 
out her  life.  Born  thirteen  years  later  than 
her  husband,  she  survived  him  thirteen  years, 
and  died  as  he  did,  at  the  age  of  eighty-one, 
having  been  the  mother  of  thirteen  children. 
Eight  of  the  children  are  living;  namely, 
Mary  L.,  Josiah  A.,  Ann  E.,  Hattie  R.,  Clara, 
William,  Ella,  and  Ruth. 

Josiah  A.  Torrey,  the  eldest  surviving  son 
of  his  parents,  was  brought  up  on  a  farm  of 
his  father's  in  the  town  of  Rockland.  His 
opportunities  for  obtaining  an  education  were 
somewhat  limited,  as  he  had  to  spend  much  of 
his  time  helping  on  the  farm.  He  attended 
the  district  schools  each  winter  during  his 
early  boyhood,  thereby  obtaining  a  foundation 
for  the  knowledge  that  he  afterward  acquired. 
He  worked  with  his  father  on  his  farm  and  in 
the  soap  factory  until  he  was  twenty-one  years 
old,  when  he  was  made  a  partner  in  the  latter 
concern.  At  his  father's  death  he  succeeded 
to  the  business,  and  has  since  been  the  sole 
proprietor.  The  factory  is  in  a  flourishing 
condition,  and  has  proved  a  most  profitable 
investment.  He  is  also  interested  in  the 
Rockland  National  Bank,  of  which  he  is  a 
Director,  and  in  the  Rockland  Savings  Bank, 
of  which  he  is  President. 

Mr.  Torrey  married  Arabella  Grover,  of 
Bethel,  Me.,  and  by  her  becamf^  the  father  of 
four  children.  These  were:  J.  Carlton,  who 
was  a  civil  engineer  by  profession,  and  died  a 
victim  of  overwork;  Arthur  E.,  who  is  a  ma- 
chinist, and  resides  in  Rockland;  Harry  A.,  a 
market  gardener  of  Rockland ;  and  Lena  G. , 
who  resides  at  home.  In  his  politics  Mr. 
Torrey  is  a  strong  Republican,  and  a  stanch 
upholder  of  the  temperance  cause.  He  was 
formerly  a  Selectman,  and  was  Assessor  for 
four  years.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Congrega- 
tional church.      Both  he  and  his  wife  regularly 


32 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


attend  the  Congregational  church,  of  which  he 
is  a  member.  He  belongs  to  Standish  Lodge, 
Independent  Order  of  Odd  I-'ellovvs. 


ILLIAIM  \'V.  CROSS  is  the  senior 
member  of  the  firm  of  \V.  VV.  Cross 
&  Co.,  tack  manufacturers,  of 
Brockton,  Mass.,  one  of  the  leading  industrial 
concerns  of  this  thriving  business  centre. 
He  was  born  in  North  Bridgewater  (now 
Brockton),  November  20,  1833,  the  son  of 
Nathaniel  H.  and  Lucy  (Vose)  Cross,  and  is 
a  member  of  an  old  New  England  family. 

His  paternal  grandfather,  Captain  Nathan- 
iel Cross,  came  from  Exeter,  N.H.,  to  the 
vicinity  of  Brockton,  early  in  the  century. 
Nathaniel  H.  Cross,  son  of  Captain  Nathan- 
iel, was  born  in  East  Bridgewater,  October 
II,  1803.  He  was  an  ambitious  and  enter- 
prising man,  and  tried  more  than  one  way  of 
earning  a  livelihood,  engaging  for  a  while  in 
the  manufacture  of  carriages,  and  subse- 
quently managing  a  store  and  a  hotel.  Active 
in  public  affairs,  he  was  captain  of  a  fire 
engine  company,  was  a  member  of  the  North 
Bridgewater  Board  of  Selectmen,  and  was  for 
a  time  Postmaster  of  the  town.  He  died  at 
the  age  of  thirty-nine.  His  wife,  a  daughter 
of  Elijah  and  Catherine  (Cobb)  Vose,  of  Bos- 
ton, died  May  4,  1896,  at  the  advanced  age  of 
eighty-nine. 

William  W.  Cross  attended  school  for  a 
while  in  his  native  town,  and  went  at  the  age 
of  nine  to  live  with  an  aunt  at  Westminster, 
Vt.  He  there  worked  on  a  farm  for  three 
years  and  three  months,  and  then,  returning 
home,  found  employment  in  the  Boston  Water 
Works  at  Needham,  Mass.,  receiving  si.\  dol- 
lars a  month.  He  was  employed  in  the  water- 
works six  months,  and  was  then  hired  by  Z.  K. 
Brett,  dry-goods  merchant  of   Wareham,   who 


gave  him  two  hundred  dollars  a  year,  board, 
clothing,  and  two  years'  schooling.  With 
steady  perseverance  he  retained  this  position 
until  twenty-one  years  and  eight  months  of 
age,  managing  to  save  the  greater  part  of  his 
salary;  and  he  then  opened  a  dry-goods  store 
of  his  own  in  Palmer,  Mass.,  which  he  suc- 
cessfully managed  until  1869.  On  the  23d  of 
March,  that  year,  he  came  to  Brockton  (then 
North  Bridgewater),  and  on  April  15  he 
bought  a  tack  factory  on  the  site  of  his  pres- 
ent building.  Starting  with  nine  machines, 
he  gradually  increased  the  amount  to  one  hun- 
dred and  twenty,  and  during  the  past  year  he 
has  had  all  these  machines  in  operation,  run- 
ning overtime  at  the  rate  of  a  day  and  a  quar- 
ter a  week.  In  the  twenty-seven  years  that  he 
has  been  in  this  business  he  has  not  expended 
two  hundred  dollars  to  increase  the  sale  of  his 
goods,  as  his  manufactures  are  of  the  highest 
grade  only,  and  speak  for  themselves;  and  he 
is  often  obliged  to  run  night  and  day  to  fill 
orders.  He  exports  largely  to  England,  Scot- 
land, Russia,  and  Germany. 

Mr.  Cross  was  one  of  the  first  to  become 
interested  in  the  Brockton  Street  Railway 
when  it  was  projected,  buying  a  goodly 
amount  of  its  stock.  He  became  President  of 
the  company  after  the  expiration  of  his  term  as 
Selectman  of  the  town,  having  previously  de- 
clined the  office,  and  such  was  the  benefit  of 
his  administration  that  when  he  came  to  sell 
his  stock  its  value  had  risen  to  one  hundred 
and  fifty  dollars  a  share. 

Mr.  Cross  was  one  of  the  four  who  con- 
ceived and  carried  out  the  idea  of  the  City 
Theatre.  He  built  the  theatre,  and  is  now 
one  of  its  four  owners.  He  has  been  Vice- 
President  of  the  Brockton  National  Bank  ever 
since  its  incorporation,  and  on  its  tenth  birth- 
day he  gave  a  dinner  to  the  Board  of  Directors 
at  Young's    Hotel,    Boston.      He    has    been    a 


WILLIAM    W.    CROSS. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


35 


Trustee  of  the  Brockton  Savings  Bank  from  its 
lieginning.  In  1892  he  was  elected  President 
of  the  Board  of  the  Standard  Rubber  Com- 
pany, and  held  the  position  until  January  i, 
1896;  and  he  has  been  Vice-President  of  the 
Brockton  Agricultural  Society  from  the  date 
of  its  incorporation.  He  was  one  of  the  four 
original  members  who  started  the  society, 
and  purchased  the  twenty  acres  of  land,  which 
constituted  the  nucleus  of  its  handsome 
grounds.  Additional  purchases  have  been  made 
from  time  to  time,  and  now  the  land  alone  is 
worth  one  hundred  and  twenty  thousand  dol- 
lars. The  society  has  laid  out  over  one  hun- 
dred and  thirty  thousand  dollars  for  construc- 
tion, and  they  find  their  venture  a  paying 
investment,  for  in  four  days  in  1895  their 
gross  receipts  were  forty-three  thousand  dol- 
lars. Mr.  Cross  takes  a  deep  interest  in  the 
welfare  of  this  society. 

He  was  united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Mary 
J.  Bartlett,  of  Wareham,  Mass.,  on  January  8, 
1855;  and  two  children  have  blessed  their 
union.  The  elder,  William  B.,  who  was  born 
November  15,  1858,  became  his  father's  part- 
ner in  1878,  and  he  has  largely  increased  the 
foreign  trade  of  the  firm.  The  younger  son, 
Charles  L.,  was  born  in  July,  1866,  and  died 
in  November,  1866.  William  B.  Cross  is  a 
Director  of  the  Brockton  Agricultural  Society. 

Mr.  Cross  is  a  strong  Republican,  but  not 
an  active  political  worker.  When  Brockton 
was  known  as  the  town  of  North  Bridgewater, 
he  was  Selectman  for  two  years,  and  Water 
Commissioner  for  three  years.  One  of  the 
original  Board  of  Construction  of  the  water- 
works, he  was  actively  interested  in  their 
completion,  and  was  elected  to  the  Board  of 
Commissioners  as  a  man  who  understood  the 
affairs,  and  would  look  after  the  town's  best 
interests.  He  has  been  a  Mason  since  1856, 
when    he    joined    the    first    lodge    at    Palmer, 


Mass.,  and  he  was  made  a  Royal  Arch  Mason 
in  Springfield,  and  a  Knight  Templar  in 
Abington.  He  attends  the  Congregational 
church,  contributing  liberally  to  its  support. 
As  a  self-made  man,  Mr.  Cross  has  accom- 
plished a  remarkable  amount  of  work,  with 
no  backward  slips  in  his  upward  career:  and 
this  brief  sketch  of  his  progress  shows  the 
power  for  success  in  tenacity  of  purpose,  aided 
by  the  faculty  of  living  within  one's  means, 
even  though  the  means  are  small  as  his  were 
in  his  early  youth. 


♦^•^» 


HOMAS  ARCHIBALD,  an  esteemed 
business  man  of  Rockland,  was  born 
April  25,  1866,  in  Nova  Scotia,  of 
which  Canadian  province  his  parents,  Samuel 
and  Susan  (Parker)  Archibald,  also  were  na- 
tives. Samuel  Archibald  is  a  manufacturer 
of  fertilizers  in  his  native  country,  and  does 
a  flourishing  business. 

Thomas,  who  was  one  of  seven  children 
(five  boys  and  two  girls),  received  a  good  edu- 
cation in  his  native  country.  He  was  first 
employed  in  a  shoe  store,  where  he  served  in 
the  capacity  of  clerk.  After  remaining  there 
for  some  time,  he  found  employment  with  a 
large  wholesale  house  as  travelling  salesman. 
.Shortly  after,  his  father  engaged  his  services, 
and  finally  took  him  into  the  firm  of  which  he 
has  since  remained  a  member.  C)f  late  years 
he  has  also  been  in  business  for  himself. 
Coming  to  Rockland  a  few  years  ago,  he 
started  the  manufacture  of  what  are  now  known 
as  the  "Black  Band  Cannon  Crackers,"  which 
enterprise  has  been  a  decided  success,  and  at- 
tests to  his  ingenuity  and  high  business  quali- 
ties. The  goods  attract  a  great  amount  of 
attention  from  dealers,  and  have  a  large  sale. 
The  business  is  conducted  by  Mr.  Archibald, 
under  the  firm  name  of  Archibald  &  Co.      The 


36 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


other  members  of  the  firm  reside  in  Nova 
Scotia.  The  machinery  they  use  is  of  their 
own  construction.  One  machine,  the  only 
one  in  the  world,  commences,  binds,  and  com- 
pletes the  manufacture  of  a  cannon  cracker. 

On  July  15,  1889,  Mr.  Archibald  married 
Helen  MacDonald,  a  native  of  Nova  Scotia. 
He  has  two  children  —  Margaret  Helen,  born 
July  22,  1890;  and  Mary  Bowers  Archibald, 
born  June  10,  1893.  Mr.  Archibald  and  wife 
are  members  of  the  Congregational  church. 


ii^aORTUS  B.   HANCOCK,  a  prominent 
resident    of    Brockton,    engaged    in 

^-  the   insurance  and   real   estate   busi- 

ness, was  born  in  Coventry,  Vt.,  February  19, 
1836,  a  son  of  James  and  Rebecca  (Miller) 
Hancock.  His  branch  of  the  Hancock  family 
has  been  domesticated  in  this  country  since 
Colonial  times.  It  was  founded  by  Anthony 
Hancock,  who  came  from  England,  and  settled 
in  Dorchester,  Mass.,  in  1638,  with  William 
Sumner.  At  a  later  date  he  removed  to 
Wrentham,  Norfolk  County,  and  in  that  town 
his  second  wife  bore  him  a  son,  Anthony,  Jr., 
in  1686.  The  latter  was  married  in  1707  to 
Elizabeth  Goddard,  of  Sherburne,  Mass.,  and 
had  a  family  of  nine  children.  Of  these,  the 
youngest,  Benjamin,  who  was  born  in 
Wrentham,  June  15,  1728,  married  Patience 
Clark,  June  19,  1751,  and  reared  seven  chil- 
dren. 

Benjamin's  second  child,  Asa,  the  grand- 
father of  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  was  born 
in  Wrentham,  August  30,  1753,  and  settled  on 
a  farm  in  Surrey,  N.H.,  about  the  year  1778- 
79.  Asa  Hancock  married  Abigail  Shepard- 
son,  of  Cumberland,  R.I.,  who  bore  him  nine 
children,  of  whom  James  was  the  sixth. 
James  Hancock  was  born  in  Surrey,  N.  H., 
May   25,   1788,    and    like   the   majority   of    the 


dwellers  in  that  vicinity  was  a  farmer.  He 
was  married  August  24,  181  i,  to  Rebecca 
Miller,  of  Westminster,  Mass.,  who  shared 
with  him  the  labor  and  care  which  were  the 
lot  of  the  hardy  farmer  in  those  days.  In 
18 18  James  and  his  wife  moved  from  West- 
moreland, N.H.,  to  Coventry,  Vt.,  taking 
nine  days  to  m.ake  the  journey  on  an  ox-sled, 
much  of  the  way  through  a  wild  and  unbroken 
country.  l^oth  are  now  deceased.  Of  their 
ten  children  Horace  and  Portus  B.  are  living. 
The  others  were:  James  S. ,  Levi,  Isaac  M., 
Moses  W. ,  Benjamin,  Rebecca,  Otis,  and 
Steven  B. 

Portus  B.  Hancock  was  educated  in  the  com- 
mon schools  of  Coventry.  In  1857,  the  year 
of  his  majority,  he  went  to  North  Bridgewater, 
now  Brockton,  to  work  for  his  brother  Moses,  ■ 
who  was  the  first  man  to  engage  in  the  express 
business  in  that  place,  and  remained  with  him 
until  1861.  Returning  then  to  Coventry,  he 
was,  from  that  time  until  1877,  engaged  in 
buying  eggs,  cattle,  and  butter  from  the 
farmers,  and  sending  to  town  and  city  dealers. 
In  the  spring  of  1878  he  started  in  the  produce 
business  in  Brockton,  and  in  1884  he  turned 
his  attention  to  the  fire  insurance  business. 
From  insuring  real  estate  to  buying  and  sell- 
ing it  was  but  a  step,  and  in  1889  his  real  es- 
tate business  had  reached  large  proportions. 
His  first  extensive  deal  was  in  connection  with 
Cary  Hill,  now  Beacon  Hill.  All  the  streets 
in  that  locality  were  built  by  Mr.  Hancock, 
and  he  has  sold  over  three  hundred  house  lots 
there.  Some  time  ago,  in  Whitman,  he  pur- 
chased Read  Corner,  with  ten  houses,  some  of 
which  he  has  sold  on  the  instalment  plan. 

Mr.  Hancock  was  married  in  i860  to  Sarah 
W.  Hayward,  daughter  of  Sumner  A.  Hay- 
ward.  Mr.  Hayward,  who  was  one  of  the  first 
insurance  men  of  Brockton,  managed  a  suc- 
cessful   business  for  thirty  years.      Mr.    Han- 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


37 


cock  has  one  child,  Sumner  H.,  who  was  born 
in  Coventry,  Vt.,  in  1876.  He  graduated  at 
the  Brocivton  High  School,  and  is  now  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Cameron  Wheel  Company,  the  well- 
known  bicycle  firm  of  this  city.  In  politics 
Mr.  Portus  B.  Hancock  is  a  Democrat.  He 
has  been  in  office  five  years  as  Milk  Inspector. 
A  charter  member  of  Damocles  Lodge,  No.  16, 
Knights  of  Pythias,  he  was  one  of  the  seventy- 
seven  who  came  together  in  1886  to  form  a 
lodge,  and  has  held  the  office  of  Trustee.  He 
is  also  a  member  of  Pequot  Tribe,  No.  35, 
I.  O.  R.M.  ;  of  Campello  Lodge,  No.  227,  In- 
dependent Order  of  Odd  Fellows;  of  the  Es- 
senic  Order,  the  Mayflower  Colony  of  Pilgrim 
Fathers;  and  the  New  England  Order  of  Pro- 
tection. He  attends  religious  worship  at  the 
Unity  (Unitarian)  Church. 


|LLKRY  C.  DEAN,  the  active  partner 
of  the  firm  of  A.  C.  Thompson  &  Co., 
proprietors  of  a  planing  and  mould- 
ing mill  in  Brockton,  was  born  January  31, 
1863,  in  Seekonk,  Mass.,  son  of  David  W. 
and  Emily  F.  (Cushing)  Dean.  He  comes  of 
old  New  England  stock  by  both  father  and 
mother.  The  Deans  belonged  in  Raynham, 
Mass.,  where  David  W.  was  born  and  spent 
the  early  part  of  his  life.  He  was  by  occupa- 
tion a  farmer,  of  a  quiet,  retiring  disposition, 
and  his  last  days  were  passed  on  a  farm  in 
Seekonk,  where  he  died  of  exposure  at  the 
early  age  of  thirty-one.  His  wife,  also  born 
in  Seekonk,  is  of  the  third  generation  of  Cush- 
ings  in  that  town.  She  is  a  typical  New  Eng- 
land woman,  thrifty,  independent,  and  quietly 
determined.  After  her  husband's  death  she 
kept  her  family  of  four  children  together,  al- 
though at  times  it  was  a  hard  struggle,  and 
would  never  accept  help  from  outside  sources. 
Her  children  are  all   married   now,  and  she   is 


living  in  Brockton,  an  active  woman  of  fifty- 
five.  Mr.  Dean  says  that  he  owes  his  success 
to  his  mother's  early  training. 

Ellery  C.  Dean  was  six  years  of  age  when 
his  father  died.  For  the  succeeding  three 
years  he  lived  with  his  grandmother  in  Rayn- 
ham, attending  school  in  that  town.  His  ed- 
ucational advantages  were  limited,  as,  being 
the  oldest  boy  in  the  family,  he  was  obliged  to 
go  to  work  when  quite  young.  However,  the 
amount  of  schooling  he  received  was  so  well 
supplemented  by  personal  study  that  he  was 
able  to  meet  his  associates  on  an  equal  foot- 
ing. In  1 87 1  he  went  to  North  Bridgewater, 
where,  after  a  little  more  schooling,  at  the  age 
of  fourteen  he  entered  the  employ  of  the  West- 
ern Union  Telegraph  Company  as  messenger 
boy.  He  spent  three  years  in  this  employ- 
ment, and  then  engaged  in  wood  working  on 
his  own  account  in  a  small  way,  making 
window  screens,  doors,  etc.,  by  means  of  small 
foot-power  machinery.  He  was  six  months  in 
this  business  when  he  attracted  the  attention 
of  A.  C.  Thompson,  who  hired  him.  In  five 
years  he  had  mastered  all  the  details  of  the 
business,  at  the  same  time  performing  other 
services  that  were  not  required  of  him.  In 
1892  he  became  Mr.  Thompson's  partner, 
under  the  firm  name  of  A.  C.  Thompson  & 
Co.,  and  he  now  attends  to  the  buying,  sell- 
ing, and  the  settlement  of  hlUs.  This  firm- 
has  the  largest  trade  of  the  kind  in  Plymouth 
County.  They  now  employ  three  times  as 
many  hands  as  they  did  before  Mr.  Dean  be- 
came connected  with  the  concern,  using  three 
carloads  of  lumber  a  week,  where  before 
hardly  one  car  was  required.  They  spend  no 
money  in  advertising,  having  all  the  orders 
they  can  fill,  and  having  no  actual  competitors 
outside  of  Boston,  while  they  buy  directly 
from  the  producer,  thus  saving  the  commission 
that  would  otherwise  go   to   middlemen.      Mr. 


38 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Dean's  training  in  the  telegraph  business  has 
been  invaluable  to  him,  as  it  inculcated  habits 
of  promptness  and  accuracy.  This  training, 
with  his  mother's  teaching,  his  inherited  pru- 
dence, and  his  natural  ability,  give  him  un- 
usual strength  as  a  business  man. 

Mr.  Dean  was  married  November  25,  1885, 
to  Lucy  W. ,  daughter  of  Charles  Beals,  of 
Sharon,  Mass.,  and  has  two  children,  a  boy  of 
ten,  and  a  girl  of  seven  years.  He  gives  no 
time  to  politics,  preferring  to  devote  his  ener- 
gies to  his  business.  He  is  a  member  of 
Massasoit  Lodge,  Independent  Order  of  Odd 
Fellows,  and  has  held  all  the  chairs  in  the 
Pequot  Tribe  of  Red  Men.  Iti  religious 
matters  he  is  liberal,  though  he  fully  appre- 
ciates the  good  accomplished  by  church  so- 
cieties. 


Yf7\EUBEN  P.  GUSHING,  a  prosperous 
I  S^  business  man  of  the  town  of  Marion, 
l->^  \^_  V  was  born  in  New  Bedford,  Mass., 
July  I,  1846.  He  grew  up  under  his  par- 
ents' care,  receiving  his  education  in  the  pub- 
lic schools  of  his  native  town,  and  serving  an 
apprenticeship  at  the  cooper's  trade. 

On  attaining  his  majority  Mr.  Gushing  went 
to  Boston,  hoping  to  establish  himself  in  some 
business  there.  Locating  soon  afterward  in 
Charlestown,  now  included  within  the  limits 
of  Boston,  he  carried  on  a  profitable  provision 
business  until  1887.  He  then  came  to 
Marion,  bought  a  tract  of  land,  and  has  since 
been  successfully  engaged  in  the  culture  of 
fruit,  vegetables,  and  cranberries.  He  began 
on  a  moderate  scale,  but  has  now  two  cran- 
berry bogs  in  Marion,  besides  two  other  lots  of 
land.  One  of  his  bogs,  covering  three  and  a 
half  acres,  is  admirably  adapted  to  the  raising 
of  cranberries.  With  characteristic  enterprise 
he  also  runs  a  butcher's  wagon,  with  which 
he  has  acquired  a  good  patronage- since   1889. 


Mr.  Gushing  was  married  December  9, 
1868,  to  Miss  Lois  A.  Nickerson,  a  daughter 
of  John  W.  and  Julia  A.  Nickerson,  of  Har- 
wich, Mass.  Their  only  child  is  a  daugh- 
ter named  Grace.  During  his  comparatively 
brief  residence  in  this  town,  he  has  won 
general  respect  as  a  citizen,  neighbor,  and 
friend,  as  well  as  an  assured  position  among 
business  men.  In  politics  he  votes  for  the 
best  men  and  measures,  being  bound  by  no 
party  ties. 

's^OSHUA  R.  BARTLETT,  of  Brockton, 
is  widely  known  as  a  preacher  of  the 
Methodist  church,  a  zealous  worker  for 
the  cause  of  Prohibition,  and  an  able  and  pro- 
lific writer.  He  was  born  in  Templeton, 
Worcester  Gounty,  November  17,  1839,  son  of 
William  and  Maria  M.'  (Partridge)  Bartlett, 
both  also  natives  of  the  Bay  State.  William 
Bartlett,  who  was  born  in  Ganton,  August  23, 
1 812,  obtained  his  education  in  the  common 
schools  of  that  town.  He  was  employed  as  a 
butcher  for  two  years  in  West  Bridgewater  by 
Amasa  Howard,  and  in  1849  he  and  Daniel 
Nash,  forming  the  firm  Nash  &  Bartlett,  estab- 
lished a  butchering  and  market  business  in 
Brockton,  then  North  Bridgewater.  Their 
market,  which  was  on  the  corner  of  Higli  and 
Main  .Streets,  was  the  second  started  in  the 
place.  In  1856  William  Bartlett  engaged  in 
the  ice  business,  having  been  its  founder  in 
Brockton,  and  conducted  a  prosperous  trade 
until  1864.  when  he  sold  out  to  Walter  F. 
Gleaveland,  and  removed  to  Templeton,  Mass. 
Having  settled  on  a  large  farm  there,  he  was 
extensively  engaged  in  raising  general  produce 
for  some  time.  The  death  of  his  first  wife, 
Maria,  in  October,  1875,  caused  him  to  dis- 
pose of  the  farm,  and  he  went  to  live  with 
his  son,  the  subject  of  this  sketch.  In  P'eb- 
ruary,  1878,  he  contracted  a  second  marriage 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


39 


with  a  lady  from  Raymond,  N.H.,  and  he 
spent  the  rest  of  his  life  in  that  town.  Bart- 
lett  Street  in  Brockton  is  so  named  in  his 
honor,  as  he  was  the  first  to  buy  a  house  lot 
in  that  vicinity.  He  was  one  of  the  earliest 
Free  Soilers,  and  one  of  the  very  few  in  North 
Bridgewater;  and  he  was  an  ardent  anti- 
slavery  man.  He  died  June  6,  1893.  His 
first  wife,  Maria  M.  Partridge,  was  a  member 
of  an  old  family  of  English  origin,  and  her 
father.  Deacon  Ezekiel  Partridge,  was  a  well- 
known  and  highly  respected  resident  of  Tem- 
pleton,  Mass.  Both  she  and  her  husband  were 
members  of  the  Congregational  church.  Their 
children  were:  Abby  M.,  who  died  at  the  age 
of  thirteen;  a  boy  who  died  in  infancy; 
Charles  A.,  born  in  North  Bridgewater,  Janu- 
ary 9,  1S52,  who  now  resides  in  Clinton, 
Mass.,  and  is  Deputy  Sheriff  of  Worcester 
County;  George  Morey,  born  in  North  Bridge- 
water,  June  16,  1854,  a  ]3rinter  and  pui^lisher 
of  law  books  in  St.  Louis;  and  Joshua  R.,  the 
subject  of  this  sketch. 

Joshua  R.  Bartlett  attended  the  common 
schools  in  boyhood  and  Hunt's  Academy  at 
North  Bridgewater.  After  leaving  school  he 
tried  various  occupations  before  deciding  on 
that  he  judged  himself  best  fitted  to  follow. 
For  some  time  he  assisted  his  father  in  the 
ice  business.  Then  he  kept  books,  and  he 
was  employed  in  the  chair  shops  in  Temple- 
tun.  In  1 86 1  he  again  joined  his  father,  and 
worked  with  him  for  two  or  three  years.  He 
was  ne.xt  engaged  in  selling  sewing  machines. 
On  August  15,  1864,  he  enlisted  in  what  was 
afterward  Company  K,  Fourth  Massachusetts 
Heavy  Artillery,  and  went  to  Washington. 
His  company  was  assigned  to  the  defence  of 
the  Capitol,  and  was  stationed  at  Fort  Barnard 
until  discharged  at  the  close  of  the  war  in 
June,  1865.  Mr.  Bartlett  was  then  employed 
for  two  years  as  book-keeper  in  a  chair  manu- 


factory in  Templeton.  In  the  ensuing  two 
years  he  managed  an  agency  for  the  sale 
of  sewing  machines  at  Albany,  N.Y.  His 
next  venture  was  the  management  of  a  chair 
business  of  his  own  at  Fitzwilliam,  N.H.  ;  but 
he  was  not  satisfied  with  the  results,  and  en- 
gaged in  farming  for  a  year.  In  May,  1874, 
he  entered  the  ministry  of  the  Methodist  Epis- 
copal church.  He  was  pastor  at  Antrim, 
N.H.,  two  years,  and  one  year  each  at  Am- 
herst, Raymond,  and  Epping.  He  was  then 
transferred  from  New  Hampshire  to  the  juris- 
diction of  the  Vermont  Conference,  and 
labored  at  Williamstown  for  two  years,  and  at 
Barre  for  three  years.  In  the  mean  time  he 
was  editing  the  Vermont  Christian  Messenger, 
published  at  Montpelier.  This  was  a  congen- 
ial occupation  and  one  for  which  he  vi'as  well 
fitted.  In  March,  1884,  he  purchased  the 
paper,  and  he  published  it  at  Northfield,  Vt., 
until  September,  1886. 

Early  in  his  career  Mr.  Bartlett  embraced 
the  cause  of  Prohibition.  Since  then  he  has 
worked  for  it  as  a  member  of  the  Prohibition 
State  Committees  of  New  Hampshire,  Ver- 
mont, and  Massachusetts.  He  was  .Secretary 
of  the  New  Hampshire  and  V^ermont  bodies, 
and  is  now  a  member  of  the  Prohibition  City 
Committee  of  Brockton.  The  good  work  he 
accomplished  for  the  cause  of  temperance__ 
attracted  the  attention  of  prominent  Good 
Templars,  and  in  the  winter  of  1885  he  was 
employed  by  the  Grand  Lodge  of  the  State  of 
Vermont  in  organizing  and  visiting  lodges. 
In  July,  1886,  determined  to  give  his  whole 
soul  to  the  work,  he  purchased  The  Statidard- 
Benrer,  a  Prohibition  paper  published  at  Con- 
cord, N.H.,  which  he  afterward  named  The 
Protest,  and  continued  its  publication  imtil 
January  i,  1890.  On  that  date  he  merged  the 
paper  with  the  Jl'oreester  Daily  and  Weekly 
Tinies^  which   he   published   at    Worcester  for 


40 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


two  years  in  behalf  of  the  Prohibition  party. 
In  February,  1892,  he  came  to  Brockton,  and 
for  two  years  he  was  connected  with  the  edi- 
torial and  reportorial  departments  of  the  Daily 
Dcspatcli  of  this  city.  In  January,  1893,  he 
was  made  Brockton  correspondent  for  the  Bos- 
ton Herald,  and  he  is  still  in  discharge  of  his 
duties  in  that  capacity.  He  has  been  con- 
nected with  the  Brockton  Daily  Times  since 
it  was  started  in  February,  1895.  He  now 
furnishes  it  with  a  daily  column,  on  topics  of 
the  times,  for  its  editorial  page,  and  represents 
it  in  all  City  Hall  business. 

On  December  14,  1862,  Mr.  Bartlett  was 
married  to  Martha  A.,  daughter  of  Marcus 
Southworth,  of  North  Bridgewater  He  has 
three  children  living,  namely:  Mary  E.,  the 
wife  of  Isaac  S.  Orrill,  residing  in  Worcester; 
Maria  H.,  the  wife  of  Arthur  C.  Dyke,  of 
Bridgewater;  and  Edwin  S. ,  who  is  studying 
law  in  the  University  of  Michigan  at  Ann 
Arbor.  While  working  in  the  field  of  litera- 
ture, Mr.  Bartlett  has  retained  his  connection 
with  the  Methodist  Episcopal  church,  being 
at  present  a  local  elder.  He  is  also  a  comrade 
of  the  Grand  Army,  belonging  to  Fletcher 
Webster  Post,  No.  13,  of  Brockton. 


Yf^'^'^^J^T  COOK,  an  active  member  of 
I  Sr^  the  large  dry-goods  liouse  of  B.  E. 
L»V_^  Jones  &  Co.,  of  Brockton,  Ma.ss., 
was  born  in  P2ast  Lothian,  Scotland,  October 
14,  1857,  son  of  Alexander  and  Jane  (Hunter) 
Cook,  estimable  farming  people.  His  great- 
grandfather, William  Cook,  an  Englishman, 
who  removed  to  Scotland,  and  remained  there 
for  the  rest  of  his  life,  also  followed  the  occu- 
pation of  farmer.  Robert  Cook,  after  re- 
ceiving a  fair  education,  which  was  finished 
at  Dollar  Academy,  acted  as  pupil  teacher. 
He  left  home  at  the  age  of  fourteen  to  learn 


the  dry-goods  business.  After  serving  an 
apprenticeship  of  four  years  with  Thomas 
Menzies  &  Co.,  King  Street,  Stirling,  Scot- 
land, where  he  became  familiar  with  the  vari- 
ous departments,  including  dressmaking  and 
the  cashier's  work,  he  remained  for  one  year 
more  as  clerk.  Then  he  entered  the  employ 
of  James  Spence  &  Co.,  dry-goods  merchants 
of  Dundee,  and  was  clerk  for  this  firm  some 
four  years.  After  that  he  was  engaged  as 
buyer  of  shawls,  furs,  lace  curtains,  etc.,  by 
Frazier  Sons  &  Co.,  Buchanan  Street,  Glas- 
gow. While  acting  in  this  capacity  he  re- 
ceived a  flattering  offer  from  Shepard,  Nor- 
well  &  Co.,  of  Boston,  Mass.,  to  take  charge 
of  their  silk  and  velvet  department,  they 
agreeing  to  pay  all  his  travelling  expenses. 
He  accepted,  and  was  three  years  in  the  em- 
ploy of  that  firm.  Resigning  his  position  in 
1884,  he  took  charge  of  the  large  retail  dry- 
goods  store  of  B.  E).  Jones,  of  Brockton. 
Four  years  later  he  became  Mr.  Jones's  part- 
ner, the  firm  name  being  changed  to  B.  E. 
Jones  &  Co.  When  Mr.  Cook  became  con- 
nected with  this  house  there  were  but  four 
clerks  employed.  Now  there  are  forty,  the 
business  having  had  a  phenomenal  increase  in 
twelve  years.  He  is  a  man  of  unusual  execu- 
tive ability,  shrewdness,  and  foresight,  and 
his  wide  experience  has  given  him  a  diversi- 
fied knowletlge  of  the  dry-goods  trade. 

Mr.  Cook  was  married  in  1881  to  Lizzie 
Rapp.  daughter  of  William  Rapp,  of  Brock- 
ton. She  died  in  1891,  leaving  three  chil- 
dren—  William  Rapp,  Lillian  Winnifred,  and 
Lizzie  Rapp  Cook.  He  contracted  a  second 
marriage  with  Miss  Helene  Constance  Krauze, 
a  lady  of  English  birth.  By  his  second  union 
he  has  one  child,  Robert  Alexander  Cook. 
Mr.  Cook  is  a  member  of  Paul  Revere  Lodge, 
A.  F.  &  A.  M.;  and  Electric  Lodge,  No.  69, 
Independent   Order  of   Odd    Fellows.      He   is 


DANIEL    WEBSTER. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


43 


an  active  worker  in  religious  matters,  to 
which  he  has  given  his  time  freely,  both  in 
Scotland  and  in  this  country.  While  in  Dun- 
dee he  was  assistant  superintendent  of  Free 
St.  Paul's  Sunday-school,  and  was  musical 
director  of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Asso- 
ciation. In  Glasgow  he  was  superintendent 
of  Free  .St.  Peter's  Sunday-school;  and  in 
Brockton  he  was  superintendent  of  the  F'irst 
Congregational  Sunday-school  for  about  six 
years,  and  served  for  some  time  as  Treasurer 
of  the  parish.  He  is  also  actively  connected 
with  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Association 
here,  and  was  for  some  time  President  of  the 
association.  At  the  present  time  he  is  an 
Ehier  in  the  First  Presbyterian  Church. 


B 


ANIEL  WEBSTER,  "the  Defender 
of  the  Constitution,"  although  a  na- 
tive of  the  Granite  State,  was  dur- 
ing the  greater  part  of  his  career  as  an  advo- 
cate, orator,  and  statesman,  a  citizen  of  Mas- 
sachusetts, and  for  a  number  of  years  a  resident 
of  Plymouth  County.  His  ownership  of 
a  large  landed  estate  at  Green  Harbor,  his 
intelligent  and  progressive  methods  of  agri- 
culture, his  lavish  outlay  for  the  improvement 
of  his  broad  acres,  his  pride  in  his  choice  and 
well-fed  stock,  his  hearty  enjoyment  of  his 
rural  surroundings,  fairly  entitled  him  to  the 
distinction  of  being,  far  and  away,  the  First 
P"armer  of  Marshfield,  South  Parish. 

A  brief  presentment  of  him  as  such,  set  in 
a  biographical  outline,  will  be  singularly  in 
place  in  these  pages.  His  authorized  life  in 
two  volumes,  by  Mr.  George  T.  Curtis;  the 
judicial  monograph  by  Mr.  Lodge,  in  the 
"American  Statesmen  Series";  and  the 
private  life  by  Mr.  Lanman  —  sources  of  infor- 
mation, to  which  the  present  writer  gratefully 
acknowledges     indebtedness  —  may    be    men- 


tioned, together  with  the  works,  si.\  volumes, 
edited  by  Edward  E\erett,  as  books  to  be  com- 
mended to  present  and  future  generations  as 
quickeners  of  American  patriotism. 

Daniel  Webster  was  born  January  i8,  1782, 
in  Salisbu7"y,  N.  H.  He  was  the  second  son  of 
Ebsnezer  and  Abigail  (Eastman)  Webster,  and 
was  in  truth  of  good  family,  coming  of  honest, 
intelligent,  liberty-loving  stock.  His  father, 
who  was  Captain  of  a  company  in  the  Revolu- 
tion, was  a  native  of  Kingston,  N.H.,  and  was 
a  son  of  Ebenezer  and  Susanna  (Bachelder) 
Webster.  Concerning  this  ancestress,  Mr. 
Webster  once  wrote:  "I  believe  we  are  all 
indebted  to  my  father's  mother  for  a  large 
portion  of  the  little  sense  and  character 
which  belong  to  us.  She  was  a  woman  of 
uncommon  strength  of  understanding."  Her 
son  Ebenezer,  of  Salisbury,  removed  in  1783 
to  that  part  of  the  town  which  is  now  P'rank- 
lin.  A  farmer  in  moderate  circumstances,  he 
held  the  rank  of  Colonel  in  the  State  militia, 
and  served  as  a  "side  justice,"  or  Judge,  in 
the  Court  of  Common  Pleas. 

Learning  to  read  at  his  mother's  knee,  the 
Bible  his  first  remembered  book,  walking  the 
long  way  to  and  from  the  district  school, 
attending  Phillips  Iilxeter  Academy,  and  later 
studying  under  the  tuition  of  the  Rev.  Sam- 
uel Wood,  of  Boscawen,  N.H. —  thus  passed 
the  boyhood  of  Daniel  WebsLci  Lill,  at  fifteen, 
he  entered  Dartmouth,  where  in  due  course  he 
was  graduated.  Studying  law  in  Salisbury 
and  in  Boston,  earning  money  in  the  mean 
time  by  teaching,  to  help  his  brother  Ezekiel 
to  get  a  college  education,  he  was  admitted  to 
the  bar  in  1805,  and  began  to  practise  law  at 
Boscawen.  Two  years  later  he  remo\ed  to 
Portsmouth,  N.H.,  where  he  rapidly  rose  to 
prominence  in  his  profession  and  in  politics, 
in  which  he  early  took  an  active  interest.  He 
was  first   elected  to  Congress  in  the  autumn  of 


44 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


1812,  and  took  his  seat  in  the  House  in  the 
following  May,  his  second  term  ending  March 
4,  18 17.  He  had  changed  liis  residence  to 
Boston  in  18 16,  and  there  he  de\oted  himself 
to  his  lucrative  law  practice  until  December, 
1823,  when  he  again  became  a  member  of 
Congress.  He  held  his  place  by  successive 
re-elections  till  he  was  chosen  Senator  in 
[827.  From  that  time  on,  with  but  few  and 
short  interwils  of  retirement,  he  ser\'ed  his 
country  either  in  the  Senate  or  in  the  Depart- 
ment of  State,  being,  as  one  has  said,  "the 
first  lawyer  and  the  first  statesman "'  in  the 
land. 

I'^irst,  perhaps,  among  Mr.  Webster's  mem- 
orable addresses  should  be  named  his  "  Reply 
to  Hayne  "  in  the  Senate  Chamber,  January  26, 
27,  1830,  which  has  been  pronounced  "next 
to  the  Constitution  the  most  correct  and  com- 
plete exposition  of  the  true  powers  and  func- 
tions of  the  Federal  gox'crnnient  "  —  a  speech 
"replete  with  eloquence  and  power,  clear  in 
statement,  grand  in  language,  irresistible  in 
argument."  One  of  the  grandest  mementos 
in  Faneuil  Hall,  Boston,  is  the  painting  by 
Healy,  which  rejiroduces  the  scene  of  that 
matchless  eloquence.  The  lamented  concilia- 
tory—  or  so  intended  —  address,  which  fell 
with  fatal  effect  from  his  lips  on  tiie  7th  of 
March,  1850,  the  reunited  country  may  well 
afford  to  forget.  There  is  no  questioning  the 
fact,  and  it  cannot  be  too  strongly  emphasized, 
that  "Mr.  Webster  was  thoroughly  national," 
with  "no  taint  of  sectionalism  or  narrow 
local  prejudice  about  him."  As  a  diplomatist 
he  rendered  eminent  service,  entitling  him  to 
honorable  fame  and  lasting  gratitude.  Not 
to  speak  of  his  great  forensic  efforts  and  nu- 
merous forceful  occasional  speeches,  his  i^i- 
centennial  Discourse  at  Plymouth,  the  two 
l^unker  Hill  addresses,  and  the  Eulogy  on 
Adams  and  Jefferson,  are  recognized  triumphs 


of  American  oratory.  To  quote  again  from  the 
pen  of  Mr.  Lodge,  "So  long  as  the  union  of 
these  States  endures,  or  holds  a  place  in  his- 
tory, will  the  name  of  Daniel  Webster  be  hon- 
ored and  remembered,  and  his  stately  elo- 
quence find  an  echo  in  the  hearts  of  his  coun- 
trymen." 

Mr.  Webster  married  in  1808  Miss  Grace 
Fletcher,  who  became  the  mother  of  five  chil- 
dren. Three  of  these  lived  to  maturity, 
namely:  Colonel  Fletcher,  who  was  killed  at 
the  second  battle  of  Bull  Run  in  August, 
1862;  Julia,  Mrs.  Samuel  A.  Appleton,  who 
died  in  April,  1848;  and  Major  Edward,  who 
died  in  Mexico  in  January,  1848.  Mrs. 
Appleton  left  four  children  —  the  eldest,  a 
daughter,  Caroline,  who  married  in  1871,  for 
her  second  husband,  Jerome  Napoleon  Bona- 
parte, of  Baltimore.  Mrs.  Grace  P'letcher 
Webster  died  in  January,  1828;  and  in  De- 
cember, 1829,  Mr.  Webster  married  Miss 
Caroline  LeRoy,  of  New  York. 

In  September,  1824,  Mr.  Webster  first  saw 
the  place  in  Marshfield,  where  he  subsequently 
made  his  home.  In  the  elm-shaded.  Colonial 
dwelling  at  Green  Harbor,  owned  and  occu- 
pied by  Captain  John  Thomas,  he  and  his  wife 
passed  several  ha]5py  days ;  and  here,  for  some 
years  following,  the  Webster  family  were  sum- 
mer guests.  Attracted  by  the  picturesque 
beauty  of  the  spot,  the  broad  sea  view  and 
refreshing  breezes,  and  quite  as  much  possibly 
by  the  historic  associations  of  the  old  Pilgrim 
haunt,  Mr.  Webster  purchased  the  estate, 
embracing  one  hundred  and  sixty  acres,  in  the 
fall  of  1831,  receiving  the  deed  in  April, 
1832.  Captain  Thomas,  with  his  wife,  re- 
tained his  residence,  there  till  his  death,  in 
1837.  The  homestead  he  had  inherited  from 
his  father,  Nathaniel  Ray  Thomas,  the  noted 
loyalist  —  the  original,  it  is  said,  of  Trum- 
bull's poem  "McP"ingal" — who  died   in   Nova 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


45 


Scotia.  The  greater  part  of  his  iMarshfield 
property  was  confiscated,  John  being  the  only 
one  of  his  sons  who  remained  a  citizen  of 
the  United  States.  Nathaniel  Ray  Thomas 
was  a  lineal  descendant  of  William  Thomas, 
Esq.,  who  came  to  Plymouth  Colony  about 
1630,  and  settled  at  Green  Harbor  in  1645. 
His  grave  is  the  oldest  in  the  ancient  Wins- 
low  Burial  Ground.  (See  "Marshfield  Mem- 
orials," by  Miss  Thomas.)  An  ancestor  of 
Nathaniel  Ray  Thomas  on  his  mother's  side 
was  another  early  colonist  known  to  fame  — 
Simon  Ray,  of  Block  Island,  who  has  left  a 
numerous  and  distinguished  posterity. 

In  addition  to  the  Thomas  property,  to 
which  he  would  allow  no  other  name  than 
Green  Harbor,  Mr.  Webster  bought  the  old 
Winslow  place,  "Careswell,"  and  other  lands, 
making  in  all  about  two  thousand  acres.  His 
farming  was  on  a  grand  scale,  and  was  a  source 
of  perpetual  delight.  He  is  credited  with 
having  been  the  first  in  the  town  to  use  kelp 
as  a  fertilizer,  setting  an  example  of  untold 
value  to  the  neighboring  farmers.  His  spe- 
cialty was  the  raising  of  fine  stock,  particu- 
larly cattle,  hogs,  and  sheep;  also  fancy  poul- 
try. He  set  out  orchards,  and  the  seeds  of 
forest  trees  he  planted  with  his  own  hand.  In 
1839,  having  sold  his  house  in  Boston,  on 
Summer  Street,  he  removed  the  furniture, 
books,  and  pictures  therefrom  to  Green  Har- 
bor, henceforward  to  be  distinctively  the  Web- 
ster home.  He  owned  and  carried  on  Elms 
harm  in  Franklin,  N.H.,  a  part  of  which  he 
had  inherited  from  his  father. 

His  delight  in  the  details  of  farming,  and 
his  close  oversight,  is  shown  in  his  familiar 
letters,  abounding  in  such  expressions  as 
these:  "The  spring,  though  very  cold,  has 
been  dry,  and  the  weather,  therefore,  favor- 
able to  field  labor.  Porter  Wright  has  planted 
tweh'e  or  fifteen  acres  of  potatoes  in  one  field. 


Another  piece  of  as  many  acres  is  receiving 
corn."  The  Indian's  rule  he  notes  as  a  good 
one;  "namely,  to  plant  corn  when  the  new 
leaf  of  the  white  oak  has  got  to  be  as  big  as 
a  mouse's  ear";  and  he  goes  on:  "The  field 
where  the  beets  and  turnips  were  last  year, 
twenty  acres,  is  laid  down  in  clover.  The 
ploughed  land  inside  the  gate  is  to  rejoice  in 
a  crop  of  millet,  and  lie  put  down  to  grass. 
Opposite,  in  the  old  orchard,  two  acres  of 
pumpkins  are  to  show  the  land  we  live  in. 
I  believe  you  were  here  last  autumn  when  the 
hands  were  putting  kelp  on  part  of  Fletcher's 
enclosure.  Beets  are  to  have  the  enjoyment 
of  six  acres  of  that,  and  a  large  kind  of  field 
peas,  sowed  in  drills,  the  remainder.  .  .  . 

"The  cattle  have  been  well  taken  care  of, 
and  look  well,  the  sheep  especially.  We  have 
lambs,  both  South-Down  and  Cheviot,  as  fine 
as  I  have  ever  seen.  .  .  .  The  progenitor  of  all 
the  porkers,  now  eighteen  years  old,  if  not 
nineteen,  still  bristles  up  if  you  come  near  his 
habitation."  A  thousand  bushels  of  corn, 
three  thousand  of  turnips,  and  seven  or  eight 
hundred  of  beets,  and  barns  full  of  hay  are 
elsewhere  mentioned  as  illustrative  of  a  year's 
harvest. 

His  biographer,  noting  his  practice  of 
giving  minute  directions,  even  from  Washing- 
ton, of  what  was  to  be  done  on  the  farms, 
guiding  the  men  "with  the' exactness  of  an 
overseer  and  the  experience  of  a  day-laborer," 
thus  comments  on  the  fact  that,  "although  he 
was,  in  one  sense,  a  successful  farmer,  he  was 
never  an  economical  one. "  "  He  never  kept  reg- 
ular accounts,  or  had  them  kept,  and  probably 
there  never  was  a  year  in  which  he  could  have 
told  how  much  the  expensive  luxuries  of  farm- 
ing had  cost  him  out  of  his  other  resources, 
or  what  was  the  balance  against  either  of  his 
farms."  His  hospitality,  it  should  be  remem- 
bered, was  a  large  factor  in  his  expenditures. 


46 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


At  the  State  House  in  Boston  in  January, 
1840,  Mr.  Webster  gave  a  familiar  talk  on 
the  scientific  and  systematic  cultivation  of 
the  soil  in  England,  as  witnessed  by  him  in 
his  recent  journey.  A  paragraph  may  here 
be  quoted : — 

"Agriculture  feeds  us,  to  a  great  extent  it 
clothes  us.  Without  it  we  could  not  have 
manufactures,  and  we  should  not  have  com- 
merce. These  all  stand  together,  but  they 
stand  together  like  pillars  in  a  cluster,  the 
largest  in  the  centre,  and  that  largest  is  agri- 
culture. Let  us  remember,  too,  that  we  live 
in  a  country  of  small  farms  and  free-hold  ten- 
ements, a  country  in  which  men  cultivate  with 
their  own  hands  their  own  fee-simple  acres, 
deriving  not  only  their  subsistence,  but  also 
their  spirit  of  independence  and  manly  free- 
dom, from  the  ground  they  plough.  They  are 
at  once  its  owners,  its  cultivators,  its  de- 
fenders. And  whatever  else  may  be  underval- 
ued or  overlooked,  let  us  never  forget  that  the 
cultivation  of  the  earth  is  the  most  important 
labor  of  man.  Man  may  be  civilized  in  some 
degree  without  great  progress  in  manufactures, 
and  with  little  commerce  with  his  distant 
neighbors;  but  without  the  cultivation  of  the 
earth  he  is,  in  all  countries,  a  savage.  Until 
he  gives  up  the  chase  and  fi.xes  himself  in 
some  place,  and  seeks  a  living  from  the  earth, 
he  is  a  roaming  barbarian.  When  tillage 
begins,  the  arts  follow.  The  farmers,  there- 
fore, are  the  founders  of  human   civilization." 

Daniel  Webster  died  at  his  home  in  Marsh- 
field,  October  24,  1852.  On  the  29th  was 
there  conducted  the  simple  funeral  services, 
in  accordance  with  his  wish  "to  be  buried 
without  the  least  show  or  ostentation,  but  in 
a  manner  respectful  to  my  neighbors,  whose 
kindness  has  contributed  so  much  to  the  hap- 
piness of  me  and  mine,  and  for  whose  pros- 
perity I  offer  prayers  to  God," 


/^TkORGE  H.  WATSON,  M.D.,  of 
\  f5  I  Bridgewater,  Mass. ,  is  an  able  and 
widely-known  physician  and  sur- 
geon, prominent  in  social  as  well  as  profes- 
sional life.  He  is  a  native  of  Sedgwick,  Me., 
where  he  was  born  August  i,  1847,  son  of 
Samuel  and  Diana  B.  (Harding)  Watson. 
His  great-grandfather  Watson,  who  was  an 
Englishman  by  birth,  had  at  the  time  of  the 
Revolution  resided  on  this  side  of  the  Atlan- 
tic long  enough  to  become  deeply  attached  to 
his  adopted  country;  and  when  the  colonies 
rebelled  against  the  despotism  of  the  greater 
power  he  took  up  arms  in  behalf  of  American 
independence.  Captured  by  the  royal  troops 
he  was  for  some  time  in  durance,  and  died  in 
captivity  on  one  of  the  prison-ships  in  New 
York  Harbor. 

Samuel  Watson,  Dr.  Watson's  father,  who 
was  a  native  of  the  Pine  Tree  State,  was  a 
seafaring  man,  being  commander  of  many  a 
large  ship  engaged  in  the  foreign  trade;  and 
he  was  also  interested  in  ship-building  at 
Sedgwick,  Me.,  and  was  the  owner  of  interests 
in  many  ships.  His  wife  also  was  born  in 
Maine.  Two  of  their  children  entered  pro- 
fessional -life;  namely,  George  H.,  and  his 
sister,  Laura  -S.  Miss  Laura  S.  Watson  is 
the  present  principal  of  Abbot  Academy  for 
Young  Ladies  at  Andover,  Mass.,  one  of  the 
oldest  and  most  renowned  female  seminaries, 
as  such  schools  used  to  be  called,  in  the 
United  States.  Miss  Watson  is  gifted  with 
rare  intellectual  and  administrative  qualities, 
and   admirably   fills    her   responsible   position. 

George  H.  Watson  spent  his  boyhood  in 
Sedgwick,  obtaining  his  primary  education  in 
the  schools  of  that  town.  He  attended 
Hebron  Academy  at  Hebron,  Me.,  and  the 
academy  at  North  Bridgeton,  Me.,  and  in 
1866  entered  Amherst  College,  graduating  in 
1870.       Pursuing    his   professional    studies   at 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


47 


Albany  (N.Y.)  Medical  School  —  the  medical 
department  of  Union  College  —  he  received 
his  degree  in  1872,  and  subsequently  took  a 
post-graduate  course  at  Bellevue  Hospital 
Medical  College,  New  York  City,  graduating 
therefrom  in  1873.  Thoroughly  grounded  in 
the  best  theories  and  nvethods  of  his  profes- 
sion, and  further  qualified  and  strengthened 
by  the  varied  experience  gained  at  Bellevue, 
he  began  to  practise  at  Halifax,  Mass.,  and 
was  so  successful  that  he  remained  in  that 
town  for  a  number  of  years.  In  1882  he  re- 
moved to  Bridgewater,  and  here  he  has  a  large 
and  lucrative  practice,  his  visiting  list  includ- 
ing not  only  the  townspeople,  but  also  many 
in  tlie  out-lying  district.  Dr.  Watson  is  a 
fellow  of  the  Massachusetts  Medical  Society; 
also  of  the  American  Medical  Association; 
and  he  belongs  to  Pioneer  Lodge,  No.  183, 
Independent  Order  of  Odd  Fellows,  of  Bridge- 
water. 


ELA  B.  HAYWARD,  a  respected 
citizen  of  Brockton,  was  born  in 
Stoughton,  Mass.,  April  22,  1821, 
son  of  Bela  and  Lavinia  (Drake)  Hayward. 
The  family  is  an  old  one,  and  comes  of  Eng- 
lish stock.  Its  first  representative  in  Amer- 
ica was  Thomas,  who  settled  in  Duxbury, 
Mass.,  previous  to  1663.  His  son.  Deacon 
Joseph  Hayward,  married  Alice  Brett,  and 
they  became  the  parents  of  Thomas,  who  had 
a  son  Edmund.  Edmund's  son  Waldo,  the 
grandfather  of  the  subject  of  this  biography, 
married  in  1781  Lucy,  daughter  of  Samuel 
Bartlett,  and  was  the  father  of  seven  children 
—  Ira,  Abby,  Bela,  Zina,  Waldo,  Ortho,  and 
Lucinda.  Bela  Hayward,  who  was  born  in 
North  Bridgewater,  November  16,  1787, 
learned  the  trade  of  gunsmith,  and  drove  a 
team  for  Leonard  Hodges,  of  Stoughton.  He 
was  also   engaged    in   the   mill    business    with 


Mr.  Gay  for  a  time.  His  wife,  Lavinia,  who 
was  a  lady  of  Stoughton,  bore  him  eight  chil- 
dren, of  whom  Bela  is  the  only  one  living. 
The  father  died  in  1832,  at  the  age  of  forty- 
five  years. 

Bela  Hayward  attended  school  in  Stoughton 
until  he  was  eleven  years  old,  when  he  came 
to  North  Bridgewater,  now  Brockton,  to  com- 
plete his  education  at  Deacon  Heman  Pack- 
ard's School.  At  the  age  of  fourteen  he 
began  pegging  shoes  for  his  uncle,  with  whom 
he  lived,  earning  one  hundred  dollars  in  two 
years.  He  continued  shoemaking,  taking  out 
work  from  various  shops  until  1870,  being 
employed  at  one  time  by  Peleg  and  Lucius 
Leach.  In  1864  he  enlisted  in  Company  C, 
Sixtieth  Massachusetts  Regiment  as  a  private. 
He  was  detailed  as  bugler,  and  performed 
guard  duty,  first  at  Baltimore,  and  then  at  In- 
dianapolis, where  the  most  of  the  time  was 
spent.  He  was  discharged  in  the  following 
November. 

In  1 843  Mr.  Hayward  was  united  in  mar- 
riage with  Olive  Porter,  daughter  of  Caleb 
Copeland,  and  has  now  three  children  —  Olive 
Augusta,  Elmer  B. ,  and  Edward  B.  Olive 
married  Sylvester  Churchill,  and  resides  in 
this  city;  Elmer  B.  works  in  a  shoe  shop; 
Edward  B.  is  also  married,  and  a  resident  of 
Brockton.  The  father  mo\ed  to  his  present 
residence  in  1854.  In  politics  he  affiliates 
with  the  Republican  party,  and  he  is  a  mem- 
ber of  the  P'irst  Congregational  Church.  He 
belongs  to  the  Fletcher  Webster  Post,  No.  13, 
Grand  Army  of  the  Republic. 


T^APTAIN  MIRANDA  R.  SAMPSON, 
I  \<      who  has  charge  of  the  Manomet  Point 

Vj^  ^  Life  Saving  Station,  was  born  July 
27i  1835,  i'l  Plymouth,  this  county,  son  of 
Truman   and   Ruth   Sampson.      At   the  age   of 


48 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


eighteen,  although  reared  on  a  farm,  he  en- 
gaged in  seafaring  on  coasting  and  fishing- 
vessels.  Seven  years  later  he  was  given 
the  command  of  a  craft,  and  subsequently 
continued  in  his  nautical  calling  until  1873. 
In  1874  he  came  to  the  iManomet  Point  Life 
Saving  Station,  at  which  he  served  as  a  surf- 
man  for  a  decade.  He  was  then  appointed 
Captain  of  the  station,  in  which  capacity  he 
has  efificiently  served  for  eleven  years.  The 
life-saving  crew  numbers  seven  men  besides 
the  Captain.  These  are:  George  F.  Benni- 
son,  George  A.  Manter,  George  W.  Holmes, 
Aionzo  C.  Sampson,  William  L.  Bartlett, 
Warrick  H.  Cleveland,  and  Charles  Dickson. 
Among  the  many  wrecked  vessels  to  which 
Captain  Sampson  and  his  men  rendered  val- 
iant service  was  the  lumber  schooner  "Wel- 
lington," which  went  ashore  in  1878  or  1879. 
The  Captain  has  resided  since  1864  on  his 
present  estate  in  Plymouth,  which  comprises 
thirty-five  acres  of  land.  On  January  17, 
i860,  he  married  Miss  Malancia  O.  Pierce, 
who  was  born  in  Plymouth  in  1838,  daughter 
of  Melzar  and  Polly  Pierce.  They  have  had 
seven  children  —  Melzar  B.,  Lydia  A.  P., 
Mattie  O.,  Mary,  Emerson  F.,  Thomas  M., 
and  George  E.  The  latter  died  in  infancy. 
In  politics  Captain  Sampson  is  found  in  the 
ranks  of  the  Democratic  party.  His  religious 
faith  brings  him  into  fellowship  with  the 
Congregationalist  church  of  I'lymouth. 


fOSIAH  QUINCY  PACKARD,  an  up- 
to-date  farmer  of  Brockton,  was  born 
here,  January  6,  i860,  at  the  family 
residence  on  East  Ashland  Street,  son  of  Nelson 
and  Martha  P.  (Ames)  Packard.  He  is  a  de- 
scendant in  the  direct  line  of  Samuel  Packard, 
who  came  from  Windham,  England,  in  1638, 
in  the  ship  "Diligent,"  and   settled    in   Hing- 


ham,  Mass.  Samuel  subsequently  removed  to 
West  Bridgewater,  where  he  kept  a  tavern, 
and  officiated  as  Constable.  He  married  and 
became  the  father  of  twelve  children.  Zac- 
cheus,  the  fourth  child,  married  Sarah,  daugii- 
ter  of  John  Howard;  became  the  father  of 
nine  children;  and  died  on  August  3,  1723. 
His  youngest  chiki,  Abiel,  born  April  29, 
1699,  was  married  on  January  11,  1723.  to 
Sarah,  daughter  of  John  Ames.  Abiel  was 
a  captain  of  militia,  and  the  largest  land- 
holder in  the  North  Parish,  owning  one  thou- 
sand adjacent  acres.  He  died  in  1776,  at  the 
age  of  seventy-six.  His  wife,  who  survived 
him  fourteen  years,  died  in  Bridgewater  in 
1790,  at  the  age  of  eighty-three.  They  had 
ten  children,  of  whom  Josiah,  the  eldest,  born 
on  October  2,  1723,  married  Sarah,  daughter 
of  Thomas  Ames,  January  12,  1747.  Josiah 
and   his  wife  also   had  ten   chiUlren. 

Josiah  Packard,  Jr.,  the  fourth-born  of  his 
parents'  children,  was  the  great-grandfather  of 
Josiah  Ouincy.  He  was  united  in  marriage 
with  Rebecca  Perkins  on  October  10,  1782. 
Captain  Luke,  born  August  21,  1783,  who 
was  the  eldest  of  their  four  children,  married 
January  i,  1807,  Lucinda,  daughter  of  Samuel 
Battles.  He  followed  the  occu]5ation  of 
farmer,  and  was  also  engaged  in  cutting  and 
carting  timber  for  ship-building.  His  five 
children  were:  Marcus,  Nelson,  Eliza  Dyer, 
Josiah,  and  Marietta.  Marcus,  born  Septem- 
ber 7,  1808,  married  Lucinda  Bates;  Nelson, 
born  December  21,  iSio,  was  the  father  of  Jo- 
siah Ouincy,  the  subject  of  this  sketch:  Eliza 
Dyer,  born  August  20,  181 3,  became  Mrs. 
Charles  Bates,  of  Boston ;  Josiah,  the  fourth 
child,  who  was  born  on  March  11,  1816.  died 
unmarried;  and  Marietta,  born  December  3, 
1 82  I,  married  Seth  Sumner. 

Nelson  Packard,  the  second  child  of  his 
parents,  after  acquiring  a  common-school   edu- 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


49 


cation,  engaged  in  farming.  He  also  tooi< 
\vor]<  from  the  shoe  factories.  In  politics  he 
was  a  straight  Republican.  By  his  marriage 
with  Martha  P.,  daughter  of  Theron  Ames,  of 
this  city,  he  l^ecame  tlie  father  of  six  children 
—  Charles  Nelson,  Eliza  Frances,  Martha 
Jane,  Luke  Elliott,  Helen  Miriam,  and  Josiah 
O.  Charles  Nelson,  born  February  25,  1839, 
served  as  private  in  the  Tenth  Massachusetts 
Battery,  and  died  in  1876,  at  the  age  of  forty- 
seven;  Eliza  F'rances,  born  April  20,  1840, 
married  Ansel  C.  Jenney,  of  Brockton  ;  Martha 
Jane,  born  October  8,  1845,  married  George 
Farwell,  of  Walthani,  and  resides  here;  Luke 
JCUiott,  born  June  4,  1854,  and  Helen  M., 
born  November  5,  1856,  are  also  residents  of 
Brockton.  The  father  died  in  1 888,  at  the 
age  of  seventy-eight,  while  the  mother,  who 
was  born  in  1819,  is  still  living,  being  now 
seventy-seven  years  old. 

Josiah  Ouincy  Packard,  after  completing 
his  education  in  the  Brockton  High  School, 
engaged  in  farming,  which  he  still  continues. 
He  also  runs  a  milk  farm.  In  politics  he  fol- 
lows in  the  political  wake  of  his  father,  affili- 
ating with  the  Republican  party.  He  has 
been  a  member  of  the  Common  Council  for 
three  years,  and  is  a  member  of  Paul  Revere 
Lodge,  A.  F".  &  A.  M.  His  religious  prefer- 
ences have  led  him  into  communion  with  the 
Porter  Congregational  church.  On  Sejitem- 
ber  3,  1894,  he  was  united  in  marriage  with 
F^lizabeth  S. ,  daughter  of  Lucius  Howard,  of 
South  Easton,  Bristol  County. 


)N.  SPENCER  LEONARD,  Presi- 
dent of  the  Bridgewater  Savings 
Hank,  has  long  been  identified  with 
the  progress  of  the  town  of  Bridgewater,  serv- 
ing as  Selectman  foi'  thirty-two  years,  presid- 
ing year  after  year  as   moderator  of   the   town 


meetings,  and  filling  other  important  posi- 
tions. Bridgewater  has  been  the  home  of  his 
family  for  many  generations.  He  was  born 
here  August  18,  1814;  and  his  parents,  Spen- 
cer, Sr. ,  and  Mary  (Wood)  Leonard,  were 
both  natives  of  this  town. 

Solomon  Leonard,  an  F^nglishman,  was  the 
first  of  this  branch  of  the  family  in  America, 
settling  in  Du.xbury,  Mass.,  in  1687,  and  a 
few  years  later  removing  to  Bridgewater.  Mr. 
Spencer  Leonard's  great-grandfather,  who  was 
the  fourth  in  descent  from  Solomon,  fought  in 
the  Revolutionary  War;  and  his  grandfather, 
also  Samuel  Leonard,  who  was  a  iiati\'e  of 
Bridgewater,  served  in  the  Continental  army. 
Samuel  Leonard  was  one  of  the  first  to  strike 
for  liberty,  being  a  member  of  the  sturdy  band 
of  minute  men.  His  son,  Spencer  Leonard, 
Sr. ,  was  a  soldier  in  the  War  of  1812.  A 
well-to-do  farmer,  he  was  one  of  the  leading 
citizens  of  Bridgewater,  and  served  as  Select- 
man for  a  number  of  years.  He  reared  a  fam- 
ily of  seven  children,  of  whom  Spencer  is  the 
sole  survivor. 

Spencer  Leonard  was  reared  on  the  farm  in 
Bridgewater,  and  received  a  common -school 
education.  F"or  many  years  in  the  early  jiart 
of  his  life  he  was  engaged  as  a  travelling  dry- 
goods  salesman;  and,  on  retiring  from  that 
line  of  business,  he  settled  on  the  farm  where 
he  has  since  made  his  hon;e.  He  was  suc- 
cessfully engaged  for  a  number  of  years  in 
the  wood  and  lumber  business,  and  when  the 
Bridgewater  Savings  liank  was  incorporated  he 
was  made  a  Director.  His  probity  in  business 
and  ability  in  financial  affairs  won  the  confi- 
dence of  the  community,  and  later  he  was 
made  President  of  the  bank.  Mr.  Leonard 
was  one  of  the  incorporators  of  the  Plymouth 
County  Co-operative  Creamery  Company,  was 
its  first  president,  and  its  superintendent  for  a 
number   of  years;  and   he   has   been    identified 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


for  nearly  lialf  a  century  with  the  PI}-mouth 
County  Agricultural  Society,  serving  as  Trus- 
tee and  Vice-President. 

Mr.  Leonard  was  married  in  1840  to  Miss 
Samantha  T.  Sturtevant,  a  lady  of  beautiful 
character,  who,  dying  December  13,  1892, 
was  sincerely  mourned  by  her  family  and  a 
large  circle  of  friends.  She  was  the  mother 
of  five  children,  namely:  Mary  L.,  wife  of 
Marcellus  G.  Howard,  residing  in  Florida; 
Abbie  F. ,  wife  of  James  \V.  Leach,  of  Bridge- 
water,  Mass.;  Austin,  in  Rhode  Island;  and 
Cora  C.  and  Spencer,  with  their  father. 

A  Republican  in  politics,  Mr.  Leonard  has 
served  the  public  for  more  than  half  a  century. 
In  1846  and  1847  he  was  a  Representative  in 
the  State  legislature;  and  dining  the  Civil 
War  he  was  United  States  enrolling  officer  for 
the  town  of  Bridgewater.  He  has  held  the 
office  of  Justice  of  the  Peace  for  a  number  of 
years.  After  having  been  a  member  of  the 
Board  of  Selectmen  for  thirty-two  years,  he 
was  nominated  for  re-election,  but  declined  to 
serve  any  longer ;  and  he  presided  so  often  as 
moderator  of  the  town  meetings  that  the  mod- 
erator's chair  seemed  to  belong  to  him.  Al- 
ways interested  in  the  progress  of  his  native 
town,  with  hand  and  voice  he  has  aided  every 
project  for  its  improvement;  and  in  the  long 
years  of  his  residence  here  he  has  fostered 
many  changes  for  the  better.  He  attends  di- 
vine service  at  the  New  Jerusalem  church. 


^ANDALL  WEBSTER  COOK,  dealer 
in  general  merchandise,  grain,  and 
coal,  South  Avenue,  Whitman, 
Mass.,  is  one  of  the  best -known  merchants  in 
this  vicinity,  having  been  in  trade  himself  for 
forty  years,  succeeding  his  father,  who  es- 
tablished this  business  some  sixty  years  ago. 
Mr.  Cook  was   born    in  Whitman,  August  29, 


1841,  a  son  of  Randall  and  .Sarah  T.  (Bates) 
Cook.  He  is  of  old  Colonial  stock,  tracing 
his  descent  from  P'rancis  Cook,  who  was  a 
member  of  the  "Mayflower"  band  of  Pil- 
grims. 

Francis  Cook  was  from  the  parish  of  Blyth, 
adjoining  Austerfield,  in  Nottinghamshire, 
England,  three  miles  from  Scrooby,  York- 
shire, the  home  of  Bradford  and  Brewster. 
He  was  born  in  1577.  A  convert  to  the  Sep- 
aratist doctrine,  he  joined  the  congregation, 
of  which  John  Robinson  and  William  Brew- 
ster were  the  leaders,  and  with  the  little  com- 
pany went  to  Holland.  In  that  country  he 
married  Hester,  a  Walloon  woman,  who  bore 
him  seven  children.  These  children  were: 
John,  who  accompanied  his  father  to  America; 
Josias  ;  Jacob;  Hester;  Mary  ;  Jane  ;  and  Eliz- 
abeth. Francis  Cook,  with  the  other  Pilgrim 
Fathers,  signed  the  compact  drawn  up  on  the 
"Mayflower"  in  Plymouth  Harbor,  November 
II,  1620,  binding  themselves  in  a  "civil  body 
politic  "  "for  our  better  ordering  and  preserva- 
tion; .  .  .  and  by  virtue  hereof  to  enact,  con- 
stitute, and  frame  such  just  and  equal  laws, 
ordinances,  acts,  constitutions,  and  offices, 
from  time  to  time,  as  shall  be  thought  most 
meet  and  convenient  for  the  general  good  of 
the  colony;  unto  which  we  prqmise  all  due 
submission  and  obedience."  Francis  Cook 
was  one  of  the  strong  men  in  the  sturdy  settle- 
ment, and  from  1642  to  1648  was  in  office  as 
a  public  servant.  He  died  in  1663.  His  son 
John  was  a  volunteer  under  Captain  Prince, 
serving  in  1637  in  the  Pequot  War.  He  died 
November  23,  1675,  the  last  of  the  company 
who  came  on  the  "Mayflower"  in  1620.  John 
Cook  was  married  to  Sarah  Warren,  March  28, 
1634. 

Jacob,  the  third  son  of  Francis  Cook,  came 
to  America  with  his  mother  in  the  "Ann," 
landing    in    Plymouth    in    August,    1623.      He 


RANDALL    COOK. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


53 


married  Damaris,  daughter  of  Stephen  Hop- 
kins. Jacob  Cook  also  was  one  of  the  volun- 
teers who  fought  in  the  Pequot  War  in  1637. 
He  died  July  7,  1676.  The  line  of  descent 
from  him  continues  through  Francis,  Robert, 
and  Nathaniel,  to  Levi,  a  soldier  of  the  Revo- 
lution, who  was  the  paternal  grandfather  of 
Randall  Webster  Cook.  Levi  Cook  was  born 
in  Kingston,  Mass.  He  removed  to  Abington 
when  a  young  man,  and  resided  in  that  part  of 
the  town  now  called  Whitman  until  his  death. 
He  was  a  blacksmith  by  trade.  His  wife  was 
Sarah  Poole,  a  native  of  Abington,  Mass.,  and 
a  member  of  one  of  the  early  families.  Their 
son,  Randall  Cook,  was  born  in  Whitman, 
November  7,  1800.  In  1837  he  started  in 
business  as  a  grain  and  flour  merchant,  and  in 
1849  he  opened  a  store  for  the  sale  of  general 
merchandise,  establishing  the  business  which 
is  now  under  his  son's  management.  He  died 
January  7,  1871.  His  wife,  Sarah  T.  Bates, 
was  a  descendant  of  one  of  the  old  families 
of  the  town  of  Hingham,  Mass.  She  was  born 
in  Plainfield,  Mass.,  November  25,  iSio,  and 
died  February  6,  1893.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Ran- 
dall Cook  had  a  family  of  seven  children,  si.\ 
of  whom  are  living,  namely:  Sarah  J.,  wife  of 
John  G.  Taylor,  in  Abington ;  F'idelia  H., 
wife  of  John  A.  Allen,  in  Brockton,  Mass.  ; 
Harriet  B.,  Randall  Webster,  Edward  C,  and 
Carrie  L,  wife  of  Leonard  K.  Wood,  all  in 
Whitman. 

Randall  Webster  Cook  has  resided  in  Whit- 
man since  the  day  of  his  birth.  His  educa- 
tion was  obtained  in  the  common  schools,  and 
he  went  to  work  in  the  store  at  the  age  of  fif- 
teen. Gifted  with  a  natural  aptitude  for  trade, 
he  gave  his  best  energies  to  the  business, 
which  he  has  developed  to  large  proportions; 
and  he  is  now  one  of  the  leading  merchants  of 
the  locality.  He  is  one  of  the  Directors  of 
the   First    National    Bank,    a    Trustee    of    the 


Savings  Bank,  and  a  member  of  the  Board  of 
Investment. 

Mr.  Cook  and  Marcia  .Soule,  of  Kingston, 
were  married  in  1870.  They  have  four  chil- 
dren —  Sarah  Wadsworth,  Lucy  Ethel,  Ran- 
dall Bradford,  and  I'^rancis  Gray.  Mrs.  Mar- 
cia S.  Cook,  through  her  mother,  is  descended 
from  Francis  Cook,  her  husband's  Pilgrim 
forefather;  and,  among  her  ancestors  in  direct 
line,  she  numbers  also  George  Soule  and  Will- 
iam Bradford,  of  the  "Mayflower"  company. 

In  politics  Mr.  Cook  favors  the  Democratic 
side.  He  has  been  Chairman  of  the  Board  of 
Registrars  of  Voters  continuously  for  twelve 
years.  A  thirty-second  degree  Riason,  he  was 
one  of  the  first  in  the  establishment  of  the 
Mystic  Shrine;  and  he  is  a  prominent  Knight 
Templar.  His  wife  is  a  member  of  the  L'ui- 
tarian  church,  and  he  is  one  of  the  Board  of 
Trustees,  taking  an  active  interest  in  the  sup- 
port of  the  organization. 


■^ICHOLAS  A.  CLARK,  a  well-known 
citizen  of  Brockton,  was  born  in  West 

-  N^  ^  F'"airlee,  Vt.,  August  19,  1846,  son 
of  Henry  H.  and  liunice  (Emery)  Clark.  His 
great-grandfather,  John  Clark,  who  was  a  sea 
captain,  came  from  England  in  1782.  His 
grandfather,  William  Clark,  was  a  native  of 
Bradford,  Essex  County,  and  served  his  coun- 
try in  the  War  of  1812.  Grandfather  Clark 
married  a  Miss  Chase,  who  lived  in  that  vicin- 
ity; and  they  had  five  children,  three  boys  and 
two  girls.  The  father  died  when  about 
seventy  years  of  age.  Henry  H.,  the  second 
child  of  William,  a  native  of  Bradford,  Vt. , 
born  in  1813,  was  engaged  in  agricultural 
pursuits.  He  owned  at  one  time  one  hundred 
and  ten  acres  of  land,  subsec|uently  buying  a 
smaller  and  better  farm.  His  wife,  Eunice, 
a   daughter   of    Noah    limery,    of   Groton,    Vt., 


54 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


had  five  children  —  I^lizabeth  A.,  Nicholas 
A.,  James,  Jennie,  and  George  —  all  of  whom 
are  living.  The  father  died  May  lo,  18S3, 
aged  sixty-nine  years,  ten  months,  and  six 
days.  The  mother  lived  to  be  fifty-seven. 
Nicholas  A.  Clark,  after  acquiring  a  com- 
mon-school education  in  l^radford,  was  work- 
ing on  his  father's  farm  when  the  Civil  War 
broke  out.  On  June  2,  1863,  he  enlisted  in 
Battery  L,  First  \'ermont  Heavy  Artiller}-. 
At  Fort  Slocum  he  was  taken  sick  with  the 
scarlet  fever,  and  was  carried  to  Fort  Lincoln. 
Here  he  received  his  discharge  April  13, 
1864.  After  three  years,  during  which  he 
was  ujiable  to  work,  he  assisted  his  father  on 
the  farm  for  some  time.  Then  he  went  to 
East  Corinth,  Vt.,  and  w^as  employed  on  Mr. 
Ladd's  farm  there  for  three  years,  receiving 
for  salary  fifty  dollars  and  board  the  first  year, 
and  one  hundred  and  fifty  for  the  ne.xt  two 
years.  Mr.  Caleb  Ladd,  of  Watertown, 
Mass.,  then  hired  him  to  work  on  his  farm  for 
twenty  dollars  a  month.  He  continued  there 
for  a  year,  and  sa\'ed  two  hundred  dollars  out 
of  the  two  hundred  and  forty  he  earned.  Mr. 
Clark  then  went  to  Boston,  where  a  week 
after  he  met  a  Mr.  Clifford,  of  Stoughton, 
with  whom  he  agreed  to  learn  the  junk  busi- 
ness for  a  consideration  of  fifty  cents  a  day  for 
a  month,  after  which  he  was  to  receive  two 
hundred  and  thirty-five  dollars  a  year.  In  the 
second  year  he  received  an  advance,  and  dur- 
ing the  third  year  he  earned  one  dollar  a  da)-. 
In  1873  he  started  a  junk  business  in  the  same 
town  for  himself,  and  carried  it  on  for  six 
years.  A  copartnership  was  then  formed  with 
his  former  employer,  K.  R.  Clifford,  under 
the  style  of  Clifford  &  Clark,  which  contin- 
ued five  years.  Mr.  Clark  then  came  to 
Brockton,  and  started  in  the  same  business. 
He  has  been  very  prosperous  since,  and  now 
owns  a  good  deal  of  real  estate  here. 


<Jn  July  4,  1S73,  he  was  united  in  marriage 
with  a  daughter  of  John  Fames,  of  Warren, 
N.H.  They  had  two  children,  both  of  whom 
are  dead.  In  politics  he  is  a  member  of  the 
Republican  ]iarty ;  and  he  affiliates  with 
Fletcher  Webster  Post,  No.  13,  Grand  Army 
of  the  Republic.  Both  Mr.  Clark  and  his 
wife  attend  the  Methodist  Episcopal  church, 
of  which  Mrs.  Clark  is  a  member. 


HARLES  A.  TOWNSEND  has  been 
identified  with  the  town  of  Rockland, 
Plymouth  County,  Mass.,  since 
1862,  and  is  now  a  member  of  the  Board  of 
Selectmen.  He  was  born  in  North  Abington, 
Mass.,  June  11,  1837,  a  son  of  Flzekiel  and 
Lucinda  (Adkins)  Townsend. 

P>zekiel  Townsend,  who  was  born  in  North 
Abington,  was  engaged  for  some  time  in  the 
leading  industry  of  this  locality,  shoemaking, 
and  for  years  also  he  followed  the  pursuit  of 
agriculture.  He  died  at  the  age  of  eight)'- 
four.  His  wife,  a  native  of  the  State  of 
Maine,  was  called  to  rest  in  her  seventy-third 
year.  This  couple  reared  three  children  :  Ed- 
ward E.,  now  in  Minnesota;  Charles  A.  ;  and 
Rachel  A.   (deceased). 

Charles  A.  Townsend  was  reared  on  a  farm, 
and  received  but  a  limited  common-school 
education,  as  he  went  to  work  at  the  age  of 
fourteen,  being  first  employed  in  a  shoe  shop 
in  his  native  town.  In  1S57  he  went  West, 
and  for  five  years  he  was  employed  in  a  general 
store  in  Lockjiort,  111.  It  has  been  said  that 
our  early  environment  makes  us  what  we  are; 
and,  though  this  does  not  always  hold  good,  it 
is  true  in  a  great  many  cases.  Mr.  Town- 
send's  early  environment  seems  to  have  shaped 
his  life,  for  after  five  years'  experience  in 
trade  he  entered  a  shoe  shop  again.  He  was 
employed   in  a  factory  in   Milford,  Mass.,  for  a 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


55 


year,  and  then  removed  to  Rockland,  where 
he  has  since  been  engaged  as  machine  operator 
in  a  shoe  factory. 

In  1865  he  was  united  in  marriage  with 
Miss  H.  Ellen  Shaw,  of  Rockland.  Mr. 
Townsend  is  prominent  among  the  Republi- 
cans of  the  town,  and  has  filled  a  number  of 
offices.  He  has  been  on  the  Board  of  Water 
Commissioners  for  the  past  si.\  years,  and  is 
alst)  superintendent  of  fire  alarm.  Elected 
Selectman  first  in  1880,  he  served  one  year, 
and  was  re-elected  in  1890;  and  from  that 
time  to  the  present  he  has  been  retained  in 
office.  He  takes  a  lively  interest  in  town 
affairs,  and  is  always  willing  to  give  time 
and  attention  to  projects  for  the  improvement 
of  the  ])lace.  As  a  member  of  society,  he  is 
prominent  and  popular.  He  belongs  to  Stan- 
dish  Lodge,  No.  j-j,  Independent  Order  of 
Odd  Eellows;  Pilgrim  Encampment,  Indepen- 
dent Order  of  Odd  Eellows;  Hatherly  Lodge, 
No.  699,  Knights  of  Honor;  John  Cutler 
Lodge,  A.  E.  &  A.  M.  ;  Pilgrim  Chapter  and 
Old  Colony  Commandery,  Knights  Templars, 
and  Abington  Council;  also  of  the  Masonic 
fraternity.  While  not  a  jjrofessing  church 
member,  he  attends  worship  at  the  Unitarian 
church. 


'AMUEL  C.  WHITE,  one  i;f  the 
Board  of  .Selectmen  of  East  Bridge- 
water,  Mass.,  and  a  prominent  citi- 
zen of  the  town,  was  born  here  January  31, 
1841,  a  son  of  Benjamin  and  Rebecca  (Brown) 
White.  His  father  is  still  living,  and  a  resi- 
dent of  East  Bridgewater.  He  was  born  in 
Abington,  Mass.,  over  eighty  years  ago,  son 
of  Thomas,  a  descendant  of  an  Abington  pio- 
neer of  that  name.  The  family  is  supposed  to 
be  of  Scotch  and  English  origin. 

Thomas  White  and  Lewis  Brown,  the  grand- 
fathers  of    Samuel  C.  White  were  both  soldiers 


in  the  War  of  1 812.  In  his  earlier  years  Ben- 
jamin White  was  a  shoemaker;  but  he  subse- 
quently engaged  in  fa'rming,  and  is  now  re- 
tired from  active  pursuits.  P'our  of  the  chil- 
dren born  of  his  union  with  Rebecca  Brown 
are  living,  namely:  .Samuel  C.  ;  Harriet  J., 
the  wife  of  Horace  Worcester,  of  East  Bridge- 
water;  Mary,  wife  of  Aklen  Wilbur,  of 
15ridgewater ;  and  Frederick  W. ,  living  in 
East  Bridgewater.  P'ormerly  a  Whig,  since 
the  formation  of  the  Republican  party  Benja- 
min White  has  been  one  of  its  most  loyal 
adherents. 

.Samuel  C.  White  obtained  his  early  educa- 
tion in  the  common  schools  of  East  Bridge- 
water.  When  about  ten  years  of  age,  he  began 
working  at  shoemaking,  and  continued  to  en- 
gage in  that  branch  of  industry  up  to  April, 
1894,  when,  owing  to  illness,  he  gave -up  the 
employment,  and  has  not  since  resumed  it. 
He  married  Mrs.  Mary  E.  Bonney  White, 
daughter  of  Lucius  Bonney,  of  East  Bridge- 
water. 

In  1886  Mr.  White  was  elected  to  the  office 
of  Selectman ;  and  he  was  subsequently  re- 
elected three  successive  terms,  making  four 
years  that  he  served  at  that  time.  In  1895, 
and  again  in  1S96,  be  was  re-elected.  In  pol- 
itics he  is  a  stanch  Republican.  Both  as  a 
citizen  and  as  an  official  Mr.  White  has  the 
good  will  and  confidence  of  the  community. 


I^TENRV    H.     RYDER,  a  prominent  real 
r^l       estate   dealer  of    Brockton,    was   born 

^  \^ ,  in  this  city,  March   10,   1853,  son  of 

William  and  Lucretia  (Ames)  Ryder.  He  is 
a  descendant  of  an  old  West  Bridgewater  fam- 
ily. His  grandfather,  who  served  in  the  War 
of  1812,  had  si.\  children,  of  whom  William 
was  the  third.  William  Ryder  was  a  mer- 
chant tailor  in  Brockton  for  a  number  of  years. 


5(^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


An  intelligent,  well-read,  and  progressive 
man  of  sterling  personal  character,  he  was 
widely  respected.  He  lived  to  be  seventy-two 
years  old.  His  wife,  Lucretia,  was  a  daugh- 
ter of  Louis  Ames,  of  West  Bridgewater. 
She  had  three  .sons:  William,  Jr.  ;  Walter  B.  ; 
and  Henry  H. 

Henry  H.  Ryder  was  educated  in  the  public 
schools  and  at  Bridgewater  Academy.  He 
then  left  hi)me  to  enter  the  employ  of  Burridge 
Brothers  &  Co.,  with  whom  he  remained  three 
years  and  a  half.  At  the  end  of  that  time  he 
returned  to  his  native  city,  and  went  into  the 
real  estate  business,  which  has  since  engaged 
his  attention.  Possessing  in  a  large  degree 
the  qualities  of  foresight,  good  judgment,  and 
pmmpt  decision,  he  has  been  very  successful, 
and  has  done  his  share  in  helping  to  develop 
the  resources  of  his  native  city.  In  politics 
he  is  a  Republican,  and  he  attends  the  Porter 
Congregatiiinal  church.  He  is  well  worthy  of 
being  classed  as  a  representative  citizen  of 
Plymouth  County. 


LTON  B.  HASTINGS,  one  of  the 
successful  men  of  Brockton,  was  born 
in  Thomaston,  Knox  County,  Me., 
March  21,  1857,  son  of  Thaddeus  and  Abbie 
O.  (Trull)  Hastings.  His  grandfather,  also 
named  Thaddeus,  and  a  native  of  Union  Com- 
mon, Me.,  who  owned  a  large  farm  in  the  vi- 
cinity of  Thomaston,  and  was  one  of  the 
prominent  citizens  of  the  town,  had  children, 
of  whom  Thaddeus,  Jr.,  was  the  third-born. 
Thaddeus  Hastings,  Jr.,  received  a  common- 
school  education,  and  learned  the  carpenter's 
trade.  An  industrious  and  intelligent  man, 
he  managed  a  successful  business  as  carpenter 
and  builder  in  Thomaston  for  eighteen  years. 
He  was  about  forty  years  old  at  the  time  of  his 
death.      His  wife  was   a  daughter  of  John    B. 


Trull,  who  for  a  cpiarter  of  a  century  managed 
the  St.  George,  the  principal  hotel  of  Thomas- 
ton. They  had  three  children,  of  whom  Alton 
B.  and  Carrie  T.  are  living.  Carrie  T.  mar- 
ried C.  F.  Hathaway,  of  Cambridge,  Mass. 

Alton  B.  Hastings  obtained  his  education 
in  Bath,  Me.,  where  he  subsequently  shipped 
as  a  sailor  before  the  mast  for  two  years. 
Pleased  with  his  first  venture,  he  followed  the 
sea  for  some  time,  visiting  many  foreign  ports, 
and  working  his  way  up  to  the  rank  of  second 
mate.  He  afterward  worked  for  a  year  in 
George  Moulton's  repair  shop  in  Bath,  had 
charge  of  a  stationary  engine  for  some  time  for 
G.  P.  Richardson,  and  then  was  engaged  as 
driver  for  Hobart  &  Hathaway,  of  Bath, 
bakers.  About  a  year  after  Mr.  Hastings  be- 
came connected  with  the  last-named  house, 
Mr.  Hathaway  retired  from  the  firm,  and  Mr. 
Hobart  placed  Mr.  Hastings  in  charge  of  the 
business.  A  year  later  he  bought  a  bakery 
in  Bath,  managed  it  for  some  months,  and 
then  sold  it  to  his  former  employer.  He  sub- 
sequently removed  to  Marblehead,  Mass.,  and 
opened  a  bakery  there  for  Mr.  Hathaway.  He 
had  conducted  this  place  for  three  years,  when 
it  was  destroyed  by  fire.  In  1889  he  opened 
a  bakery  in  Brockton,  at  his  present  location. 
Two  years  ago,  1894,  he  erected  a  new  build- 
ing on  Market  Street,  adjoining  his  old  shop. 
He  is  now  completing  another  bakery  on  Per- 
kins Avenue;  and  on  July  13,  1896,  he  started 
a  bakery  on  Main  Street,  opposite  Belmont 
Street.  He  has  a  large  wholesale  as  well 
as  a  retail  business  employing  ten  bakers 
constantly,  and  a  number  of  delivery  teams. 
He  is  also  interested  in  real  estate,  and  has 
made  some  successful  deals. 

Mr.  Hastings  was  married  March  21,  1881, 
to  Laura  A.  Cushman,  daughter  of  Job  Cush- 
man,  of  Bath,  Me.,  and  now  has  four  children 
—  Arthur  C,  Alice  M.,  Carolyn  B.,  and  Edna 


ALTON     B.    HASTINGS. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


59 


T.  Politically,  be  favors  the  Republican 
party.  He  is  a  member  of  St.  George  Lodge, 
A.  F".  &  A.  M.,  of  Campello.  In  religious 
believe  he  is  a  Congregationalist. 


iHARLES  W  HOWLAND,  of  Rock- 
land,    Mass.,     civil     engineer,     is    a 

■^  ^  well-known  and  popular  citizen. 
He  has  been  a  Deacon  of  the  Congregational 
church  for  eight  years,  and  is  connected  with 
some  of  the  leading  social  organizations  of  the 
day.  A  son  of  the  Rev.  Freeman  P.  and 
Deborah  (Gushing)  Howland,  he  was  born  in 
Hanson,  Plymouth  Gounty,  Mass.,  December 
5,  1838. 

Freeman  P.  Howland  was  born  in  Sandwich, 
on  the  Gape,  but  passed  his  boyhood  in  Fal- 
mouth, Mass.  He  was  a  descendant  in  the 
seventh  generation  from  John  Howland,  one 
of  the  Pilgrims  who  came  to  this  country  in 
the  "Mayflower"  in  1620.  The  Rev.  Mr. 
Howland  was  first  settled  as  pastor  of  the  New 
Bedford  Gongregational  church,  was  subse- 
quently located  at  Hanson,  and  later  at  Hali- 
fax, a  neighboring  town.  On  account  of  ill- 
health  he  gave  up  his  pastorate  at  Halifa.x, 
but  continued  preaching  more  or  less  regu- 
larly, being  often  called  to  supply  vacant 
pulpits.  In  Halifax  he  lived  two  or  three 
years,  in  Gampello  two  years,  in  Hanson  again 
one  year,  and  from  1849  until  the  time  of  his 
death  his  home  was  in  Abington.  His  life 
was  a  busy  one,  for  much  was  expected  of  a 
minister  in  his  time.  He  was  counsellor, 
doctor,  lawyer,  and  general  adviser  in  all 
things;  and  when  land  was  to  be  measured, 
deeds  made,  conveyances  written,  or  clerical 
work  of  any  kind  done,  his  services  were 
called  into  requisition. 

The  Rev,  Freeman  P.  Howland  died  in  Ab- 
ington at   the  age  of    eighty-five.      His    wife, 


Deborah  Gushing  Howland,  was  born  in  iSoo 
in  that  part  of  Pembroke,  Mass.,  which  is  now 
Hanson.  The  Gushings  are  a  long-lived  fam- 
iy,  few  of  them  dying  under  seventy;  and 
Mrs.  Howland  lived  to  be  nearly  ninety-six 
years  old.  She  was  the  mother  of  six  sons  and 
three  daughters.  Of  these  Freeman  died  in 
1890;  John  died  in  infancy;  FIdward  G.  is  a 
farmer,  living  in  Abington  ;  Gharles  W.  is  the 
subject  of  this  sketch;  Isaac  G.  resides  in 
Abington,  and  Eliza  B.  lives  with  him,  in 
the  home  where  their  father  died  ;  Deborah, 
widow  of  Dr.  A.  P.  Ghase,  resides  in  Amboy, 
111.  ;  Garoline  F.,  wife  of  George  W.  Wilder, 
lives  in  Montpelier,  Vt.  ;  and  Daniel  Sawin, 
a  son  by  a  former  husband,  and  a  railroad  con- 
tractor, died  in  Arkansas. 

Gharles  VV.  Howland  in  his  boyhood  at- 
tended the  common  schools  in  towns  where  his 
parents  resided,  the  grammar  and  high  schools 
of  Abington,  and  Gotting  Academy  at  West 
Gambridge.  He  began  his  work  as  a  civil 
engineer  when  he  was  sixteen  years  old.  His 
father's  services  were  desired  for  some  survey- 
ing and  platting;  and,  as  he  was  away,  the 
youth,  who  had  often  watched  him  performing 
such  work,  volunteered  to  do  it.  So  well  was 
the  task  accomplished  that  from  that  time 
forth  his  services  were  much  in  requisition, 
to  the  overworked  minister's  great  relief. 
With  the  exception  of  a  short  period  when  he' 
was  with  his  brother,  an  apothecary  in  Boston, 
Mr.  Howland  has  since  been  employed  as  a 
civil  engineer,  covering  a  wide  field  in  his 
operations.  He  has  been  engaged  in  electric 
railway  work  and  municipal  engineering,  and 
has  established  a  reputation  as  an  expert  and 
reliable  civil  engineer.  In  August,  1862,  he 
enlisted  in  the  Fourth  Regiment,  Massachu- 
setts Volunteer  Infantry,  and  saw  some  hard 
service  in  field  and  hospital,  acting  for  some 
time  as  hospital   steward.      His  term  of  enlist- 


6o 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


ment  expired  August  28,  1863;  and  after  a 
season  of  recuperation,  made  necessary  by  the 
broken  state  of  his  health,  he  resumed  the 
work  of  his  ]3rofession.  Mr.  Rowland  also 
conducts  quite  an  insurance  business,  being 
the  pioneer  in  that  line  in  the  town.  He  has 
been  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Directors  of 
the  Abington  Mutual  Fire  Insurance  Company 
for  twenty  years,  and  he  has  been  President  of 
the  Mount  Vernon  Cemetery  Company  eight 
years. 

In  December,  1862,  he  was  united  in  mar- 
riage with  Mariesta  Dodge,  who  was  born  and 
reared  in  West  Cambridge,  Mass.  She  died 
at  Mr.  Rowland's  summer  home  at  Brant 
Rock,  July  26,  1889,  lamented  by  all  who 
knew  her,  as  she  was  a  most  estimable  lady. 
She  was  the  mother  of  seven  children,  three  of 
whom  are  living:  Giles  W.,  in  the  insurance 
business  in  Rockland,  where  he  married,  and 
now  resides;  I'^lizabeth  C,  wife  of  Dr. 
Charles  S.  Millet,  of  Brockton;  and  Marion 
Dodge,  who  is  yet  under  the  shelter  of  the 
paternal  roof.  On  Christmas  Day,  1891, 
Mr.  Rowland  was  married  to  Miss  Amy  Dick- 
ens, of  Chicago,  111.,  a  niece  of  Charles  Dick- 
ens, the  novelist;  and  by  this  union  he  has 
three  children  —  Helen  Dickens,  Deborah 
Cushing,  and  Amy  Dickens. 

Mr.  Rowland  cast  his  first  Presidential  vote 
for  Abraham  Lincoln,  and  has  been  an  active 
member  of  the  Republican  party  for  over 
thirty  years.  Re  was  a  member  of  the  State 
legislature  for  two  terms,  1879  and  i88r.  A 
Mason  of  long  standing,  having  joined  the 
brotherhood  before  the  war,  he  belongs  to  Pil- 
grim Chapter;  and  he  is  a  member  of  Old  Col- 
ony Commandery,  Knights  Templars,  and  of 
the  order  of  Knights  of  Honor.  He  is  also  a 
member  of  the  Rockland  Commercial  Club, 
and  of  McPherson  Post,  Grand  Army  of  the 
Republic,  of  Abington,  of  which  he  was  Com- 


mander in  1873.  Deacon  Rowland  was  on  the 
church  committee  on  music  for  seven  years, 
and  he  teaches  a  class  in  the  .Sunday-school. 
Re  is  a  genial,  pleasant  gentleman,  and  has 
a  large  circle  of  friends. 


ATRICK  GILMORE,  a  leading 
banker  and  grocer  of  Brockton,  was 
born  November  21,  1852,  on  Grove 
Street,  this  town,  son  of  John  and  l^llen  (Sa.x- 
ton)  Gilmore.  The  Gilmore  family  is  of 
Scotch-Irish  origin.  Michael  Gilmore,  the 
grandfather  of  Patrick,  was  born  in  County 
Westmeath,  Ireland,  and  for  some  time  was  a 
farmer  in  that  place.  Re  left  his  home  for 
America  when  his  children  were  beginning  to 
grow  up  about  him,  settled  in  Brockton,  and 
for  a  number  of  years  had  charge  of  a  passenger 
ferry  in  that  place.  Re  died  here  at  the  age 
of  seventy-seven,  having  reared  two  sons  and 
one  daughter. 

John  Gilmore,  also  a  native  of  Westmeath, 
was  the  second  child  of  his  parents.  When 
he  was  nineteen  years  of  age,  he  located  in 
Randolph,  Mass.,  and  was  there  associated  in 
business  with  his  uncle  for  about  a  year  and  a 
half.  Re  then  settled  in  the  locality  now  the 
site  of  90  Grove  Street,  and  in  1851  erected  a 
house  there.  After  learning  the  slioemaker's 
trade  in  David  Packard's  factory,  he  took  con- 
tracts from  L.  Whitcomb,  hiring  a  number  of 
men  to  do  the  work.  In  1858  he  started  in 
the  grocery  business  on  Grove  Street,  and  in 
course  of  time  he  built  up  a  prosperous  trade. 
In  all  his  business  enterprises  lie  evinced  a 
stability  of  purpose  and  a  shrewdness  of  judg- 
ment that  inevitably  won  success.  He  was 
the  first  Irishman  to  succeed  in  business  in 
Brockton.  About  ten  years  prior  to  his  death 
he  sold  his  store,  and  turned  his  attention  to 
his  real   estate   interests.      A  member  of    St. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


61 


Patrick's  Temperance  Society  for  a  number  of 
years,  he  was  President  for  some  time.  He 
was  one  of  the  founders  of  St.  Patrick's  Cath- 
olic church,  wliich  was  built  in  1859,  and 
was  superintendent  of  the  Sunday-school  for 
a  number  of  years.  He  died  March  5,  1890, 
aged  sixty  years.  Of  his  nine  children,  three 
sons  are  living. 

Patrick  Gilmore,  who  was  the  oldest  of  his 
parents"  children,  graduated  from  the  Brockton 
High  School  in  1871.  Seven  years  later,  on 
July  II,  187S,  he  opened  a  grocery  store  at 
his  present  location,  with  James  P.  Conley  as 
partner.  The  firm  of  Gilmore  &  Conley,  after 
carrying  on  a  good  business  until  September 
5,  '881,  was  dissolved;  and  Mr.  Gilmore  has 
since  been  the  sole  proprietor.  As  a  merchant, 
he  is  very  successful;  and  he  is  skilled  in 
matters  of  finance.  He  is  also  agent  for  the 
Cunard  and  White  Star  Lines  of  European 
steamers,  and  he  does  a  good  business  in  the 
drawing  of  drafts  on  Europe.  He  has  been  a 
Trustee  of  the  Brockton  .Savings  Bank  since 
its  organization. 

Mr.  Gilm'ore  was  married  August  19,  1877, 
to  Miss  Kelleher,  a  native  of  County  Cork, 
Ireland,  and  now  has  four  children.  In 
liolitics  he  favors  the  Democratic  side,  but 
votes  the  Republican  ticket  whenever  he 
thinks  the  candidate  better  fitted  to  fill  the 
office.  He  has  served  as  Town  Constable,  and 
was  on  the  School  Board  from  1879  to  18S1. 
Now  his  business  demands  his  whole  atten- 
tion. A  charter  member  of  the  Ancient 
Order  of  Hibernians,  Division  i,  which  he 
joined  at  the  time  of  its  organization  in  1873, 
he  filled  the  President's  chair  for  four  years, 
was  County  Delegate  for  two  years;  and  he 
has  held  other  offices  in  the  organization.  He 
has  been  Chief  Ranger  and  Deputy  High  Chief 
Ranger  in  the  Massachusetts  Catholic  Order 
of  Foresters.     He  has  been  superintendent  of 


the  Sunday-school  of  St.  Patrick's  church, 
was  Chairman  of  the  Cemetery  Committee  for 
about  nine  years,  and  is  now  President  of  St. 
Patrick's  Conference  of  the  Saint  Vincent  de 
Paul  Society.  Mr.  Gilmore  was  the  first 
Roman  Catholic  to  serve  on  a  jury  in  Plym- 
outh Countv. 


fiM  OLLIS  M.  BLACKSTONE,  superin- 
tendent of  the  Massachusetts  State 
Farm,  located  in  Bridgewater,  was 
born  in  Freedom,  Waldo  County,  Me.,  July 
31,  1848,  son  of  Dr.  Varney  and  Julia  (Lam- 
son)  Blackstone.  The  family  is  of  PZnglish 
origin,  and  is  thought  to  have  descended  from 
the  Rev.  William  Blackstone,  the  first  white 
settler  of  Shawmut,  now  Boston. 

V^arney  Blackstone,  M.D.,  father  of  Mollis 
M.  Blackstone,  was  a  practising  physician  of 
Freedom,  Me.  He  ilied  in  that  town  at  the 
age  of  forty-one  years.  His  wife,  Julia  Lam- 
son,  like  himself  a  native  ot  Maine,  was  a 
daughter  of  James  Lamson,  who  was  a  pen- 
sioner of  the  War  of  18  12,  and  for  many  years 
a  Deacon  of  the  Baptist  church. 

Hollis  M.  Blackstone  was  left  fatherless  at 
the  age  of  six  years,  and  when  twelve  years 
old  he  was  practically  self-supporting. 
Through  persistent  efforts  he  acquired  an 
academic  education,  and  after  completing  his 
studies  he  taught  school  for  some  time.  He 
lived  in  his  native  State  until  reaching  the 
age  of  twenty  years;  and,  subsequently  taking 
up  his  residence  in  Boston,  he  in  1872  was  ap- 
pointed to  a  clerkship  at  the  city  institution 
on  Deer  Island.  He  continued  in  that  posi- 
tion until  1877,  when  he  was  chosen  superin- 
tendent of  the  Marcella  Street  Home,  con- 
ducted by  the  city  of  Boston,  and  located  at 
the  Highlands.  In  1883  he  was  the  choice  of 
the  Board  of  Trustees  for  the  superintendency 


62 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


of  the  State  Farm  in  Bridgewater,  and  that  he 
has  fully  displayed  the  competency  and  fidel- 
ity expected  of  him  is  amply  attested  by  his 
long  tenure  of  office. 

The  institution  has  three  separate  depart- 
ments; namely,  the  workhouse,  to  which  are 
sentenced  habitual  inebiiates,  tramps,  va- 
grants, and  idle  and  disorderly  persons;  the 
State  Almshouse,  which  is  a  retreat  for  the 
sick  and  infirm  poor  of  south-eastern  Massa- 
chusetts; and  the  Asylum  for  Insane  Crimi- 
nals. The  State  Farm  occupies  a  beautiful 
and  he;\lthy  location,  and  its  present  structure 
of  brick  and  stone,  which  replaced  the  former 
wooden  buildings  destroyed  by  fire  on  July  2, 
1883,  are  models  as  to  thoroughness  of  con- 
struction and  completeness  in  every  detail. 
The  conflagration,  which  destroyed  the  old 
buildings,  occurred  the  day  after  Mr.  Black- 
stone  took  charge  of  the  institution;  and  the 
architectural  plans  and  specifications  for  the 
present  buildings,  which  are  said  to  be  practi- 
cally fireproof,  were,  in  the  main,  prepared  by 
him.  The  State  F"arm  under  its  present  man- 
agement is  accomplishing  the  work  for  which 
it  is  intended  in  a  most  satisfactory  manner, 
and  its  present  superintendent  is  exceedingly 
popular  with  all  parties  interested  in  its  wel- 
fare. 

Mr.  l^lackstone  and  Sarah  F.  Roberts,  of 
Brooks,  Me.,  were  married  on  February  8, 
1877;  and  three  children  are  the  fruit  of  their 
union,  namely:  Alfred  V.;  Helen  M.;  and 
Nellie,  who  is  no  longer  living. 

Politically,  Mr.  Blackstone  is  a  Republican. 
For  a  number  of  years  he  has  served  u]ion  the 
School  Board  of  Bridgewater,  being  at  the 
present  time  Chairman  of  that  body;  and  he  is 
also  Postmaster  at  the  State  Farm.  He  is  a 
member  of  Fellowship  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M., 
of  Bridgewater,  and  a  member  of  the  Unita- 
rian  church.      The   excellent   results  obtained 


at  the  P'arm  are  due  mainly  to  his  executive 
ability  and  thorough  knowledge  of  the  work, 
and  in  all  probability  his  continuance  in  office 
is  optional  with  himself. 


KRANCIS  K.  HOWARD,  Treasurer  and 
President  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of 
Howard  Seminary,  an  institution  of 
learning  founded  by  his  father,  wliich  stands 
among  the  foremost  schools  of  Plymouth 
County,  was  born  in  West  Bridgewater,  May 
14,  1825.  His  parents,  Captain  Benjamin 
B.  and  Olive  (Howard)  Howard,  were  both 
natives  of  West  Bridgewater. 

On  the  paternal  side  he  traces  his  descent 
from  John  Howard,  who  was  of  Plnglish  birth, 
a  contemporary  and  neighbor  of  Miles  Stan- 
dish  in  the  Plymouth  settlement.  John  How- 
ard located  in  that  part  of  old  Bridgewater 
that  is  now  West  Bridgewater  some  time 
previous  to  1650.  The  town  was  organized 
June  3,  1656,  and  he  was  one  of  the  fifty-six 
original  proprietors.  The  homestead  estab- 
lished by  him  has  remained  in  the  possession 
of  the  family  ever  since  his  time,  being  now 
occupied  by  Benjamin  B.  Howard,  nephew  of 
Mr.  Francis  E.  Howard.  P^or  over  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  3'ears  a  public  house  was  kept 
here,  where  the  stage  running  between  Boston 
and  New  Bedford  stopped  for  refreshments  and 
passengers.  P'rom  John  Howard  the  line  of 
descent  was  continued  by  John,  Jr.,  Major 
Edward,  and  Colonel  Edward,  officers  in  the 
State  militia,  to  Captain  Benjamin  B.  How- 
ard, above  mentioned.  All  these  gentlemen 
were  born  in  West  Bridgewater. 

Captain  L^enjamin  B.  Howard  was  a  soklier 
in  the  War  of  1812,  and  was  afterward  com- 
mander of  a  company  of  the  State  militia. 
In  politics  he  was  originally  a  Whig,  later  a 
Republican.      A  wealthy  and  prominent   man. 


FRANCIS    E.    HOWARD. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


(>5 


he  was  actively  interested  in  the  welfare  of  his 
native  place,  and  the  educational  institution 
whicii  he  founded  is  a  lasting  memorial  to  his 
enterprise  and  public  spirit.  He  died  April 
3,  1867.  Howard  Seminary,  in  West  Bridge- 
water,  was  opened  as  a  home  school  for  girls 
in  iScSj,  and  is  now  vi'idely  known.  The 
building,  beautiful  in  design  and  surround- 
ings, has  a  first-class  equipment  for  its  pur- 
poses as  a  seat  of  learning.  lilective,  aca- 
demic, and  college  preparatory  courses  are 
provided  for  the  students,  the  curriculum  in- 
cluding music  and  art;  and  a  diploma  or  cer- 
tificate from  Howard  Seminary  admits  to  col- 
lege without  further  examination.  The  school 
at  present  is  under  the  competent  manage- 
ment of  Professor  and  Mrs.  R.  W.  Gifford, 
and  is  in  a  flourishing  condition. 

Francis  E.  Howard  was  educated  in  the 
public  schools  of  his  native  town.  He  is  in- 
terested in  agriculture,  both  scientific  and 
practical;  owns  a  fine  farm  in  West  Bridge- 
water;  and  he  is  a  member  of  West  Bridge- 
water  Grange,  and  President  of  the  Farmer's 
Club  of  this  place.  In  local  educational  mat- 
ters he  has  long  taken  a  prominent  part.  He 
was  a  member  of  the  School  Committee  eight 
years,  and  Cliairman  of  the  Board  two  years. 
This  is  his  second  year  as  President  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees  of  Howard  Seminary,  and 
his  thirteenth  year  as  Treasurer,  he  having 
been  elected  to  the  latter  office  in  18S3.  The 
original  Board  of  Trustees  consisted  of  eleven 
members,  and  of  this  Board  Mr.  Howard  is 
the  only  one  serving  at  present.  He  is  also 
Secretary  and  Treasurer  of  the  Pine  Hill 
Cemetery  Association. 

Like  his  father,  he  was  originally  a  Whig 
in  politics,  and  when,  in  1855,  the  petition 
to  establish  the  Republican  party  was  circu- 
lated in  West  Bridge  water,  he  was  the  first 
voter  to  sign  it.      Since  that  time  he  has    been 


a  stanch  Republican.  He  gave  his  first  Presi- 
dential vote  to  Zachary  Taylor  in  184S.  Mr. 
Howard  is  a  man  of  culture  and  ability  as  well 
as  wealth  and  influence,  and  has  been  honored 
by  his  party  with  a  number  of  public  offices. 
He  was  chosen  delegate  to  the  first  Republi- 
can convention  at  Worcester.  He  has  served 
for  six  years  as  Selectman  of  West  Bridge- 
water,  and  was  two  years  Chairman  of  the 
Board.  In  1S70  he  was  Assistant  Marslial 
in  the  census  work  in  this  town;  and  in  1882 
he  was  in  the  State  legislature,  and  served  on 
the  State  House  Committee.  In  every  office 
to  which  he  has  been  elected  he  has  performed 
his  duties  with  good  judgment  and  entire 
competence,  and  wherever  he  is  known  he  has 
the  respect  of  his  fellows. 

Mr.  Howard  was  married  November  25, 
1852,  to  Mary  K.  Hayward,  who  died  a  few 
years  later,  leaving  two  children:  Edith  I*'., 
who  is  with  her  father;  and  Mary  J.,  deceased. 
He  was  married  again  October  5,  185S,  to 
Elizabeth  B.  Taylor,  his  present  wife.  By 
this  union  he  has  no  children.  Mr.  Howard 
has  been  a  member  of  the  Unitarian  church  in 
West  Bridgewater  for  nearly  half  a  century. 


RANCIS  M.  SHAW,  a  well-known 
business  man  of  Biockton,  Mass.,  is  a 
gentleman  of  wide  and  varied  experi- 
ence in  life.  He  has  served  his  country  in 
time  of  war  both  in  the  army  and  navy;  has 
travelled  far  and  journeyed  in  distant  lands; 
and  has  held  numerous  positions  of  trust  and 
responsibility,  serving  the  interests  of  impor- 
tant industrial  enterprises,  and  lending  a  hand 
sagaciously  to  the  conduct  of  public  affairs. 

He  was  born  November  3,  1825,  at  Rayn- 
ham,  Mass.,  being  a  representative  of  the 
fourth  generation  of  Shaws  in  that  ancient 
town    of    Bristol    County.       Joseph    Shaw,    his 


r.6 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


great-grandfather,  was  the  first  of  the  name  in 
Raynham,  where  he  was  engaged  in  farming. 
He  served  as  a  soldier  in  the  Revolutionary 
Army,  and  in  his  last  years  received  a  pension 
from  the  government.  Joseph  Shaw  married 
Celia  Wade,  and  had  four  children — Joseph, 
Samuel,  Silas,  and  Polly.  He  died  at  sixty- 
seven  years  of  age. 

Samuel  Shaw,  his  second  son,  was  a  Rayn- 
ham farmer,  and  was  also  a  house  carpenter. 
He  had  exceptional  talent  for  music,  and 
taught  singing-school  in  winter  evenings  in 
the  neighborhood.  His  wife,  Abigail,  who 
was  a  daughter  of  Seth  Hall,  of  Raynham, 
lived  to  the  age  of  eighty-seven  years.  Tiieir 
children  were:  Mary;  Samuel,  Jr.;  Deida- 
mia;  Isaac  PI.;  Susan;  Linus  11.;  and  Abi- 
gail. .Samuel  Shaw,  Jr.,  the  father  of  P'rancis 
M.,  was  born  on  the  famil}'  iiomestead  at 
Ravnham,  and  resided  there  to  the  end  of  his 
days,  dying  at  the  age  of  eighty-five.  In  his 
old  age  he  drew  a  pension  for  his  services  in 
the  War  of  1812.  Pie  married  Rachel  Shaw, 
and  they  had  seven  children.  The  three  now 
living  are:  Caroline  E. ,  P^ancis  Marion,  and 
James  Harmon.  The  other  four  were:  Alan- 
son  and  William  Wallace,  who  died  each  at 
about  forty  years  of  age;  Oliver  Perry,  who 
died  at  thirty-five;  and  Andrew  Jackson,  who 
died  at  eighteen.  The  mother  died  in  1840, 
aged  forty-eight  years.  The  house  where  the 
parents  spent  their  married  life  and  in  which 
they  were  all  born  is  now  over  two  hundred 
years  old:  it  is  occupied  by  the  son,  James  H. 
Shaw. 

I'^rancis  Marion  was  the  second  boy  in  this 
patriotic  family  to  bear  the  name  of  a  martial 
hero.  In  his  early  years  attending  the  dis- 
trict school,  a  mile  from  his  home,  he  ac- 
quired a  good  knowledge  of  the  common  luig- 
lish  branches.  'Phe  school-room  was  heated 
from  a    fireplace,   on   whose  ample  hearth,    in 


winter  days,  blazed  a  fire  of  huge  logs  and 
brushwood.  The  furniture  and  all  the  appli- 
ances were  of  primitive  fashion.  Hut  text- 
books were  well  conned,  hard  sums  were  tri- 
umi^hantly  ciphered  out,  minds  grew  attentive 
and  alert ;  and  not  the  least  valuable  lessons 
learned  were  of  resolute  self-reliance  and  vig- 
orous endeavor. 

At  the  youthful  age  of  fourteen  P'rancis  M. 
Shaw  joined  the  army  of  wage-earners  by 
going  to  work  in  a  nail  factory.  He  was  next, 
for  about  a  year,  employed  in  the  liast  Taun- 
ton Iron  Works;  and  from  there  he  went  to  a 
manufacturing  place  on  the  Schuylkill  River 
in  Pennsylvania,  still  later  finding  a  situation 
in  the  Duncannon  Iron  Works  —  all  this  before 
he  was  eighteen.  At  that  age  he  took  a  new 
departure,  embarking  on  the  "William  and 
Eliza,"  a  four-boat  whale  ship,  for  a  foui' 
years'  cruise,  sailing  around  Cape  Horn,  stop- 
ping at  Valparaiso  and  the  Sandwich  Islands, 
both  on  the  outward  trip  and  the  return  voy- 
age, spending  at  one  time  six  months  at  Hon- 
olulu. In  1846,  fifty  years  ago,  they  were 
taking  in  oil  at  Japan;  while  in  the  China 
Sea  they  were  in  a  typhoon,  and  had  a  narrow 
escape  from  destruction.  At  the  Cannibal 
Islands  they  engaged  in  traflic  with  the  na- 
tives, bartering  beads  for  hogs;  and  yoiuig 
Shaw  there  sold  the  king's  son  a  violin  that 
he  had  made  himself.  Among  other  places 
that  he  visited  on  his  voyage  were  the  Samoan 
Islands  and  New  Zealand. 

Reaching  home  on  the  P^ourth  of  July,  1848, 
a  man  of  twenty  two,  with  mind  broadened  and 
matured,  he  shortly  after  went  into  the  shoe 
business,  some  branch  of  which  he  followed  for 
five  or  six  years.  Then  he  bought  a  thirty  acre 
farm,  and  built  a  small  shoe  factory.  In  this 
he  set  up  the  first  pegging  machine  that  was 
brought  into  Raynham.  In  i860  his  factory 
was  burned  down,  and   in    1862  he  removed  to 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


67 


Abington  Centre.  In  the  following  smnmer 
he  enlisted  in  the  Ninth  Massachusetts  Bat- 
tery, and,  being  sent  into  the  field,  reached 
Gettysburg  just  after  the  battle  was  over. 
Orders  coming  for  the  discharge  of  all  sailors 
from  the  ranks.  Private  Shaw  enlisted  on  the 
United  States  .Steamship  "  San  Jacinto, "  and 
was  appointed  paymaster's  steward.  At  Key 
West,  where  the  steamer  touched,  the  yellow 
fever  was  raging.  They  there  took  on  Ad- 
miral Bell,  and  returned  to  New  York,  whence 
they  were  ordered  to  St.  John,  N.  B. ,  after 
the  pirate  .Sims.  Losing  two  boats  in  a  gale 
off  Cape  Hatteras,  they  put  into  Kittery  Navy 
Yard,  and  from  there  went  to  Fortress  Monroe. 
While  cruising  among  the  Bahama  Islands  on 
the  watch  for  rebel  vessels,  the  "San  Jacinto  " 
was  wrecked  on  No  Name  Key,  and  went  to 
pieces.  They  remained  on  the  island  eighteen 
days,  subsisting  on  what  could  be  saved  from 
the  wreck;  and  for  water  brought  to  them  in 
boats  by  the  natives  the  captain  paid  three 
hundred  dollars  in  gold.  The  men  were  res- 
cued by  the  Lhiited  .States  Steamship  "Talla- 
poosa," which  took  them  to  Boston.  The)-  had 
saved  ten  thousand  dollars  from  the  sunken  shi]]. 
On  receiving  his  discharge  in  July,  1865, 
Mr.  Shaw  went  back  to  Abington,  but  soon 
removed  to  Brockton.  F'or  some  time  he  trav- 
elled for  David  Whittemore  &  Co.,  manufact- 
urers of  shoe  machines,  jnitting  u|)  machinery 
in  Boston  and  vicinity.  In  1871  he  went 
abroad  in  the  interests  of  Mr.  Whittemore,  and 
sold  machines  in  London  and  Glasgow,  and 
visited  also  Dublin,  Paris,  and  other  places, 
being  absent  eight  months.  Receiving  word 
while  at  Hamburg  that  the  Whittemore  man- 
ufactory had  been  burned,  he  returned  to 
Massachusetts.  In  the  year  1873  he  had 
charge  of  the  Boston  Shoe  Machinery  Com- 
pany's e.xhibit  at  the  Vienna  E.xposition. 
Among  other   illustrious   visitors  who  came  to 


view  the  American  machinery  were  the  Km- 
peror  P"rancis  Joseph  and  his  wife,  the  em- 
press. Mr.  Shaw  availed  himself  of  the  o])- 
portunity  afforded  by  this  si.x  months'  sojourn 
in  Europe  to  visit  the  Alps  and  other  points 
of  interest. 

Returning  to  Massachusetts,  he  bought  out  a 
factory  on  High  Street,  Boston,  and  for  three 
years  carried  on  the  business  of  manufacturing 
pasted  insoles  and  heel  stock.  His  next  en- 
terprise was  undertaken  in  Brockton,  where  he 
established  the  leather  and  remnant  business 
on  Railroad  Avenue,  and  the  Naphtha  Ex- 
tracting Works  on  Centre  Street,  now  carried 
on  under  the  name  of  F.  M.  -Shaw  &  Son, 
from  which  he  retired  on  account  of  failing 
health,  since  which  time  the  business  has  been 
carried  on  by  his  son,  Francis  E. ,  under  the 
same  firm  name.  Previous  to  this  last  venture 
Mr.  Shaw  had  bought  an  interest  in  the  Bos- 
ton Rivet  Company,  and,  as  a  representative 
of  the  company,  had  made  in  1875  another 
visit  to  Europe.  He  has  crossed  and  re- 
crossed  the  Atlantic  twice  since  that  time  — 
namely,  in  1883  and  1885  —  and  has  also  trav- 
elled in  California  and  other  parts  of  the  great 
West. 

Mr.  Shaw  wa.s  a  Know  Nothing  during  the 
short  existence  of  that  political  combination 
in  the  fifties.  He  has  been  a  stanch  Re- 
publican since  the  organization  of  the  ])arty ; 
and  he  was  a  delegate  to  the  convention  at 
Worcester  that  nominated  for  the  chief  magis- 
tracy of  the  State  John  A.  Andrew,  since  re- 
nowned as  our  great  and  good  war  governor. 
Mr.  Shaw  has  served  as  a  member  of  the  Coun- 
cil of  Brockton  for  two  years.  He  belongs  to 
Fletcher  Webster  Post,  No.  13,  Grand  Army 
of  the  Republic,  of  which  he  was  chaplain 
seven  or  eight  years ;  and  he  has  served  as  a 
delegate  to  four  Grand  Army  Conventions, 
including  that  held  in  Denver. 


6S 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


In  religious  faith  he  is  a  follower  of  Swedeii- 
horg,  and  is  a  member  of  the  New  Jerusalem 
church  in  Abington.  Mr.  Shaw  has  been 
twice  married.  His  first  wife,  formerly  Miss 
Mary  L.  Eaton,  of  Raynham,  died  leaving  six 
children  —  Emma  Iv,  Linus  H.,  Alice  L., 
Francis  E.,  Mary  E.,  and  Samuel.  In  1861 
he  married  Harriett  B.  Bates,  daughter  of 
I'lufus  B.  Bates,  of  Cummington,  Mass.  Mrs. 
Shaw  is  the  mother  of  one  child,  a  son,  Nor- 
man B.  Alice  L.  Shaw  married  D.  T.  Bur- 
rell,  of  Brockton  ;  Mary  E.  Shaw  is  the  wife 
of  Sidney  Perkins,  and  lives  at  Savin  Hill, 
Boston,  Mass.  ;  Emma  E.  Shaw  married  Ed- 
ward Bryant,  and  lives  in  Brockton;  Linus  H. 
Shaw  married  Abbie  Dunham,  of  Plymouth ; 
Francis  I-].  Shaw  married  Ilattie  E.  Wilde, 
of  Brockton;  Samuel  Shaw,  unmarried,  is  a 
member  of  the  firm  of  Leonard  &  Shaw,  of 
Middleboro;  and  Norman  B.  Shaw  married 
Lila  S.  Copeland,  of  Raynham,  and  resides 
in  Brockton,  and  he  is  a  member  of  the  Opera 
House  Orchestra  of  this  city. 


■ON.  JAMES  GUSHING  LEAGH, 
of  Bridgewater,  who  died  in  1S95, 
was  one  of  the  able  men  of  Plym- 
outh Gounty,  actively  identified  with  the  in- 
dustrial, agricultural,  financial,  and  political 
life  of  this  section  of  the  State.  A  son  of 
Alpheus  and  Elizabeth  Gushing  (Mitchell) 
Leach,  he  was  born  in  Bridgewater,  July  11, 
183 1.  His  parents  were  natives  of  Bridge- 
water,  connected  with  the  oldest  families  of 
the  vicinity,  his  father  being  a  lineal  descend- 
ant of  Giles  Leach,  who  settled  in  this  town 
.some  time  prior  to  1665.  Another  ancestor  of 
the  subject  of  this  sketch  was  the  Rev.  James 
Keith,  the  pioneer  minister  of  Bridgewater. 

Alpheus   Leach    had   a    small    farm    in    this 
town,  and    hcic    the    boy  James  grew  to  man- 


hood, obtaining  his  education  in  the  district 
schools.  In  his  seventeenth  year  he  began  to 
learn  the  carpenter's  trade  with  Ambrose 
Keith,  a  prominent  builder,  for  whom  he 
worked  a  number  of  years;  and  for  some  time 
thereafter  he  was  employed  by  J.  li.  Garver, 
of  Bridgewater,  cotton-gin  manufacturer. 
In  1870  he  started  in  business  for  himself, 
manufacturing  oil-proof  paper,  used  in  the 
manufacture  of  boots  and  shoes;  and  he  also 
dealt  in  various  kinds  of  shoe  findings.  This 
enterprise  he  conducted  up  to  the  time  of  his 
death  with  luivarying  success.  As  his  ability 
as  a  business  man  became  known,  he  was 
drawn  into  connection  with  prominent  enter- 
prises of  various  kinds,  his  integrity  and  good 
judgment  making  his  co-operation  most  desir- 
able. He  was  a  Trustee  and  a  member  of  the 
Investment  Gommittee  of  the  Bridgewater 
Savings  Bank  for  a  number  of  years;  a  Di- 
rector of  the  Brockton  National  Bank;  and,  a 
member  of  the  Plymouth  Agricultural  Society 
for  a  long  term  of  years,  he  served  on  the 
Board  of  Trustees,  and  was  active  in  its  man- 
agement. An  ardent  advocate  of  public 
schools,  he  was  always  ready  to  foster  educa- 
tional progress,  and,  as  one  of  the  Trustees  of 
Bridgewater  Academy,  took  a  deep  interest 
in  the  welfare  of  that  institution. 

He  was  elected  on  the  Republican  ticket  to 
the  Massachusetts  legislature,  and  served  two 
terms,  in  1893  and  1894;  and  in  1895  he  was 
returned  to  the  State  Senate.  In  both  L'pper 
and  Lower  House  he  served  with  distinction 
on  the  Committees  on  Banking,  and  was  also 
a  member  of  other  important  committees. 
Mr.  Leach  was  commissioned  Justice  of  the 
Peace  by  Governor  Rice  in  1877.  No  less 
prominent  in  social  than  in  business  and  po- 
litical affairs,  he  was  a  member  of  F'ellowship 
Lodge,  A.  V.  &  A.  M.,  of  Bridgewater;  Har- 
mony   Ghapter,    Royal    Arch    Masons,    of    the 


^^~/>T7-2^t^^ 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


71 


same  place;  Brockton  Council,  Royal  and 
Select  Masters ;  and  Bay  State  Commandery, 
Knights  Templars.  He  believed  firmly  in 
the  good  accomplished  by.  religious  organiza- 
tions, and  was  a  liberal  contributor  to  the 
Central  Square  Church  of  Bridgewater.  His 
death,  which  occurred  October  3,  1895,  was 
widely  mourned,  and  each  citizen  of  his  native 
town  felt  that  he  had  lost  a  personal  friend. 
His  remains  rest  in  Mount  Prospect  Cemetery. 
Mr.  Leach  was  married  April  29,  i860,  to 
Phoebe,  daughter  of  Marcus  and  Hannah 
(Leach)  Conant,  of  Bridgewater.  Mr. 
Conant,  who  is  a  native  of  New  Hampshire, 
is  living  in  Bridgewater  with  a  daughter, 
Mrs.  Alfred  Hall.  His  wife  was  born  in 
Massachusetts.  She  died  in  1889.  Mrs. 
Leach,  who  was  born  in  this  town,  is  a  gradu- 
ate of  the  Bridgewater  Normal  School,  and 
taught  for  some  time  before  her  marriage. 
During  her  husband's  lifetime  she  took  an 
active  part  in  society  events,  and  she  is  widely 
known  and  esteemed.  She  had  three  children, 
who  died  in  infancy.  Her  dwelling  on  Pleas- 
ant Street,  erected  by  Mr.  Leach  in  1869,  is 
one  of  the  handsome  residences  of  Bridge- 
water,  a  town   noted  for   its   beautiful    homes. 


;UMNER  KEITH,  dealer  in  coal, 
lime,  cement,  fertilizer,  and  hay, 
is  one  of  the  prominent  and  sub- 
stantial business  men  of  Bridgewater.  He 
was  born  in  this  town,  November  20,  1833, 
a  son  of  Edwin  and  Saba  (Hooper)  Keith, 
both  natives  of  Bridgewater.  On  the  paternal 
side  he  is  of  Scotch  origin,  descended  from 
the  Rev.  James  Keith,  a  native  of  the  "land 
o'  cakes"  and  a  graduate  of  Aberdeen  Univer- 
sity, who,  immigrating  to  America,  located  in 
what  is  now  West  Bridgewater.  Here  the 
Rev.  Mr.  Keith  was  active  for  years  in  evan- 


gelical work,  and  was  one  of  the  best  known  of 
the  pioneer  preachers  in  Eastern  Massachusetts. 

Isaac  Keith,  of  the  third  generation  from 
the  Rev.  James  Keith,  lived  in  Bridgewater, 
where  his  son  Edwin,  the  father  of  Sumner 
Keith,  was  born  in  1800.  Edwin  Keith  was 
engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  cotton  gins,  and 
was  one  of  the  organizers  of  the  well-known 
manufacturing  house  of  Bates,  Hyde  &  Co.,  of 
Bridgewater.  For  a  number  of  years  he  was 
superintendent  of  the  works,  at  the  same  time 
being  a  member  of  the  firm.  Active  in  local 
politics,  he  was  a  prominent  member  of  the 
Whig,  and  later  of  the  Republican  party.  He 
died  in  i860.  His  wife,  who  was  born  in 
1804,  died  in  1881. 

Sumner  Keith  attended  the  common  schools 
of  his  native  town  and  Bridgewater  Academy. 
He  learned  the  blacksmith's  and  the  machin- 
ist's trade,  becoming  a  practical  general  me- 
chanic, and  from  his  sixteenth  to  his  twenty- 
eighth  year  was  a  workman  in  the  employ  of 
Bates,  Hyde  &  Co.  Then,  on  the  death  of  his 
father,  he  succeeded  to  the  position  0/  superin- 
tendent. This  position  he  held  thirteen  years, 
resigning  in  1873  on  account  of  ill-health. 
In  1876  he  started  in  his  present  business;  and 
as  a  merchant  he  has  been  very  successful, 
building  up  a  large  trade.  Mr.  Keith's  career 
has  been  an  honorable  one,  his  success  being 
achieved  through  native  ability,  good  judg- 
ment, and  diligent  application;  and  he  has 
the  confidence  of  the  entire  community. 

He  was  married  in  1869  to  Sarah,  daughter 
of  Edward  Mitchell,  of  Bridgewater;  and  by 
this  union  has  three  sons — Edwin,  Charles 
M.,  and  Joseph  W.  In  politics  he  favors  the 
Republican  side.  A  public-spirited  citizen, 
he  takes  a  deep  interest  in  the  welfare  of  his 
native  town,  and  has  served  on  the  Board  of 
Selectmen.  He  attends  public  worship  at  the 
New  Jerusalem  church. 


72 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


/^^^JeORCiK  a.  wheeler,  the  subject 
\J5 1  of  this  sketch,  is  one  of  the  well- 
known  men  of  Plymouth  County,  and 
is  a  descendant  of  William  Wheeler,  who 
came  over  from  luigland  in  the  old  Colo- 
nial days.  His  great-grandfather,  William 
Wheeler,  of  a  later  generation,  served  as  a 
sailor  in  the  War  of  the  Revolution,  was 
wounded  and  taken  prisoner  in  an  engagement, 
and  afterward  lost  his  life  in  attempting  to 
escape. 

William  Wheeler,  the  next  in  line,  son  of 
the  patriotic  sailor  and  the  grandfather  of 
George  A.,  served  in  the  War  of  1812,  and 
afterward  followed  the  calling  of  shoemaker 
and  small  farmer,  living  to  a  good  old  age  and 
rearing  a  numerous  family.  Among  the  many 
sons  was  Albert  D.  Wheeler,  who  was  a  shoe- 
maker by  trade  and  was  also  a  well-known 
teacher  of  vocal  music.  He  married  Rachel 
S.  Bourne,  of  Hanson. 

George  A.,  their  only  child,  was  bt>rn  in 
Rockland,  Mass.,  formerly  a  part  of  Abington, 
June  6,  1842.  In  the  following  year  his  par- 
ents removed  to  liast  Bridgewater,  in  which 
town  he  passed  the  years  of  his  boyhood,  at- 
tending the  district  school  and  also  the  acad- 
emy for  a  short  term.  In  1859  he  entered 
the  State  Normal  School  at  Bridgewater,  and, 
graduating  in  February,  1861,  assumed  the 
duties  of  teacher  in  one  of  the  public  schools 
of  the  good  old  town  of  Halifax  the  following 
fall. 

Answering  the  call  of  President  Lincoln  for 
"three  hundred  thousand  more,"  he  enlisted 
August  6,  1862,  in  Company  D,  Thirty-eighth 
Regiment,  Massachusetts  Volunteers,  for  three 
years.  On  the  8th  of  the  same  month  he  was 
married  to  Miss  Eliza  J.  Darcy,  of  East 
Bridgewater,  and  on  the  26th  left  the  State 
with  his  regiment  to  face  the  dangers  and 
hardships    of     war.        .Serving     under    (jeneral 


Banks  in  Louisiana,  he  took  part  in  the  battles 
of  l^island,  also  serving  through  the  siege  of 
Port  Hudson  and  taking  part  in  the  assaults  on 
the  works.  May  27  and  June  14,  1863,  receiv- 
ing slight  Wounds  in  the  two  last  engagements. 
In  1864  he  again  served  under  General  Banks 
in  the  Red  River  campaign,  |)articipating  in 
the  battles  of  Cane  River  and  Chalk  Plains. 
In  y\ugust  of  the  same  year  he  was  transferred 
with  his  regiment  to  Virginia  to  serve  under 
General  Sheridan  in  the  valley  of  the  Shenan- 
doah, there  being  engaged  in  the  battles  of 
Berryville,  Winchester,  or  Opequan  Creek, 
Fisher's  Hill,  and  Cedar  Creek,  that  being 
the  last  battle  in  which  his  regiment  was 
engaged. 

Receiving  his  discharge  at  the  close  of  the 
war,  he  soon  resumed  his  duties  as  a  teacher, 
having  charge  of  schools  in  East  Bridgewater 
and  Whitman  until  1871.  In  1870  he  re- 
ceived from  Mayor  James  Bates,  Sheriff  of 
Plymouth  County,  his  first  commission  as 
IJeputy  Sheriff,  a  position  which  he  still 
holds,  having  served  continuously  up  to  the 
present  time.  Mr.  Wheeler  resided  in  I-last 
Bridgewater  during  this  time,  holding  various 
town  offices  until  1883,  when  he  was  trans- 
ferred by  Captain  A.  K.  Harmon,  Sheriff  of 
the  county,  to  Brockton.  In  1884  he  was 
ap|jointed  City  Marshal,  holding  that  position 
until  his  resignation  some  three  years  later. 
He  is  a  member  of  Justin  Dimick  Post,  (irand 
Army  of  the  Republic,  at  liast  Bridgewater; 
a  charter  member  of  .Satucket  Lodge,  A.  b".  & 
A.  M.,  of  the  same  place;  a  charter  member 
of  Damocles  Lodge,  Knights  of  Pythias;  also 
a  member  of  Satucket  Chapter  and  Bay  State 
Commandery,  Knights  Templars,  of  Brock- 
ton. He  served  as  probation  officer  for  the 
city  from  1885  to  1891,  when  he  resigned  the 
office  upon  his  election  as  Alderman.  Mr. 
Wheeler  still  resides  in    Brockton,  holding  the 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


73 


])<).sition  of  auctioneer,  Deputy  Sheriff,  and 
Crier  of  the  Supreme  and  Superior  Courts  of 
the  county,  and  doing  a  general  business,  in 
which  lie  is  assisted  by  his  son,  V.  Pari<hurst 
Wheeler,  born  September  26,  1869,  who,  like 
himself,   is  an  onlv  child. 


(^OHN  M.  STETSON,  general  manager 
of  the  Bridgewater  Iron  Company,  is 
of  the  fourth  generation  of  his  family 
connected  with  this  long-established  industrial 
enterprise.  A  native  of  Bridgewater,  Mass., 
he  was  born  February  25,  1855,  and  is  a  son 
of  George  B.  and  Mary  L.  (Sumner)  Stetson. 
The  Stetsons  are  of  h'.nglish  origin,  the 
Bridgewater  branch  being  descended  from 
Cornet  Robert  Stetson,  one  of  the  early  Co- 
lonial settlers  of  Massachusetts  from  the 
mother  country. 

Captain  Abisha  Stetson,  great-grandfather 
of  the  special  subject  of  this  sketch,  was  one 
of  the  incorporators  and  original  members  of 
the  firm  of  Lazell,  Berkins  &  Co.,  of  Bridge- 
water,  iron  manufacturers,  afterward  merged 
into  the  l^ridgewater  Iron  Works;  and  liis  son 
Nahuni,  John  M.  Stetson's  grandfather,  was 
for  over  half  a  century  agent,  treasurer,  and 
manager  of  the  concern.  A  prominent  citizen 
of  Britlgewater,  Xahum  .Stetson  disijlayed 
ability  in  public  as  well  as  private  affairs, 
representing  the  district  in  the  State  legis- 
lature. 

George  B.  Stetson,  son  of  Nahum,  is  a 
native  of  Bridgewater,  a  well-known  and 
respected  citizen.  He,  too,  has  been  con- 
nected with  the  Iron  Works,  acting  for  a  long 
period  as  general  selling  agent.  His  wife  is 
a  native  of  Pawtucket,  R.I.  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
George  B.  Stetson  have  three  sons  living: 
George  W.,  in  P' ranee ;  John  M.,  in  Bridge- 
water;  and  Nahum,  in  New  York  City. 


John  M.  Stetson,  the  second  son,  the  date 
of  whose  birth  is  mentioned  above,  was  edu- 
cated in  the  public  schools  and  the  academy 
of  Bridgewater  and  in  Anthon's  private  school 
in  New  York  City.  He  was  employeil  for 
some  time  as  a  clerk  in  a  cotton  broker's  office 
in  New  York,  and  in  1871  was  engagfed  as 
clerk  and  book-keeper  for  the  Bridgewater 
Iron  Works.  Performing  his  duties  intelli- 
gently and  faithfully,  in  the  daily  routine  of 
his  work  he  became  thoroughly  familiar  with 
all  the  details  of  the  extensive  business ;  and 
in  1886  he  was  made  general  manager  of  the 
concern. 

In  1874  Mr.  Stetson  was  united  in  marriage 
with  Ruth  B. ,  daughter  of  Dr.  James  C. 
Swan,  of  West  Bridgewater,  and  by  this  union 
has  become  the  father  of  three  children  — 
Mary  I..,  Harriet  S. ,  and  James  S.  An  es- 
teemed member  of  the  Republican  party,  Mr. 
Stetson  has  served  for  two  years  as  Selectman 
of  Bridgewater.  He  is  well  advanced  in  Ma- 
sonry, being  a  member  of  Fellowship  Lodge, 
A.  V.  &  A.  M.,  of  Bridgewater;  a  charter 
member  of  Harmony  Chapter  of  the  same 
place;  a  member  of  the  Council  at  Brockton, 
Mass.  ;  and  also  a  member  of  the  Knight 
Templar  Commandery  of  Brockton.  Belong- 
ing to  one  of  the  old  and  respected  families  of 
the  place,  he  is  esteemed  by  his  fellow-citi- 
zens not  only  for  his  ccjunections,  but  also  for - 
his  own  personal  worth. 


rWTo 


P:uRGF  FEARING  REED,  who  was 
\Pl  born  in  Abington,  Plymouth  County, 
Mass.,  May  31,  1834,  son  of  Ezekiel 
and  Cephisa  (Studley)  Reed,  is  a  progressive 
farmer,  owner  of  a  fine  estate  of  six  hundred 
acres,  which  has  been  for  generations  in  the 
possession  of  the  Reed  family. 

John    Reede,    the    inmiigrant    ancestor,    was 


74 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


brought  to  this  country  by  James  Garrett,  of 
Charlestown ;  and,  as  Garrett  was  unable  to 
pay  their  passage,  both  were  sold  in  1653  to 
Michael  Pierce,  of  Hingham,  for  seven 
pounds.  They  served  till  1662,  and  Reede 
then  found  his  way  to  Scituate.  There  he 
married  Mary  Winter,  of  Plymouth;  and  the 
couple  subsequently  moved  to  Marshfield,  and 
thence  to  Kingston,  Mass.  John  Reede  wa.s 
the  progenitor  of  the  Marshfield  Reeds;  and 
the  majority  of  his  descendants  have  remained 
in  Plvmouth  County  from  his  day  to  the  pres- 
ent—  a  race  of  sturdy  farmers,  witli  here  and 
there  a  statesman  and  able  financier.  John 
Reed,  who  was  Lieutenant-Governor  of  Mas- 
sachusetts, 184410  1 85 1,  was  a  member  of  this 
family.  Charles  Reed,  Esq.,  Mr.  George  F. 
Reed's  brother,  who  is  a  graduate  of  Yale 
College,  is  a  prominent  member  of  the  New 
Haven  bar,  now  retired  from  professional 
work,  and  an  e.x-judge  of  probate. 

George  Fearing  I^eed  attended  private 
schools  in  Abington  and  a  jirivate  academy, 
and  finished  his  schooling  at  W'illiston  Semi- 
nary, Easthampton,  at  the  age  of  eighteen. 
He  was  first  engaged  as  clerk  in  dry-goods 
stores  in  Kingston  and  in  Plymouth,  and  then 
for  si.x  years  was  employed  as  book-keeper  by 
L.  Faxon  &  Co.,  of  Abington,  Mass.,  and 
Charleston,  S. C.  From  1859  till  1885  he 
was  in  the  shoe  business  as  a  member  of  the 
firm  of  Nash  &  Co.,  and  in  the  latter  year  he 
assumed  management  of  the  old  Reed  home- 
stead. Besides  attending  to  the  culture  of 
sevejal  acres  of  his  land,  he  has  the  best- 
equipped  saw-mill  in  Plymouth  County,  oper- 
ated by  electricity ;  and  this  mill  has  a  large 
annual  output.  Mr.  Reed  is  a  worthy  repre- 
sentative of  his  family,  industrious,  able,  and 
progressive. 

He  was  married    May    31,    1855,    to    Maria 
Antoinette   Fa.xon,    of    Abington.      One  child 


was  given  to  them  —  Althea  Cephisa,  who 
died  May  16,  1891.  In  politics  Mr.  Reed  is 
independent.  As  a  member  of  the  Odd  Fel- 
lows fraternity,  he  belongs  to  Pilgrim  Lodge, 
No.  75,  Nemasket  P^ncampment,  No.  44,  and 
Grand  Canton,  No.  18;  and  he  is  also  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Grand  Lodge  and  the  Grand  ]{n- 
campment  of  Massachusetts. 


RLANDO  VV.  CHARLES,  M.D., 
a  well-known  medical  practitioner  of 
I'emliroke,  Plymouth  County,  Mass., 
was  born  in  P'ryeburg,  Oxford  County,  Me., 
August  20,  1856,  being  the  son  of  Simeon, 
Jr.,  and  Rebekah  (Woodman)  Charles.  The 
family  on  the  paternal  side,  distinctly  Puritan, 
descended  from  John  Charles,  who  settled  in 
Charlestown  in  1636.  John  Charles,  the 
fourth  of  that  name,  a  native  of  Brimfield, 
Mass.,  was  one  of  the  original  proprietors  of 
the  town  of  Fryeburg,  where  his  son  Simeon 
was  born  October  27,  1787.  They  were  pub- 
lic-sjiirited  citizens  and  influential  in  promot- 
ing all  the  important  enterprises  of  improve- 
ment in  that  vicinity,  particularly  in  estab- 
lishing schools  and  a  church. 

Simeon  Charles,  Jr.,  son  of  Simeon,  lives 
on  the  farm  formerly  owned  by  his  parents,  a 
large  and  valuable  tract  of  exceedingly  fertile 
land  ill  the  valley  of  the  -Saco  River.  In  their 
native  town  the  family  is  distinguished  for 
honesty,  fair  dealing,  temperance,  and  general 
uprightness  of  character.  Simeon,  Jr.,  mar- 
ried Rebekah,  daughter  of  John  and  Sarah 
(Evans)  Woodman,  of  Sweden,  Me.  Joshua 
Gammage,  grandfather  of  Mrs.  Woodman,  was 
a  soldier  in  the  Revolution,  and  with  other 
veterans  was  present  at  the  celebration  of  the 
completion  of  Bunker  Hill  Monument  in  1843. 

Orlando  W.  Charles  supplemented  his  pub- 
lic school  education  by  attendance  at  P'ryeburg 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


75 


Academy,  after  which  he  began  the  study  of 
medicine.  For  several  years  he  taught  suc- 
cessfully in  his  native  town.  In  June.  1881, 
he  was  graduated  from  Bbwdoin  Medical  Col- 
lege, and  in  September  of  the  same  year 
settled  in  the  town  where  he  is  now  engaged 
in  a  large  practice.  Dr.  Charles  stands  high 
personally,  as  well  as  professionally,  among 
his  fellow-men.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Mas- 
sachusetts Medical  Society.  fn  |iolitics  he  is 
a  Democrat.  F"raternally,  he  is  a  member  of 
Phoeni.x  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Hanover. 
On  May  20,  iiS'Sj,  he  was  united  in  mar- 
riage with  Flizabeth  Chandler,  daughter  of 
Joseph  and  Mary  (Chase)  Chandler,  of  Frye- 
burg.  Mrs.  Charles  is  the  grand-daughter  and 
great-grand-daughter  of  Revolutionary  soldiers, 
and  a  direct  descendant  of  General  Joseph 
Frye,  to  whom  the  site  of  the  town  of  Frye- 
burg  was  given  Ijy  the  Comnmnwealth  of 
Massachusetts  for  distinguished  services  in 
the  French  and  Indian  War.  Paul  Langdon, 
the  first  preceptor  of  Fryeburg  Academy,  and 
son  of  the  Rev.  Samuel  Langdon,  President  of 
Harvard    College,    was    her  great-grandfather. 


B 


ANIKL  WALDO  FIKLD.  an  ex- 
tensive shoe  manufacturer  of  Hrock- 
toii,  Mass.,  and  president  of  the 
Clark-Hudson  Company,  shoe  jobbers,  i  i  i 
Federal  Street,  Boston,  is  a  citizen  (jf  whom 
Brockton  is  justly  proud.  Besides  establish- 
ing a  large  and  prosperous  industry  which  has 
brought  plenty  and  content  into  many  a  work- 
ingman's  home,  he  has  given  largely  to  phil- 
anthropic enterprises,  some  of  which  owe  their 
existence  to  his  generosity.  He  was  born  in 
Brockton,  February  18,  1856,  the  son  of  Will- 
iam L.  and  Mary  (Holmes)  Field. 

He  is  a  descendant   of  John    P"ield,  an    h.ng- 
lishman,  who  settled   in   Providence,   R.I.,  and 


was  the  original  ancestor  of  most  of  the 
American  F"ields,  including  the  chief  justice 
of  the  United  States  Supreme  Court.  Daniel 
W.  Field's  great-great-grandfather,  Jabez,  the 
son  of  Daniel  and  grandfather  of  Zopha  Field, 
was  born  on  the  Peregrine  White  grant  in 
Bridgewater,  now  Montello,  a  tract  of  land 
about  a  mile  and  six  rods  long,  a  part  of  which 
has  been  in  the  family  one  hundred  and  fifty 
years  or  more.  Zopha  Field,  who  was  a  pros- 
perous butcher,  owning  a  slaughter  house  and 
several  wagons,  was  in  business  a  great  many 
years,  d\'ing  at  the  age  of  seventy.  He  mar- 
ried a  Miss  Packard,  and  reared  four  daughters 
and  four  sons,  of  whom  only  William  L.  and 
Charles  C.  are  living. 

One  of  the  sons,  named  Daniel,  was  en- 
gaged in  making  boots  before  the  war,  and 
William  L.  made  brogans;  but  after  the 
advent  of  machinery  lessened  the  demand  for 
hand  work  he  engaged  in  other  pursuits.  As 
a  farmer,  he  was  quite  successful ;  and  he  man- 
aged two  large  summer  hotels,  the  Pawnee  and 
the  Central  House,  at  Martha's  Vineyard. 
A  large  real  estate  owner,  he  realized  consid- 
erable on  land  sales,  the  sites  of  the  W.  L. 
Douglass  factory,  French's  factory,  the 
Lavers  Dye-works,  and  other  buildings,  hav- 
ing originally  belonged  to  him.  He  gave  the 
land  to  the  Old  Colony  Railroad  Company  for 
their  station  at  Montello,  and  his  .sons  were 
instrumental  in  getting  the  station  located 
there.  Mr.  William  L.  Field,  who  is  sixty- 
seven  years  of  age,  is  now  living  on  the  family 
homestead.  He  is  a  shrewd,  quiet  man,  who 
makes  no  boast  of  what  he  has  accomplished, 
though  he  has  worked  very  hard  in  past  years. 
His  wife,  who  was  Miss  Mary  Holmes,  of 
Middleboro,  daughter  of  Jesse  Holmes,  of 
Plymouth,  has  been  his  untiring  helpmate  in 
life's  struggle,  shirking  no  duty,  however 
wearisome.      They    have     three     sons     living. 


76 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Their  only  daughter  was  called  from  earth  at 
the  age  of  sixteen,  the  happy  age  which  is 
neither  childhood  nor  womanhood,  but  com- 
bines the  graces  of  both.  The  eldest  son, 
William  F". ,  is  salesman  for  I).  W.  Field,  and 
assistant  manager  and  also  treasurer  of  the 
Field-Hazard  Comiiany.  Daniel  W.  is  the 
second  son.  The  youngest, F^red,  is  a  member 
of   the  firm   of   Packard   &   F'ield,  of  Brockton. 

Daniel  Waldo  Field  in  his  youth  attended 
the  Brockton  High  School  and  Bryant  & 
Stratton's  Commercial  College,  Boston, 
where  he  was  graduated  in  1875.  After  leav- 
ing school,  he  worked  on  his  father's  farm  for 
about  a  year  and  a  half,  driving  a  milk  wagon 
and  taking  care  of  forty  cows.  One  day  when 
he  was  in  his  twenty-first  year  Mr.  D.  S. 
Howard  stopped  him  on  the  street,  and  re- 
quested him  to  take  charge  of  the  books  in  his 
shoe  factory,  then  the  largest  in  the  city.  He 
was  in  Mr.  Howard's  employ  four  years.  In 
the  last  three  years  he  saved  from  his  salary 
fifteen  hundred  dollars;  and  in  1881  he  started 
in  business  in  a  small  way  as  a  shoe  manu- 
facturer, employing  seven  men  and  making 
thirty-six  pairs  of  shoes  a  da}'.  His  indus- 
trious habits  and  close  apjjlication  to  busi- 
ness brought  him  prosjjerity;  and  in  1883  he 
erected,  on  his  father's  farm,  the  nucleus  of 
his  present  plant,  a  factory  thirty-three  by 
sixty  feet  in  dimension.  .Since  then  he  has 
made  three  additions,  only  enlarging  as  his 
capital  allowed;  and  his  factory  now  is  three 
hundred  and  fifty  feet  long,  with  four  floors  for 
business  and  two  storehouses,  containing  in 
idl  fifty-two  thousand  feet  of  floor  space.  He 
employs  on  an  average  five  hundred  hands,  and 
makes  from  four  to  five  thousand  pairs  of  shoes 
a  day. 

In  1894,  in  company  with  his  brother,  Will- 
iam L.  Field,  and  Zimri  Thurber,  he  started 
another  shoe  factory  under  the   firm  name   of 


Field,  Thurber  &  Co.  ;  and  in  September, 
1895,  the  brothers  bought  Mr.  Thurber's  in- 
terest, admitting  to  partnership  Mr.  Hazard, 
who  is  the  present  manager  of  the  F'ield- Haz- 
ard factory,  Mr.  1).  W.  F'ield  being  president 
of  the  corporation.  In  the  past  five  years, 
according  to  record,  Mr.  F^ield  has  shijiped 
one-twelfth  of  the  shoes  sent  out  from  Brock- 
ton. He  was  one  of  the  original  founders  of 
the  Clark-Hudson  Company,  of  Boston,  which 
was  established  in  1892,  and  of  which  he  has 
since  been  president.  Hiring  quarters  at  1 1  i 
F\>deral  .Street,  they  purchased  their  stock, 
and  the  first  year's  sales,  in  1893,  amounted 
to  over  a  million  dollars,  in  1894  the  sales 
aggregated  a  million  and  a  half  dollars,  and  in 
1895  nearly  two  million  dollars.  They  are 
now  probably  the  largest  jobbers  in  Boston, 
and  employ  a  hundred  hands,  including  clerks, 
typewriters,  and  salesmen. 

Mr.  Field's  brothers  live  near  him,  so  they 
form  a  manufacturing  community  of  their  own. 
When  he  started  in  business,  the  only  means 
of  travel  between  Brockton  and  Montello  was  a 
coach  which  made  two  or  three  trips  daily; 
and  the  silence  of  the  little  suburb  was  broken 
only  by  the  drowsy  and  infrequent  sounds  of 
farm  life.  Now  the  place  is  changed  to  a 
bustling  manufacturing  village,  with  hurrying 
steam-cars  connecting  it  with  other  industrial 
centres;  and  this  great  change  is  due  to  Mr. 
F'ield's  enter]3rise.  His  factory  is  kept  in 
constant  operation,  and  he  is  always  ready  in 
aid  his  help  in  erecting  homes  of  their  own. 
The  best  of  feeling  exists  between  him  and 
his  employees,  and  only  once  during  his  busi- 
ness life  has  he  had  any  trouble  with  them. 

As  a  financier,  he  has  a  variety  of  connec- 
tions. He  is  largely  interested  in  real  estate 
and  building,  transacting  his  business  on  his 
own  responsibility  alone,  and  has  fifty  tenants, 
and  has  erected  thirteen  stores;  and   he   is  an 


GEORGE    B.    HOWARD. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


79 


active  Director  in  the  Brockton  National  Bank, 
and  owns  several  union  interests.  During  his 
whole  business  career  he  has  never  borrowed 
money,  never  given  his  note.  His  donations 
to  charitable  enterprises  are  generous  and  fre- 
quent, and  many  of  his  benefactions  have  been 
performed  in  such  a  quiet  way  that  they  are 
unknown  to  the  general  [jublic.  He  takes  a 
deep  interest  in  schools  for  the  blind.  He 
was  one  of  the  Building  Committee  of  the 
lirockton  Hosijital,  and  one  of  the  leaders  in 
the  enterprise.  He  gave  liberally  to  the 
Wales  Old  Ladies'  Home  at  Montello;  and 
he  built  the  Congregational  church  at  Mon- 
tello, which  was  completed  in  September, 
1895,  and  gave  it  to  the  society. 

Mr.  I'"ield  married  Miss  Rosa  A.  Howes, 
who  was  born  in  Barnstable,  on  the  Cape; 
and  she  has  aided  him  in  his  work,  not  only 
with  sympathy  and  encouragement,  but  in 
many  practical  ways. 

Though  he  takes  no  active  interest  in  pnli; 
tics,  preferring  to  devote  his  time  to  his  busi- 
ness, he  served  two  years  as  Park  Commis- 
sioner of  Brockton,  and  was  urged  to  run  for 
Alderman,  but  declined.  He  is  not  a  lodge 
man,  but  belongs  to  the  Commercial  Club,  an 
association  of  business  men.  Mr.  Field  is  not 
a  professed  church  member,  yet  he  is  a  practi- 
cal and  active  Christian.  Under  the  weight 
of  his  business  cares  his  health  has  broken 
down  ;  and  by  his  physician's  advice  he  has 
spent  much  of  the  past  four  years  in  travel,  in 
California,  Europe,  Cuba,  and  other  parts  of 
the  world. 


/IjTo 


EORGE  BURRILL  HOWARD  has 
\  P I  served  efficiently  as  Assessor  of 
Brockton  for  the  past  si.\  years. 
A  member  of  an  old  Plymouth  County  family, 
he  was  born  in  North  Bridgewater  (now 
Brockton),  November  24,   1S45.      His  parents 


were  Thomas  Jefferson  and  Lavinia  (Tilden) 
Howard. 

His  first  ancestor  in  this  country  was  John 
Howard,  who  lived  for  some  time  with  Cap- 
tain Miles  Standish  in  Du.xbury,  and  later 
settled  on  a  tract  of  new  land,  in  what  is  now 
West  Bridgewater,  where  he  died  in  1700. 
He  married  Martha,  daughter  of  Thomas  Hay- 
ward,  and  reared  seven  children — John, 
James,  Jonathan,  Elizabeth,  Sarah,  l^ethiah, 
and  Epiiraim.  Ephraim  Howard,  who  dietl 
in  1750,  married  Mary,  daughter  of  the  Rev. 
James  Keith,  perpetuating  the  line  of  descent, 
which  includes  the  special  subject  of  this 
sketch.  His  children  were:  Jane,  born  Sep- 
tember 17,  1689;  Susanna,  March  8,  1692; 
Martha,  August  7,  1695;  Ephraim,  Jr., 
March  25,  1697;  Daniel,  October  3,  1699; 
David,  March  3,  1703;  Silence,  June  3,  1705; 
and  Mary,  December  21,   1707. 

P2phraim  Howard,  Jr.,  the  fourth  child, 
married  Abigail  Tisdale,  who  died  in  175S, 
leaving  the  following  children:  George,  born 
January  31,  1721;  Theophilus,  born  in  1724; 
Ephraim,  in  1731;  Abigail,  in  1733;  -Sus- 
anna, born  in  1736,  who  married  John  Ames, 
and  was  the  mother  of  Oliver  Ames,  the 
founder  of  the  shovel  works  in  Easton  ;  Mar- 
tha, born  in  1739;  Mary,  in  1741.  George 
Howard,  the  eldest  son,  who  was  the  great- 
grandfather of  George  B.,  died  April  3,  1815, 
aged  over  ninety-three  years.  He  was  mar- 
ried in  1745  to  Abigail,  daughter  of  Jonathan 
Copeland.  She  was  born  December  9,  1724, 
and  died  March  26,  1809.  The  children  of 
this  couple  were:  Hannah,  born  July  26, 
1746;  Abigail,  September  26,  1748;  Betty, 
May  9,  1751;  George,  Jr.,  September  8, 
1753,  who  was  in  the  Revolutionary  War  in 
1775;  Oliver,  born  December  21,  1755:  Job, 
May  17,  1758;  Caleb,  December  15,  1760; 
Rachel,    April    20,    1763;     Patty,    August    2, 


So 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


1765;  Asaph,  March  19,  1768;  and  Nehe- 
niiah,  August  20,  1770. 

Caleb,  the  third  son,  who  was  the  next  in 
this  line,  was  a  man  of  strong  character,  and 
was  highly  esteemed  in  North  Bridgewater 
(now  Brockton).  He  filled  a  number  of  pub- 
lic offices,  was  first  Representative  to  the 
General  Court  from  the  town  of  North  Bridge- 
water  in  1822,  Justice  of  the  Peace  for  a  great 
many  years,  and  held  various  commissions. 
He  was  in  the  Revolutionary  War.  In  his 
later  years  he  was  commonly  called  Colonel 
Howard,  being  Colonel  in  the  militia,  and 
Commander  of  the  forces  at  Plymouth  in  the 
War  of  1 81 2.  He  died  January  4,  1831,  in 
the  seventy-first  year  of  his  age.  On  Decem- 
ber 7,  1780,.  he  was  married  to  Sylvia,  daugh- 
ter of  Daniel  Alger.  She  was  born  Novem- 
ber 13,  1 76 1,  and  died  September  17,  18 19, 
in  her  fifty-eighth  year.  They  were  the  par- 
ents of  eleven  children:  Hannah,  born  May  9, 
1782;  Apollos,  August  23,  1784;  Abigail, 
March  23,  1786;  Sylvia,  June  9,  1788; 
Vesta,  May  17,  1790;  Chloe,  January  19, 
1793;  Nancy,  January  10,  1795;  Welcome, 
April  17,  1797;  Olive,  July  24,  1799;  Caleb, 
June  8,  1802;  and  Thomas  Jefferson,  July  30, 
1804.  Colonel  Caleb  Howard  married  a  sec- 
ond wife,  Abigail  Snell,  daughter  of  Issacher 
Snell,  Esq.,  but  by  this  union  had  no  children. 

Thomas  Jefferson  Howard,  youngest  son  of 
Colonel  Howard,  was  a  farmer  of  North 
Bridgewater.  He  died  May  27,  1874.  His 
wife  was  daughter  of  John  Tilclen,  who  was  in 
the  Revolutionary  War.  She  was  born  April 
9,  1810,  and  died  F"ebruary  25,  1891.  Of 
their  children,  the  following  is  a  brief  record: 
Thomas  Franklin  was  born  July  14,  1831. 
Caleb,  who  was  born  August  2,  1S33,  at- 
tended the  Harvard  Law  School,  and  subse- 
quently studied  in  Philadelphia.  He  went  to 
California  about  i860,  and  took  the  stump  for 


Abraham  Lincoln,  and  he  subsequently  taught 
school  in  the  Sandwich  Islands.  Sent  from 
there  on  a  government  errand  to  the  Island 
of  Guam,  near  Japan,  he  died  in  August, 
1864,  on  the  way,  and  was  buried  at  sea. 
Frederick  Howard,  born  March  19,  1836, 
died  February  19,  1837.  Willard,  born  July 
10,  1839,  now  a  resident  of  Baltimore,  Md., 
was  in  the  forty-fourth  Massachusetts  Regi- 
ment at  the  time  of  the  war,  and  was  commis- 
sioned by  Governor  Andrew  in  the  Fifty- 
fourth  Regiment,  serving  successively  as 
Lieutenant,  Adjutant,  and  Captain,  and  re- 
maining in  the  service  until  the  war  was  fin- 
ished. He  is  now  Colonel  of  the  F'ourth 
Regiment  of  the  Maryland  State  militia. 
Davis  Howard,  born  July  16,  1842,  was  also 
in  the  Forty-fourth  Massachusetts.  Fred  Les- 
lie, born  February  2,  1849,  is  one  of  the  firm 
of  C.  A.  Browning  &  Co.,  of  Boston,  whole- 
sale dealers  in  millinery  goods. 

George  Burrill  Howard,  the  fifth  son, 
attended  in  his  boyhood  the  conunon  and 
private  schools  of  North  Bridgewater.  He 
subsequently  served  a  three  years'  apprentice- 
ship to  the  tinsmith's  trade,  and  then  entered 
Martin  L.  Keith's  shoe  factory  in  Brockton, 
where  he  was  employed  for  a  number  of  years. 
When  he  was  twenty-one  he  began  to  deal  in 
real  estate,  and  he  was  successful  in  that 
business.  He  is  well  known  in  Brockton, 
and  is  a  worthy  representative  of  the  family 
to  which  he  belongs.  A  Republican  in  pol- 
itics, Mr.  Howard  stands  high  in  the  esteem 
of  his  fellow-partisans.  In  1886  he  was 
appointed  Assistant  Assessor,  and  served  four 
years.  In  1S90  he  was  appointed  Assessor, 
and  has  been  in  office  continuonsly  since. 

He  was  married  in  1870  to  Elizabeth  Mar- 
tin, a  native  of  West  Bridgewater,  daughter  of 
Charles  N.  Martin,  and  they  became  the  par- 
ents   of    two    children,    namely:    Mildred    B., 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


born   August   6,    1S72,  who   died   October  28, 

1892;  and  Mabel  M.,  born  July  24,    1876.  In 

religious    belief    Mr.    and    Mrs.    Howard  are 
Unitarians. 


-Y^ATHANIEL  SHAW,  a  veteran  of  the 
I  =y  Civil  War,  who  conducts  a  thriving 
Ji^  \^  grocery  business  in  Plymouth,  was 
born  in  Carver,  Mass.,  December  14,  1836, 
son  of  Nathaniel  and  Betsey  (Shurtleff)  Shaw. 
His  grandfather,  Nathaniel  (first),  who  resided 
in  Carver,  was  accidentally  killed  by  a  falling 
tree  when  he  was  thirty-five  years  old.  Of 
the  grandfather's  five  children,  there  are  three 
living,  the  eldest  of  whom  has  reached  the  age 
of  ninety  years.  Nathaniel  Shaw  (second), 
Mr.  Shaw's  father,  was  also  born  in  Carver. 
He  learned  the  trade  of  a  hollow-ware  moulder 
in  Ellis's  foundry,  where  he  was  afterward  em- 
ployed for  many  years.  In  the  spring  and 
summer  a  good  farm  gave  him  ample  employ- 
ment for  all  his  surplus  time.  He  dietl  at  the 
age  of  sixty-five  years,  regretted  by  all  who 
knew  him  as  an  industrious  man  and  a  good 
citizen.  His  wife,  Betsey,  born  in  Carver  in 
1806,  was  a  daughter  of  Captain  Gideon  Shurt- 
leff, also  a  native  of  Carver,  and  a  son  of 
Abial  Shurtleff.  The  Shurtleffs  descend  from 
William  Shurtleff,  who  came  to  this  country 
in  the  "Mayflower,"  and  they  are  mentioned 
in  a  work,  entitled  "A  Nameless  Nobleman," 
written  by  Jane  G.  Austin.  Abial  Shurtleff, 
Mr.  Shaw's  maternal  great-grandfather,  who 
was  born  in  Marshfield,  Mass.,  moved  to 
Carver  when  a  young  man.  Of  a  strong  phy- 
sique, he  continued  hale  and  hearty  up  to  the 
time  of  his  death.  When  close  on  ninety-four 
years  old,  he  walked  from  Carver  to  Plymouth, 
a  distance  of  nine  miles.  Captain  Gideon 
Shurtleff  worked  at  his  trade  of  moulder  in 
the  winter,  and  was  engaged  in  farming  dur- 
ing the  summer  season.      For  several  years  he 


was  Captain  of  a  military  company;  and  during 
the  War  of  181 2,  when  the  British  troops 
landed  at  Wareham,  Mass.,  he  commanded  a 
company  of  the  volunteers  organized  to  meet 
and  oppose  their  advance.  He  was  the  father 
of  seventeen  children,  among  whom  was 
Betsey,  Mr.  Shaw's  mother.  Mrs.  Nathaniel 
Shaw  reared  nine  of  her  eleven  children,  five 
sons  and  four  daughters.  Of  these,  Nathan 
(third)  was  the  fourth  born.  The  mother 
lived  to  the  age  of  sixty-seven. 

The  third  Nathaniel  Shaw,  who  is  the  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch,  was  educated  in  the  schools 
of  Carver.  He  afterward  assisted  his  father 
upon  the  farm  until  he  was  nineteen  years  old. 
Then  he  obtained  employment  in  Ellis's 
foundry,  where  he  remained  for  some  time. 
Later  he  went  to  the  Kingston  foundry,  where 
he  continued  to  work  for  a  year.  From  there 
he  went  to  Pratt's  foundry  in  North  Carver,  and 
then  to  Watertown,  Mass.,  where  he  followed 
his  trade  until  1862.  In  this  year  he  enlisted 
as  a  private  in  Company  B,  Third  Regiment, 
Massachusetts  Volunteers,  under  Colonel 
Richmond,  and  subsequently  participated  in 
the  North  Carolina  campaign,  doing  picket 
duty  in  and  around  Newberne,  N.C.,  and  in 
the  battles  of  Kingston,  Whitehall,  and 
Goldsboro.  After  receiving  his  discharge 
in  1863,  he  returned  to  Watertown,  and  re- 
mained there  for  some  three  years.  At  the 
expiration  of  that  time  he  came  10  Plymouth, 
where  he  was  for  the  succeeding  ten  years 
employed  at  the  Plymouth  Iron  Foundry.  He 
then  formed  a  copartnership  with  Mr.  Hatch, 
and  has  since  carried  on  the  grocery  business 
here  under  the  firm  name  of  Hatch  &  Shaw. 

Mr.  Shaw  has  been  twice  married.  His 
first  wife,  a  native  of  Carver,  whose  maiden 
name  was  Lucy  Vail,  died  in  1876.  She  left 
one  son,  E.  A.  Shaw,  who  is  now  engaged  in 
the  grocery  business  in   Stoughton,  Mass.      In 


82 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


1S78  Mr.  Shaw  contractetl  his  second  marriage 
with  Julianna  Baker,  a  daughter  of  William 
VV.  Baker,  of  Plymouth.  He  is  a  memher  of 
Patuxet  Colony,  No.  103,  Pilgrim  Fathers,  and 
a  comrade  of  Cadlingwood  Post,  No.  76,  Grand 
Army  of  the  Republic,  of  which  he  has  been 
Commaneler.  In  politics  he  supports  the  Re- 
publican party,  and,  although  he  is  well  quali- 
fied to  fill  sundry  town  offices,  he  invariably 
declines  nomination  as  a  candidate. 


Tp^UFUS  E.  PACKARD,  real  estate 
I S^  agent  and  man  of  affairs,  of  Brock- 
li^  V  ^  ton.  Mass.,  formerly  Nortii  l^iidge- 
water,  was  born  in  a  house  that  stood  on  Be\- 
mont  .Street,  near  Charles  Eaton's  private  resi- 
dence, July  28,  1836.  He  is  a  son  of  the  late 
Lorenzo  E.  and  Wealthy  (Sylvester)  Packard, 
both  of  North  Bridgewater. 

The  Packards  are  an  old  New  Plngland  fam- 
ily. .Samuel  Packard,  the  first  of  the  name 
ill  this  country,  came  from  Windham,  near 
llingham,  England,  in  the  ship  "Diligence, " 
of  Ipswich,  and  settled  in  Hingham,  Mass.,  in 
1638.  From  there  he  moved  to  West  Bridge- 
water,  where  for  a  number  of  years  he  kept  a 
tavern  ;  and  for  some  time  he  was  constable  of 
tiie  town.  He  had  a  famil}'  of  twelve  chil- 
dren. Zaccheus,  the  thirtl  child,  married 
-Sarah  Howard,  and  reared  nine  children.  His 
son,  Zaccheus,  Jr.,  was  married  in  1725  to 
Mercy,  daughter  of  Isaac  Alden,  and  had  a 
family  of  si.\  children.  Isaac  Alden  was  a 
grandson  of  John  and  Priscilla  (Mullins) 
Alden.  Zaccheus  Packard,  Jr.,  died  in  1775, 
aged  eighty-two  years.  His  son,  -Simeon, 
who  was  born  March  30,  1736,  was  married 
on  July  6,  1 76 1,  to  Mary,  daughter  of  Mark 
Perkins,  and  died  October  23,  181 5,  aged 
nearly  eighty  years.  His  widow  died  October 
22,    1820,    aged  eighty-one.      Eleven   children 


were  born  to  this  coujale.  Their  third  child, 
Zenas,  who  was  the  grandfather  of  Rufus  1{. 
Packard,  was  born  May  22,  1771,  and  died 
April  20,  1854,  aged  nearly  eighty-three 
years.  Zenas  Packard  was  an  active  church 
member,  holding  the  office  of  Deacon  for  a 
number  of  years.  His  wife,  Deborah,  whom 
he  married  in  1793,  was  a  tlaughter  of  l^ben- 
ezer  Thayer.  She  died  October  i,  1S54. 
They  were  blessed  with  a  family  of  ten 
children. 

Lorenzo  Emerson  Packard,  son  of  Zenas  and 
Deborah  Packard,  was  born  in  North  Bridge- 
water,  August  6,  18 10,  and  was  educated  in 
the  common  schools  of  this  town.  He  S]ient 
his  life,  with  the  exception  of  two  or  three 
years,  in  his  native  place,  and  followed  shoe- 
making  for  a  livelihood.  Though  not  an  as- 
pirant for  office,  he  was  actively  interested  in 
politics,  voting  originally  with  the  Whigs, 
afterward  with  the  Republicans.  He  scr\'ed 
on  the  Prudential  School  Committee  in  look- 
ing after  supplies  for  school-houses  in  his  dis- 
trict, and  was  Clerk  of  the  Board.  He  was  a 
prominent  Congregationalist.  He  was  mar- 
ried November  18,  1832,  to  Wealthy,  daughter 
of  Gustavus  Sylvester,  of  North  Bridgewater. 
She  died  in  1876.  He  lived  to  the  age  of 
eighty-one  years.  Their  children  were  nine 
in  number,  namely:  I'jncline  b'rances,  imw 
the  wife  of  F.  E.  Allen  ;  Rufus  Emerson,  the 
subject  of  this  sketch;  Caroline  Augusta,  the 
wife  of  John  O.  Emerson;  Martiia  Adelaide, 
who  died  at  about  twenty  years  of  age; 
Wealthy  Alice,  who  died  in  1S93;  lillen 
Elizabeth,  who  died  in  infancy;  Luella  Mi- 
nerva, who  married  George  A.  Warren;  Ho- 
ratio Lyman,  who  died  in  infancy;  and  Syl- 
vester P'remont,  who  is  married  and  resides  in 
Brockton. 

Rufus  Emerson  Packard,  the  eldest  son,  re- 
ceived   a     common-school     education,     distin- 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


83 


guishiiig  himself  as  a  pupil  by  winning  a  prize 
book  offered  for  excellence  in  scholarship. 
This  success  was  the  more  remarkable  from 
the  fact  that  at  the  very  early  age  of  seven 
years  he  was  set  to  work  at  pegging  shoes, 
both  before  and  after  school  hours,  now  and 
then  even  at  noontime,  so  that  he  had  no  un- 
usual opportunities  for  study.  He  left  school 
at  the  age  of  fourteen,  and  went  to  work  at 
shoemaking;  and  for  some  time  he  was  foreman 
of  rooms  in  different  factories.  He  also  man- 
aged a  room  of  his  own,  employing  a  large 
number  of  hands.  The  constant  strain  of  in- 
door work  at  length  undermined  his  health ; 
and  in  1886  he  turned  his  attention  for  a  while 
to  canvassing,  subsequently  opening  an  intelli- 
gence office.  This  he  closed  up  after  a  time, 
and  has  since  devoted  his  energies  to  real 
estate  and  insiu'ance,  in  which  he  has  been 
very  successful.  At  present  he  has  the  man- 
agement of  much  of  the  real  estate  business  in 
Campello;  and  he  has  a  number  of  private 
estates  tcj  look  after,  including  those  of  Martin 
L.  Keith,  the  Hon.  Ziba  C.  Keith,  and  Preston 
K.  Keith.      Mr.   Packard  is  also  an  auctioneer. 

Mr.  Packard  was  married  in  1855  to  Eliza- 
beth K.,  daughter  of  Gushing  Otis,  of  East 
Bridgewater.  She  died  ^n  1869;  and  her  chil- 
dren, three  in  number,  have  also  ]5assed  away. 
While  she  was  living,  Mr.  Packard  resided  in 
East  Bridgewater.  On  April  17,  1871,  he 
was  united  to  his  second  wife,  Mary  VV., 
daughter  of  Vina!  Lyon,  of  15rockton.  By 
this  union  he  has  one  son,  Granville  L. ,  a 
graduate  of  the  Brockton  High  School,  now 
cashier  and  book-keeper  for  the  Standard  Oil 
Gompany.  Granville  L.  Packard  was  married 
in  189s  to  Thersa  K.,  daughter  of  John  .She[i- 
ard,  of  Gampello. 

Mr.  Rufus  E.  Packard,  who  is  a  Republican, 
was  Chairman  of  the  l^epublican  Gity  Com- 
mittee and  Chairman   of  the  Ward    3  Commit- 


tee several  years;  has  been  two  years  Treas- 
urer of  the  Republican  County  Campaign  Com- 
mittee, and  Warden  for  fifteen  years  of  Ward 
3,  since  Brockton  became  a  city;  and  almost 
every  year  he  is  elected  a  delegate  to  some 
convention.  He  has  been  Constable  seven  or 
eight  years,  and  was  appointed  Justice  of  the 
Peace  by  Governor  Ames  and  reappointed  by 
Governor  Greenhalge.  On  June  22,  1871, 
twenty-five  years  ago,  he  became  a  member  of 
Massasoit  Lodge,  No.  69,  Independent  Order 
of  Odd  Eellows,  of  which  he  has  been  trustee 
fifteen  years.  He  has  passed  all  the  chairs  of 
the  lodge,  and  is  a  member  of  the  Grand 
Lodge  of  Massachusetts.  He  is  a  member  of 
Brockton  Lodge,  No.  21 8,  Knights  of  Honor 
(having  been  trustee  of  this  body  also  fifteen 
years),  and  also  Past  Dictator  of  the  Lodge; 
and  he  belongs  to  Beatrice  Lodge,  No.  27, 
Daughters  of  Rebecca.  Mr.  Packard,  wife, 
and  son  attend  the  South  Congregational 
Church,  and  he  is  a  member  of  the  Consreua- 
tional  Club. 


§OHN  KINSLIiY,  a  native  resident  of 
Lakeville,  was  born  on  the  farm  which 
is  now  his  home,  April  3,  1829.  His 
parents  were  Unite  and  Susanna  (Alden) 
Kinsley. 

Unite  Kinsley  was  born  in  I^ridgewater, 
Mass.,  but  removed  to  Middleboro  at  an  early 
age.  He  was  a  millwright  by  trade  and  was 
an  enterprising  man,  managing  a  cotton-mill 
in  Taunton,  Mass.,  for  a  number  of  years. 
After  his  marriage  he  settled  on  the  farm  now 
occupied  by  his  son  in  Lakeville.  He  did 
not  live  to  enjoy  the  leisure  of  old  age,  but 
was  called  to  pass  from  earth  in  1833,  when 
he  was  but  forty-two  years  old.  His  wife  lived 
to  be  fourscore,  passing  away  in  1875.  Their 
remains  rest  in  the  Precinct  Cemetery. 
Seven     children    were    born    to     this     couple, 


84 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


namely;  Sllsuii  A.,  who  married  William  W. 
Nelson;  Lydia  B.,  who  married  O.  llaskins; 
Mary,  who  married  J.  C.  Haskins;  Betsey; 
Alvin;  John,  the  snbiect  of  this  sketch;  and 
Sarah. 

John  Kinsley  and  his  sister  Betsey  are  the 
only  surviving  members  of  his  family.  He 
was  born  and  reared  on  the  farm,  receiving  his 
education  in  the  schools  near  by.  He  began 
to  work  as  a  carpenter  when  seventeen  years  of 
age,  learning  his  trade  in  Middleboro,  and  was 
employed  in  the  vicinity  of  his  home  until 
1854.  In  that  year  the  gold  excitement,  which 
began  in  1849,  still  continuing,  he  went 
West,  joining  the  multitude  of  Eastern  men 
who  were  seeking  their  fortunes  on  the  Pa- 
cific slope.  He  travelled  by  water,  landing  at 
San  Francisco,  and  remained  there  for  a  while, 
finding  the  surest  and  safest  way  of  making 
money  was  to  work  at  his  trade.  In  1856  he 
returned  East,  and  after  living  for  a  number 
of  years  in  New  Bedford  returned  to  the  home 
of  his  childhood,  where  he  has  been  content  to 
spend  the  years  that  have  followed. 

Mr.  Kinsley  has  many  interesting  remini- 
scences of  the  California  of  the  early  fifties, 
the  many  types  of  men  who  congregated  there, 
and  the  lawless  life  of  the  time;  and,  like 
many  another  New  England  man  who  sought 
that  El  Dorack),  he  agrees  that,  though  wealth 
was  easily  got  and  lavishly  spent,  though  there 
was  little  restraint  from  law  or  public  ojjinion, 
there  was  no  such  genuine  comfort  to  be  found 
as  there  is  in  a  New  England  farm  home. 
Mr.  Kinsley  is  highly  esteemed  in  his  native 
town.      In  politics  he  is  a  Prohibitionist. 


& 


HOMAS    DROHAN,    Probation    Officer 
(jf    Brockton,     Mass.,     is    an     ex-State 
Detective,   and  has   held   various  other 
positions  of    public    trust.      He    was    born    in 


Tramore,  Waterford  County,  Ireland,  May  i, 
1844,  son  of  James  and  Helen  (F'lynn) 
Drohan. 

His  grandfather,  Edward  Drohan,  who  was 
born  in  Hackettstown,  near  the  estate  of  the 
Marcjuis  of  Waterford,  was  an  extensive 
farmer,  owning  three  hundred  acres  of  land, 
whereon  he  raised  horses,  cattle,  and  dairy 
produce.  He  married  and  became  the  father 
of  five  children,  two  boys  and  three  girls,  of 
whom  I^llen,  a  resident  of  Waterford,  is  the 
only  survivor.  James  Drohan,  born  in  181 3, 
son  of  Thomas,  was  head  gardener  on  the 
Powers  estate.  He  married  Helen  Flvnn,  and 
they  had  five  children,  two  of  whom  died  in 
early  life.  Two  boys,  Thomas  and  his  brother 
Edward,  and  one  girl  were  left  fatherless  in 
1852. 

Thomas  Drohan  received  a  part  of  his  edu- 
cation in  Tramore,  and  came  with  his  widowed 
mother  to  America  in  1853,  the  year  after  his 
father's  death.  They  settled  in  Ouincy, 
Mass.,  but  removed  on  July  3,  1855,  to  Brock- 
ton, where  they  went  to  housekeeping.  ]''or 
a  time  Thomas  was  in  the  employ  of  Sherman 
T.  Moore  and  others  in  the  shoe  business, 
subsequently  taking  contract  work,  which  he 
filled  by  the  labor  of  his  own  hands.  When 
the  war  broke  out  he  wanted  to  enlist,  but  was 
refused  on  account  of  being  too  young.  Later, 
on  August  II,  1862,  at  the  call  of  President 
Lincoln  for  three  hundred  thousand  more,  he 
enlisted  in  Company  H,  Thirt\--third  Massa- 
chusetts Volunteer  Infantrv',  and  went  to 
Washington,  waiting  at  Alexandria  for  General 
McClellan.  The  company  arrived  at  Bull  Run 
the  second  da)'  of  the  retreat,  going  back 
thereafter  to  defend  Alexandria,  being  near 
Fairfax  Cemetery.  After  taking  part  in  the 
battle  of  Fredericksburg,  they  forced  their 
way  across  the  Rappahannock,  not  having  their 
clothes  off  for  nine  days.      Subsequently,  sent 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


8S 


back  to  I'redericksburg,  they  remained  there 
until  spring. 

They  were  then  sent  to  Chancellorsville  to 
drive  the  rebels  out,  young  Thomas  being  on 
picket  duty.  From  Beverly  Ford  they  went 
to  Gettysburg,  where  he  wa.s  wounded,  his 
regiment  occupying  Cemetery  Hill  the  first 
day,  and  Peach  Orchard  the  second  day ;  and 
at  Frankstown  they  drove  the  confederates  to 
the  river.  Going  thence  to  Chattanooga, 
Tenn.,  he  was  promoted  to  Corporal  for  his 
bravery,  being  one  of  the  first  to  cross  the 
breastworks  at  Raccoon  Hill,  October  20, 
I1S63.  At  Lookout  Mountain  and  Mission 
Ridge  his  regiment  was  on  the  extreme  right 
under  General  Hooker.  Then  followed  the 
battles  of  Bayard's  Roost,  Tunnel  Hill,  and 
Resaca  (the  latter  fought  on  Sunday,  May  15, 
1864),  and  Bent  Hickory,  May  25.  After  that 
they  were  skirmishing  all  the  way  till  they 
arrived  at  Kenesaw  Mountain.  Here  Mr. 
Drohan  was  wounded  and  sent  to  the  rear, 
subsequently  going  to  the  hospital.  As  soon 
as  he  was  able  he  went  home,  but  returned  to 
his  regiment  after  a  short  furlough,  and  re- 
ceived his  discharge  in  Washington  at  the  end 
of  the  war.  General  Hooker  comjDlimented 
him  for  keeping  his  military  ec[ui|iments  in 
order,  quaintly  remarking,  "Vour  gun  looks 
good  enough  to  eat.  " 

Coming  back  to  Brockton  Mr.  Drohan  re- 
sumed contract  work,  later  entering  the  em- 
ploy of  C.  R.  F'ord  ;  still  later,  for  three 
years,  he  served  in  Gardner  J.  Kingman's  shoe 
factory,  and  during  one  year  he  drove  a  candy 
team  for  F.  B.  Washburn.  In  his  political 
affiliations  Mr.  Drohan  is  a  Republican,  who 
has  been  officially  prominent.  In  1878  he 
was  elected  Constable,  and  in  1879  and  1880 
he  was  delegated  to  night  duty  on  the  police 
force.  The  following  year  he  was  Constable, 
being  on  day  duty.      In  1882  he  was  appointed 


by  Mayor  Keith  Assistant  City  Marshal.  He 
and  Mr.  Littlefield  enforced  the  liquor  law 
very  strictly,  so  strictly,  in  fact,  it  is  said, 
that  he  was  discharged  by  the  Democratic 
Mayor,  H.  I^.  Packard.  Mr.  Drohan's  per- 
sonal friends,  who  are  many,  thereupon  pro- 
cured him  a  position  on  the  State  Detective 
force  under  Governor  Butler.  He  was  on  duty 
one  year,  and  in  1884  he  officiated  as  Con- 
stable and  Truant  Officer,  continuing  in  this 
position  a  number  of  years,  being  obliged  to 
serve  many  writs.  For  twelve  years  he  col- 
lected delinquent  taxes.  Since  1891  he  has 
served  as  Probation  Officer,  being  appointed 
by  Mayor  Keith,  and  in  1891  reappointed, 
according  to  the  new  law  by  Judge  Reed. 

In  1866  Mr.  Drohan  was  united  in  marriage 
with  Miss  Moore,  a  daughter  of  Michael 
Moore,  who  was  one  of  the  first  Irishmen  to 
settle  in  this  city.  By  this  alliance  there 
were  eight  children  :  Catherine  ;  James  ;  Annie, 
who  died;  Thomas  Emmett ;  Edward  Walter; 
Ellen;  William;  and  Mary.  James  Drohan 
spent  three  years  at  the  Holy  Cross  College 
in  Worcester;  was  graduated  from  the  Medical 
Department  of  Harvard  College  in  1895;  and 
is  now  a  medical  practitioner  in  Rockland, 
Mass.  Catherine  married  James  Madden,  and 
resides  here.  Thomas  Emmett  is  an  electri- 
cian for  the  West  End  Railway  Company. 
Edward  Walter  is  connected  with  the  Brockton 
Tiuus.  Fallen  attends  the  Brockton  High 
School,  and  William  and  Mai)'  are  also  living 
under  the  paternal   roof  and   attending   school. 

F'raternally,  Mr.  Drohan  is  a  member  of 
Fletcher  Webster  Post,  No.  13,  Grand  Army 
of  the  Republic,  which  he  has  served  as 
Quartermaster,  and  of  the  Union  Veterans 
Union.  He  has  an  excellent  memory,  his 
army  experience  alone  furnishing  him  much 
food  for  pleasing  as  well  as  pathetic  reflec- 
tions.     His  brother,  Edward   Y.,  who  enlisted 


86 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


at  East  Bridgewater  in  the  Twenty-ninth 
Massachusetts  Regiment,  after  participating  in 
many  engagements,  was  woimded  at  the  battle 
of  Cedar  Mountain,  and  was  sent  to  Eighth 
Street  Hospital,  where  he  died.  He  was 
buried  at  Arlington.  Mr.  Dmhan  has  one 
sister  living  in  Brockton. 


— ♦-••♦^— 


(S#T  I^ni--IvT  A.  SHERMAN,  an  iron 
moulder,  now  retired  from  active 
business,  is  a  resident  of  Plymouth, 
Mass.,  where  for  a  number  of  years  he  was 
foreman  of  the  Plymouth  Iron  Foundry.  He 
was  born  in  Carver,  Mass.,  March  16,  1829, 
son  of  Micah  and  Mercy  R.  (Ransom)  Sher- 
man. 

Micah  Sherman  was  born  in  Carver,  Febru- 
ary 24,  1783.  He  followed  agricultural  pur- 
suits during  the  active  period  of  his  life,  till- 
ing the  soil  with  energy  and  success.  He 
died  in  his  native  town  in  FY-bruary,  1868,  at 
the  age  of  eighty  five  years.  His  wife,  Mercy 
R.  Ransom,  a  native  of  New  York,  who  was 
born  November  24,  1786,  died  April  29,  1842. 
They  had  ten  children,  of  whom  Albert  A., 
the  subject  of  this  sketch,  is  the  only  one  liv- 
ing. The  others  were:  Joseph  Ransom,  who 
was  born  March  10,  1805;  Rufus,  who  was 
born  October  22,  1806;  Polly,  who  was  born 
September  25,  1 80S ;  Eucy,  who  was  born 
November  13,  1811;  Micah,  who  was  born 
May  19,  1814;  William  M.,  who  was  born 
August  29,  1816;  F^liza,  who  was  born  No- 
vember 22,  1819;  Lydia  R.,  who  was  born 
January  21,  1823;  and  Sarah  S.,  who  was 
born  November  25,  1S24.  The  parents  at- 
tended the  Congregational  church. 

Albert  A.  Sherman,  the  youngest  born  of 
the  ten  children,  acquired  his  education  in  his 
native  town,  and  at  the  age  of  fourteen  he 
began   to  serve   an   apprenticeship  at   the    iron 


moulder's  trade.  After  mastering  his  trade  he 
worked  as  a  journeyman  for  David  Pratt  si.\ 
months,  going  from  Carver  to  Middleboro, 
where  he  was  for  a  short  time  employed  at  the 
foundry  of  Thompson  &  Tinkham.  He  was 
ne.\t  employed  by  Cobb  &  Drew  in  Plymouth  ; 
and  from  this  town  he  went  to  P'all  River, 
where  for  five  years  he  worked  in  the  stove 
manufactory  of  William  Cogswell.  After 
subsecjuently  working  in  Pratt  &  Co. 's  sho]5S 
at  VVatertown  Mills  for  two  years,  antl  in 
Somerset,  Mass.,  for  three  years,  he  returned 
to  Plymouth,  where  he  was  employed  at 
Hobb's  Hole,  now  VVellingsley ;  and  during 
the  war  he  was  engaged  in  the  manufacture  of 
shot  and  shell  at  VVatertown.  In  1868  he 
once  more  took  up  his  residence  in  this  town, 
beconiing  connected  with  the  Plymouth  Iron 
F\iundry,  where  he  continued  until  the  suspen- 
sion of  that  concern  a  short  time  since,  having  . 
ably  filled  the  position  of  foreman  for  ten  or 
twelve  years. 

Mr.  Sherman  married  for  his  first  wife  Car- 
oline French,  daughter  of  William  French,  of 
p-all  River.  She  died  March  i,  1852;  ami  in 
June,  1 868,  he  wedded  Mrs.  Mary  H.  Harlow, 
born  F'uller,  whose  first  husband  was  Justus 
Harlow,  a  resident  of  Plymouth  and  a  tailor 
by  trade,  who  died  at  Fortress  Monroe  during 
the  Civil  War.  She  was  born  in  Kingston, 
daughter  of  Captain  Albert  and  Mary  (Chase) 
F"uller,  the  former  of  whom  was  a  native  of 
Sandwich,  Barnstable  County,  Mass.  Captain 
Albert  F'ullei-  was  a  ship-master  engaged  in 
the  West  India  trade.  He  died  of  yellow 
fever  in  San  Domingo  in  1844,  aged  forty-two 
years.  His  wife,  Mary  Chase,  who  was  a 
native  of  Barnstable,  Mass.,  was  the  mother 
of  si.x  children,  of  whom  Mrs.  Sherman  is  the 
youngest.  Three  are  now  living,  namely: 
Frederick  C. ,  a  jeweller  of  Providence,  R.I.; 
Cynthia    C,    Mrs.     Simmons;    and    Mary    H., 


ALEXANDER    VINING. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


89 


Mrs.  Sherman.  The  others  were:  Albert  C, 
who  died  young;  lulward  Mortimer;  and  Mary 
Helen.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Sherman  have  two 
children,  as  follows:  Clarence,  who  is  en- 
gaged in  the  oil  stove  business;  and  Leon 
Allen,  an  electrician,  who  is  connected  with 
the  Plymouth  Electric  Railway. 

Mr.  Sherman  is  a  Republican  in  jjolitics, 
and  cast  his  first  Presidential  vote  for  John  C. 
P'remont  in  1856.  P'raternally,  he  is  con- 
nected with  Mayflower  Lodge,  Independent 
Order  of  Odd  Fellows;  and  he  attends  the 
Baptist  church,  of  which  Mrs.  Sherman  is  an 
active  member.  Since  the  closing  up  of  the 
foundry  he  has  been  passing  his  time  quietly 
at  his  comfortable  home,  where  he  is  enjoying 
a  pleasant  season  of  rest  after  an  unusually 
long  period  of  useful  activity. 


^f^  LP:XANDER  VINING,  late  a  promi- 
nent leather  merchant,  and  one  of  the 
best-known  commercial  men  of 
Boston,  who  died  at  his  home  in  Ouincy, 
Mass.,  January  31,  1885,  was  born  in  South 
Scituate,  May  11,  1817,  son  of  Alexander, 
Sr.,  and  Polly  (Jacobs)  \'ining.  He  was  a 
descendant  of  two  Colonial  families  of  repute, 
the  representatives  of  both  being  noted  for 
their  intellectual  attainments,  sturtly  charac- 
ter, and  stanch  patriotism. 

Alexander  Vining,  Sr. ,  father  of  the  subject 
of  this  sketch,  was  a  native  of  East  Abington, 
Mass.,  now  Rockland.  Having  acquired  a 
liberal  education,  he  became  a  school-teacher, 
and  was  for  many  years  principal  of  the  East 
Abington  Pligh  School.  As  a  member  of  the 
Whig  party  in  politics,  he  took  an  active  part 
in  securing  capable  persons  for  the  public 
service,  although  he  never  sought  or  held  office 
himself.  In  his  religious  views  he  was  a 
Universalist,  and  he  served  as  Deacon  of  that 


church.  His  useful  life  ended  at  a  good  old 
age,  and  the  record  of  his  career  was  an  ex- 
ceedingly bright  and  honorable  one.  His 
wife,  Polly  Jacobs,  was  a  daughter  of  Captain 
Joshua  Jacobs. 

Her  father  was  a  son  of  Joshua  Jacobs,  of 
Scituate,  Mass.,  and  a  lineal  descendant  of 
Nicholas  Jacob,  who  settled  in  Hingham, 
Mass.,  in  1633.  John  Jacob,  son  of  Nicho- 
las, born  in  England  in  1630,  was  the  father 
of  David,  who  was  born  in  Hingham,  Mass., 
in  1664,  and  about  1688  settled  in  Scituate, 
Mass.,  evidently  being  the  first  of  his  surname 
in  that  town.  He  married  Sarah  Cushing, 
and,  as  we  learn  from  Deane's  "History  of 
Scituate, "'  was  the  father  of  eleven  children, 
including  a  son  Joshua,  born  in  1702.  Mrs. 
Vining's  father,  Joshua,  son  of  Joshua,  joined 
the  Continental  army  as  a  Captain  in  the 
Twenty-third  Regiment  of  Infantry  in  1776, 
and,  after  serving  with  honor  all  through  the 
Revolutionary  War,  he  remained  in  the  P^ed- 
eral  service  during  the  rest  of  his  active  life. 
He  died  at  the  age  of  seventy-eight  years. 
Mrs.  Polly  Jacobs  Vining  was  a  lady  of  un- 
usual intelligence  and  advanced  education,  a 
.graduate  of  the  old  Watson  School  in 
Charlestown,  Mass.  She  died  at  the  age  of 
seventy -five  years.  Alexander,  the  subject  of 
this  sketch,  was  her  only  chikl. 

Alexander  Vining  was  educated  in  the  com- 
mon schools  of  South  Scituate,  and  he  resided 
in  his  native  town  until  he  was  forty  years 
old.  In  1S57  he  removed  to  Hull,  Mass., 
where  he  engaged  in  the  hotel  business  as  pro- 
prietor of  the  Nantasket  House;  and  three 
years  later  he  removed  to  the  Mansion  House 
at  Wind  Mill  Point,  of  which  he  was  pro- 
prietor until  it  was  destroyed  by  fire  on  P'eb- 
ruary  12,  1872.  About  the  year  i860  he  en- 
gaged in  the  wholesale  leather  business  in 
Boston,    where    he    became    one    of    the    most 


9° 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


prominent  and  enterprising  merchants  in  that 
line  of  trade,  and  his  connection  with  it  con- 
tinued until  within  two  years  of  his  death, 
which  took  place  as  above  stated,  at  the  age  of 
nearly  sixty-eight  years.  As  a  business  man 
he  was  energetic  and  progressive,  and  always 
made  a  success  of  whatever  he  undertook. 

It  is  generally  conceded  that  he  kept  the 
best  summer  hotel  along  the  beach,  and  in 
commercial  circles  he  reached  an  enviable 
standing  as  a  high-minded  and  upright  busi- 
ness man,  who  fully  merited  the  respect  and 
esteem  which  was  accorded  him  by  his  mer- 
cantile associates.  While  a  resident  of  Hull 
he  took  an  active  part  in  public  affairs  and  the 
general  improvement  of  the  town,  serving  as 
a  member  of  the  Board  of  Selectmen  for 
several  years.  He  was  the  original  projector 
of  the  first  county  road  from  Hull  village  to 
the  Rockland  House,  and  was  mainly  instru- 
mental in  securing  its  completion.  For  sev- 
eral years  previous  to  his  death  he  resided  in 
Ouincy,  Mass.,  but  he  always  preserved  a  sin- 
cere affection  for  his  native  town  of  South 
Scituate  (now  Norwell)  ;  and  his  remains  were 
interred  there.  Politically,  he  was  a  Repub- 
lican, and  in  his  religious  views  he  was 
liberal. 

In  I.S57  Alexander  Vining  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Fanny  Margaret  Raymond, 
daughter  of  Captain  Lewis  Raymond,  a  well- 
known  ship-master  of  South  Scituate.  By  this 
union  there  were  two  children,  only  one  of 
whom,  namely,  Floretta,  now  survives.  Mrs. 
Vining  died  May  24,   1865. 

Miss  Floretta  Vining  inherited  a  large  fort- 
une from  her  father,  and  her  ample  means 
have  been,  and  are  still,  used  liberally  in 
doing  good.  In  the  month  of  May,  1885,  she 
took  up  her  residence  at  Seaside  Cottage,  the 
former  summer  home  of  her  father,  and  she. 
occupied  it  until  March   12,   1890,  when  it  was 


destroyed  by  fire.  She  was  upon  a  visit  to 
Washington,  D.C.,  at  the  time.  On  May  20 
of  the  same  year  she  began  the  erection  of  her 
present  summer  dwelling,  which  is  known  as 
Vining  Villa.  During  the  summer  she  was  in 
Europe,  and  upon  her  return  in  the  fall,  the 
villa  was  ready  for  occupancy.  Here  she 
resides  through  the  summer  months,  but  dur- 
ing the  winter  season  she  occupies  apartments 
at  the  Parker  House,  Boston.  She  is  a  prom- 
inent member  of  literary  and  social  circles  of 
that  city,  belonging  to  many  noted  clubs  and 
other  organizations,  in  which  she  is  very  pop- 
ular, taking  an  active  interest  in  their  devel- 
opment and  usefulness. 

She  is  the  first  Regent  of  John  Adams 
Chapter,  Daughters  of  the  American  Revolu- 
tion; was  the  second  New  PZngland  lady  ad- 
mitted to  membership  of  Sorosis,  the  leading 
women's  club  of  New  York  Cit\';  is  the  first 
Vice-President  of  the  Abbott  Academy  Club, 
of  Andover,  Mass.  ;  has  been  Auditor  of  the 
New  England  Women's  Press  Association 
since  its  organization:  is  a  Director  of  the 
Women's  Club-house  Corporation,  which  has 
in  contemplation  the  erection  of  a  club-house 
for  women  in  Boston;  and  is  a  member  of  the 
Playgoers'  Club.  During  the  past  five  years, 
through  her  influence  several  wealthy  people 
have  been  led  to  build  cottages  at  Hull,  and 
her  own  pleasant  summer  home  here  has  been 
the  scene  of  many  distinguished  gatherings. 
She  is  a  believer  in  and  an  earnest  advocate 
of  the  Greater  Boston,  recognizing  that  Hull 
will,  as  a  district  of  Boston,  receive  the  needed 
police  patrol,  so  that  it  will  become  more  and 
more  the  summer  residence  of  Boston's  best 
people,  as  a  place  where  the)'  may  be  entirely 
free  from  those  evils  that  characterize  many  of 
the  near-by  summer  resorts.  She  displays  the 
same  interest  in  increasing  the  conveniences 
of    Hull    that    characterized    her  father.      .She 


StJi 


MISS    FLORETTA    VINING. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


93 


was  the  means  of  securing  a  daily  mail,  and, 
by  a  strenuous  effort  on  her  part,  at  last  had  it 
increased  to  two  deliveries  per  day,  although 
she  was  obliged  to  visit  Washington  and  make 
a  personal  appeal  to  the  Post-ofifice  Depart- 
ment. She  was  the  main  instigator  in  the 
laying  out  of  Spring  Street,  the  project  of 
which  was  opposed  by  the  town  officers,  but 
she  at  last  succeeded  in  causing  the  County 
Commissioners  to  order  its  construction.  She 
was  the  means  of  establishing  at  Stony  Beach, 
Hull,  a  United  States  Life-Saving  Station, 
which  has  done  such  good  service  in  saving 
men  from  shipwreck. 

Originally,  the  only  conveyance  to  Hull  was 
by  barge  to  North  Cohassett.  Miss  Vining 
was  instrumental  in  raising  a  public  subscrip- 
tion, with  the  object  of  inducing  the  Old 
Colony  Railroad  to  establish  railroad  com- 
munication with  the  place.  The  project  was 
entirely  successful,  the  sum  of  one  thousand 
dollars  being  raised,  which  proved  sufficient 
ffir  the  ]iurpose.  Hull  now  has  seven  regular 
trains  per  day,  with  additional  accommoda- 
tions in  the  summer  Miss  Vining  also  in- 
duced the  town  to  appropriate  one  thousand 
dollars  per  year  to  pa)'  for  carrying  to  Bing- 
ham the  children  who  attend  the  high  school 
there.  With  the  ready  consent  of  the  male 
residents,  Miss  Vining  takes  part  in  town 
meetings,  and  all  practical  measures  for  the 
public  good  find  in  her  an  earnest  and  effi- 
cient  advocate.  Her  voice  is  heard  in  their 
public  discussion,  and  she  is  usually  the  main 
factor  in  their  execution. 

Miss  Vining  is  a  lady  of  much  physical 
vitality,  as  well  as  of  superior  mental  force, 
and  her  interest  once  assured  in  connection 
with  any  worthy  object,  her  aid  and  influence 
in  its  behalf  is  sure  to  follow.  She  seems  to 
live  solely  for  the  purpose  of  doing  good  in  a 
practical  way;   and  that    she  is  accomplishing 


her  object  can  be  attested  by  the  large  number 
who  have  profited  by  her  generosity.  She  has 
a  penchant  for  helping  needy  and  worthy 
young  men,  insisting  always  that  they  also 
strive  to  help  themselves.  Many  who  to-day 
are  occupying  good  positions  owe  all  they  are 
to  the  fact  that  Miss  Vining  tided  them  over 
the  hard  spot  in  life.  In  a  quiet  unostenta- 
tious way  Miss  Vining  has  done  this  noble 
work,  and  many  deeds  of  charity  has  she  per- 
formed that  the  world  knows  not  of.  The 
highest  reward,  and  the  only  one  the  lady 
asks,  is  the  joy  of  doing  service  with  good 
will. 


ENRV  O.  LITTLE,  President  of  the 
Bridgewater  Bo.\  Comjjany,  one  of 
-  \.  ^  the  prosperous  manufacturing  enter- 
prises of  this  busy  section  of  the  -State,  was 
born  in  Columbia,  Conn.,  May  22,  1848. 
His  parents,  David  and  Elizabeth  (Scoville) 
Little,  were  also  natives  of  Columbia.  His 
grandfather,  Norman  Little,  served  in  the 
War  of  1812.  David  Little  taught  in  the 
common  schools  of  Connecticut  for  forty  years, 
at  the  same  time  managing  a  farm.  He  was 
highly  respected  by  his  fellow-citizens,  who 
elected  him  to  the  office  of  Deputy  Sheriff  of 
Tolland  County.  His  wife,  also  an  intelli- 
gent lady,  taught  school  for  some  time. 

Henr)'  O.  Little  remained  in  his  native 
State  until  he  was  about  hfteen  years  of  age, 
obtaining  his  education  in  the  common  schools. 
He  then  went  to  \'ineknid,  N.J.,  and  for  a 
number  of  years  was  engaged  in  raising  fruit 
for  the  wholesale  trade,  owning  a  large  farm, 
which  he  devoted  to  that  industry.  In  1872 
he  removed  to  Bridgewater,  Mass.,  and  here 
for  some  time  followed  the  same  occupation, 
raising  fruit  and  seeds  and  disposing  of  them 
at  wholesale.  In  1890  the  Bridgewater  Box 
Company  was  organized,  and  Mr.   Little,  being 


94 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


one  of  the  incorporators,  was  elected  President 
at  that  time.  The  company  have  a  vvell- 
equiijped  plant  with  improved  machinery,  and 
employ  on  an  average  forty  hands  the  year 
round.  They  deal  in  all  kinds  of  lumber,  and 
manufacture  shooks  and  wooden  packing  bo.xes 
of  various  kinds,  making  a  specialty  of  lock- 
corner  and  printed  bo.xes.  The  factory  is 
fitted  with  every  convenience  including  tele- 
phone. In  a  business  sense  Mr.  Little  is  a 
self-made  man,  having  achieved  prosperity 
through  his  own  unaided  efforts. 

He  has  been  twice  married.  His  first  wife, 
Miss  Elsie  M.  Perry,  of  Springfield,  Vt.,  was 
a  descendant  of  Commodore  Perry,  who  won 
immortal  fame  by  his  brilliant  victory  on 
Lake  Erie  in  1813.  She  left  one  son  —  Wal- 
ter S. ,  the  present  Treasurer  of  the  Bridge- 
water  Box  Company.  The  present  Mrs. 
Little,  who  is  of  English  birth,  was  Miss 
Louise  B.  Hudson. 

Mr.  Little,  who  is  a  Republican,  served  for 
several  years  on  the  Board  of  Selectmen  of 
Bridgewater.  As  a  Mason  he  is  a  member  of 
l*"ellowship  Lodge;  and  he  was  a  charter  mem- 
ber and  the  first  officer  of  Harmony  Chapter, 
Royal  Arch  Masons,  of  Bridgewater;  and  ffir 
two  years  he  has  served  as  District  Deputy 
Grand  Master  of  the  Grand  Chapter,  Royal 
.Arch  Masons,  of  Massachusetts.  He  is  also  a 
member  of  Old  Colony  Commandery,  Knights 
Templars,  at  Abington.  I\Ir.  Little  has  a  wide 
circle  of  acquaintance,  and  stands  high  in  the 
esteem  of  his  fellows. 


UGUSTUS  HUNT  W  RKiHT  is  one 
of  the  leading  men  of  Abington, 
Mass.,  taking  part  in  all  matters  of 
local  importance.  A  son  of  liidmund  and 
Sarah  A.  (Hunt)  Wright,  he  was  born  in 
Boston,  December  23,  1846.      lulmund  Wright 


was  born  in  Boston,  October  16,  1794.  He 
was  for  some  years  publisher  of  the  Boston 
Daily  Patriot,  and  eventually  disposed  of  the 
business  to  the  Boston  Daily  Advertiser.  He 
died  in  l^oston  in  1S73.  His  wife  died  in 
1867,  aged  fifty-eight  years.  They  had  si.x 
children,  one  dying  in  infancy.  The  five  liv- 
ing are  as  follows:  Edmund  \V. ,  Theodore  E. , 
Augustus  H.,  Horace  W. ,  and  Mary  A. 

Augustus  H.  Wright,  the  third  son,  ob- 
tained his  early  education  in  the  public 
schools  of  Dorchester,  and  took  a  special 
course  at  the  Agricultural  College  at  Amherst, 
Mass.  He  was  a  lad  in  his  teens  when  the 
war  broke  out,  l)ut  he  had  a  man's  courage, 
and  enlisted  when  only  si.xteen  years  old  in  the 
Second  Massachusetts  Cavalry.  He  served 
two  years,  and  was  commissioned  at  the  age  of 
eighteen  Eirst  Lieutenant  of  the  Twenty- 
fourth  United  States  Colored  Infantry.  After 
receiving  his  discharge  from  the  army  he  was 
an  Inspector  in  the  internal  Revenue  Service 
and  stationed  in  Boston  three  years;  for  about 
three  years  he  was  superintendent  of  the  lum- 
ber yard  of  George  Curtis  in  l^oston  ;  and  then 
he  followed  farming  at  West  Roxbury,  Mass., 
until  1879,  when  he  became  a  resident  of 
Abington.  He  was  ten  years  Trustee  of  the 
Abington  Savings  Bank;  for  fifteen  years  he 
has  been  connected  with  the  town  fire  depart- 
ment as  chief  engineer.  He  was  ten  years 
Chairman  of  the  Road  Commissioners,  and  for 
the  same  length  of  time  .Sujierintendent  of  the 
water-works.  An  esteemed  member  of  the 
Grand  Army,  he  was  for  six  years  Commander 
of  McPherson  Post,  No.  Ji- 

Mr.  Wright  has  been  twice  married.  He 
was  united  to  his  first  wife,  Julia  P.  Billings, 
October  21,  1868;  and  to  his  second  wife, 
Jennie  Billings,  October  i,  1874.  He  has  one 
child  —  E]dnnnul,  who  was  born  August  i,  1877. 
In  politics  Mr.  Wright  is  a  stanch  Republican. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


95 


EORGE  H.  GODDARD,  machinist, 
S  I  of  Hruci<ton,  is  a  veteran  of  the  late 
war,  with  a  record  for  bravery  worthy 
of  his  race,  which  was  represented  in  the  army 
of  Napoleon.  He  was  born  in  Bolton,  Prov- 
ince of  Quebec,  March  14,  1842,  a  son  of  Ed- 
ward P.  and  Josephine  (Garnean)  Goddard, 
both  natives  of  tiie  Canadian  Province. 

His  paternal  grandfather,  a  native-born 
Frenchman,  fought  under  Napoleon,  and  also 
in  Canada,  in  the  battles  of  St.  Charles  and 
Ouebec.  He  diet!  in  the  Province  of  Quebec 
at  the  advanced  age  of  ninety-eight.  A  grant 
of  land  given  him  in  Canada  was  never  claimed 
by  him  or  his  posterity.  He  reared  a  family 
of  fifteen  children,  all  of  wlnim  attained  ad- 
vanced age. 

Edward  P.  Goddard  was  bmn  near  Soirel, 
P.  Q. ,  and  for  a  number  of  years  was  engaged 
in  farming  in  Bolton,  his  son's  birthplace,  and 
in  trading  to  some  extent.  He  was  one  of  the 
prominent  men  of  the  town,  and  held  a  number 
of  ]iublic  offices.  His  death  occurred  in  his 
forty-seventh  year,  his  wife  having  been  called 
to  rest  from  the  cares  of  earth  when  only  thirty 
years  of  age. 

George  B.  (ioddard  was  the  eldest  son  in 
a  familv  of  six  children,  four  boys  and  two 
girls.  LIntil  he  was  nine  years  of  age  he  lived 
on  his  father's  farm  in  Bolton  (an  estate  of  six 
hundred  acres),  and  then  the  familv  moved  to 
Manchaug,  in  the  town  of  Sutton,  Mass., 
where  he  went  to  work  in  a  cotton-mill  for  a 
'dollar  a  week,  laboring  from  daylight  until 
sundown.  This  continued  for  a  year,  and 
then  another  move  was  made,  the  family  going 
to  North  Oxford,  Mass.  P'or  two  years  George 
worked  in  a  cotton-mill  in  Wilmington,  and 
then  returned  with  his  family  to  Canada, 
where  his  father  settled  once  more  on  the 
home  farm. 

The  boy,  who  was  then   about  thirteen  years 


of  age,  soon  left  home  and  started  in  the  world 
for  himself,  finding  employment  in  South  Na- 
tick,  Mass.,  at  shoemaking.  About  1857  he 
i  shipped  on  a  whaling  vessel  from  New  Bed- 
ford, which  was  out  from  port  some  four  years, 
and  was  twice  cast  away.  The  first  time  he 
was  with  six  men  in  a  boat  which  was  sep- 
arated from  the  \'essel  about  three  hundred 
miles  from  the  island  of  St.  Helena,  and  they 
were  adrift  four  days  and  three  nights  without 
food  or  watei'.  The  boat  was  finally  guided 
to  St.  Helena;  and  on  the  island  where  Napo- 
leon spent  so  many  gloomy  hours  they  spent 
three  months,  being  then  taken  off  by  their 
own  vessel.  The  second  time  they  were  lost 
for  twenty-four  hours  off  the  coast  of  Africa. 
On  his  return  the  young  sailor  received  eighty- 
five  dollars  as  pay  for  his  entire  time. 

When  his  vessel  returned  to  port,  New  Eng- 
land was  mustering  to  suppress  the  secession 
of  the  South,  and  on  August  23,  1861,  Mr. 
Goddard  enlisted  in  Company  A,  t'lrst  Batta- 
lion, Seventeenth  United  States  Regiment. 
He  was  in  the  Fifth  Corps,  Army  of  the 
Potomac,  and  was  engaged  in  all  the  battles 
of  the  Peninsular  Campaign  under  McClellan. 
In  the  battles  of  Bull  Run,  South  Mountain, 
Antietam,  P'redericksburg,  and  Chancellors- 
ville  he  saw  his  comrades  fall  around  him. 
At  Chancellorsville  his  regiment  led  the  fight, 
and  at  the  end  of  the  battle  n(jt  one  of  the 
color  guard  was  left.  Mr.  Goddard  bore  the 
flag,  and,  with  but  nine  men  to  sujjport  him, 
succeeded  in  defending  it  and  returning  safely. 
F'or  his  bravery  in  this  action  he  was  ap- 
pointed Color  Sergeant,  and  he  was  later  made 
Rank  Sergeant  of  the  regiment  and  urged  by 
his  superior  officers  to  send  his  name  to  Wash- 
ington for  a  commission;  but  he  refused  to  do 
it,  fearing  that  he  was  not  well  enough  edu- 
cated to  adorn  a  higher  rank.  Fie  was  ap- 
pointed   Captain   of    a    colored    regiment,    but 


96 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


refused  the  honor  for  the  same  reason.  He 
received  three  flesh  wounds  while  in  battle. 
In  1864  he  received  his  discharge,  and  en- 
gaged in  recruiting  for  the  service  until  Lee's 
surrender,  his  duties  calling  him  to  the  front 
and  to  Portland  Harbor  with  troops. 

When    the    war    was    over    he    went    to    sea 
again,    this  time  on  a   coaster  plying  between 
Boston    and    Philadelphia.      He   finally  retired 
from  the  sea  and  went  to  work  at   shoemaking, 
being  employed  at  different   times   in    Natick, 
in  Bigelow's   shoe   shop  in  Worcester,  in  Boyd 
&  Corey's  factory  at   Marlboro  (three   or  four 
years),    in   Moss    Brothers'    factory,    and    in    a 
factory  at   Cochituate.      While  in  Marlboro   he 
learned  to  operate  different  machines.      From 
Cochituate  he  went  to  Brockton,  then  to  Rock- 
land, where  he  remained   four  months,  return- 
ing then  to  l^rockton.      Here  he  obtained   em- 
ployment as  engineer  and   repairer   in    Lucius 
Leach's  shoe  shop,  and   remained   seven  years. 
He  then  took  out  his  first  patent  on  the  I^rock- 
ton  mallet,  now  well-known  to  tlie  shoe  trade, 
and  for  a  year  manufactured   his   invention    in 
a  small  way.      Not  satisfied   with   his   income, 
how-ever,    he  went    to    work    for    wages  again, 
entering  the  employ  of  Stacy,  Adams  &  Co., 
with  whom  he   remained  about   si.x  years.      In 
1 886  he   resumed   the   manufacture  of   mallets, 
establishing  a  workroom    in   Charles   Howard's 
shoe  shop;  and  in  the  fall  of  1888  he  purchased 
the  building  at  71   Field  Street,  Montello,  his 
present  place  of  business.      In  addition   to  his 
manufacturing,  which   is   now   in   a  prosperous 
condition,    Mr.    Goddard   is   interested   in    real 
estate. 

Mr.  Goddard  was  married  in  1873  to  Alice 
M.,  daughter  of  Edward  Hurd,  of  Nova  .Scotia, 
and  has  a  daughter  and  a  son.  The  son,  who 
was  for  some  time  associated  with  his  father, 
is  now  in  the  printing  business. 

In    politics    Mr.     Goddard     is     independent. 


He  is  a  member  of  Electric  Lodge,  No.  204, 
Independent  Order  of  Odd  Fellows;  of  Dam- 
ocles Lodge,  No.  16,  Knights  of  Pythias; 
Brockton  Division,  No.  11,  Uniform  Rank, 
and  Canton  Neniasket ;  the  Ancient  Essenic 
Order;  the  Royal  Arcanum;  the  Knights  of 
Honor;  the  Daughters  of  Rebekah  ;  the  New 
England  Order  of  Protection;  and  the  Ameri- 
can Benefit  Society.  As  a  Grand  Army  man 
he  is  a  member  of  Fletcher  Webster  Post,  No. 
13,  and  has  held  the  rank  of  officer  of  the 
guard  ;  and  he  is  at  present  officer  of  the  guard 
in  the  Union  Veterans'  Union,  and  has  been 
appointed  delegate  to  the  ne.xt  national  con- 
vention of  the  last-named  body. 


MOS  HUNTING,  who,  since  the  fall  of 
1866  has  been  successfully  engaged  in 
_  the  grocery,  provision,  grain,  flour, 
hay,  and  straw  business  at  East  Bridgewater, 
was  born  in  Shutesbury,  Mass.,  April  12, 
1835,  a  son  of  Nathan  and  Melinda  (Smith) 
Hunting. 

The  Hunting  family  is  said  to  be  of  Scotch 
origin.  Amos  Hunting,  the  father  of  Nathan, 
was  a  soldier  in  the  Revolutionary  War.  In 
his  early  days  Nathan  Hunting  engaged  in 
mercantile  business  in  Boston,  but  subse- 
quently retired  to  a  farm  in  .Shutesbury,  where 
he  lived  until  his  death.  Melinda  Smith 
Hunting,  his  wife,  was  a  native  of  Stoughton, 
Mass.  The)-  had  five  children  —  Nathan, 
Amos,  Francis   H.,    Mary  A.,   and  Henry  M. 

Amos  Hunting  grew  to  manhood  in  .Shutes- 
bury, and  acquired  his  education  in  private 
schools  and  the  high  school  of  that  town. 
When  eighteen  years  old  he  entered  the 
employ  of  the  Fall  River  Railroad  at  what  is 
now  known  as  Westdale,  as  assistant  station 
agent,  antl  before  long  was  promoted  to  the 
position  of  agent   at   that  i)lace,    in   which    ca- 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


97 


liacity  he  served  five  and  a  half  years.  Dur- 
ing a  [lortion  of  that  time  he  carried  on  a  gro- 
cery store.  In  1866  he  came  to  East  Bridge- 
water  and  started  the  business  which  he  still 
conducts  and  which  has  developed  so  that  he 
now  employs  four  clerks  regularly  and  has  a 
large  and  lucrative  trade. 

On  December  22,  1859,  ^f'-  Hunting  mar- 
ried Miss  Margaret  Orr  Holbrook,  who  was 
born  in  Weymouth,  Mass.,  and  is  a  daughter 
of  Arvin  Holbrook.  Of  the  eight  children 
born  to  them  but  four  are  living,  two  sons  and 
two  daughters,  namely :  Melinda  O.  ;  Jessie, 
\v\ie  of  P'rank  Bradford ;  Fred  A.  ;  and 
1  Iarr\-  A. 

In  politics  Mr.  Hunting  is  a  Republican. 
During  the  Massachusetts  legislative  session 
of  1 891  he  was  a  member  of  the  Lower  House, 
and  he  is  now  serving  as  a  register  of  voters 
of  East  Bridgewater.  He  is  one  of  the  Board 
of  Trustees  of  the  East  Bridgewater  Savings 
Bank.  Mr.  Hunting's  success  in  his  business 
dealings,  and  the  hearty  support  he  gives  to 
[jlans  for  the  development  of  the  community, 
together  with  his  many  sterling  qualities  of 
character,  all  combine  to  make  him  a  re- 
siiected  and  ])iipular  citizen. 


tUCIUS  R.  CHURCHILL,  of  the 
firm  of  Churchill  &  Washburn, 
^^^  plumbers  and  steam-fitters  of  Brock- 
t<in,  was  born  in  East  Bridgewater,  January  4, 
i860,  a  son  of  Rodney  and  Hannah  G.  (Reed) 
Churcliill.  Several  generations  of  his  family 
have  lived  in  Bridgewater. 

His  grandfather,  Charles  Churchill,  resided 
in  this  vicinity  and  worked  at  shoemaking  for 
some  time,  eventually  going  into  business  and 
hiring  a  number  of  shoemakers.  He  married 
Dorcas  Hawes,  and  the\-  reared  ten  children, 
six    of    whom    are    living,     namelv:     Charles; 


Newton;  George;  Rodney,  father  of  Lucius 
R.  ;  Dorcas;  and  Elizabeth.  Rodney  Church- 
ill was  born  in  West  Bridgewater  in  1837,  and 
is  now  living  in  East  Bridgewater.  He  is 
shoe  cuttei  by  trade.  An  active  member  of 
the  Union  Congregational  Church,  he  is  at 
present  Treasurer  of  the  society.  His  wife  is 
a  daughter  of  John  Reed,  of  East  Bridgewater. 
Eight  children  were  born  to  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Rodney  Churchill,  Lucius  R.  being  the 
second. 

Lucius  R.  Churchill  was  educated  in  West 
Bridgewater.  He  went  to  sea  at  the  age  of 
sixteen  and  sailed  on  a  merchantman  two 
years,  rounding  Cape  Horn  three  times,  in 
route  to  San  Francisco,  and  making  one  trip 
to  Liverpool,  England.  For  four  years  after 
his  return  he  worked  as  a  shoe  cutter,  and  he 
then  obtained  a  position  as  book-keeper  for 
R.  G.  Shepard,  who  was  engaged  in  steam- 
heating  and  engineering.  After  four  years  at 
the  book-keeper's  desk,  he  worked  for  Mr. 
Shepard  three  years  as  engineer,  anil  in  1890 
he  started  in  the  plumbing  and  steam-heating 
business  for  himself.  On  April  i,  1895,  he 
formed  a  copartnership  with  William  S. 
Washburn;  and  the  firm  of  Churchill  &  Wash- 
burn is  now  one  of  the  most  prosperous  and 
reliable  plumbing  firms  in  the  city.  Mr. 
Churchill  began  business  at  Campello,  and 
moved  to  his  present  stand  six  months  after 
starting.  The  first  year  he  had  ten  men  in 
his  employ,  and  he  now  keeps  on  an  average 
thirty  hands. 

Mr.  Churchill  was  married  in  November, 
1882,  to  Cora  J.,  daughter  of  Nathan  M. 
Poole,  of  East  Bridgewater.  He  votes  the 
Republican  ticket,  but  takes  no  active  part  in 
politics,  preferring  to  give  his  time  to  his 
business.  Well  advanced  in  Masonry,  he  is  a 
member  of  Satucket  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M., 
of   East  Bridgewater,   in  which  he  has  held  the 


98 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


office  of  Junior  Warden;  and  he  belongs  to 
Harmony  Chapter,  Royal  Arch  Masons,  of 
Bvidgewater,  and  Ray  State  Commandery, 
Knights  Templars,  of  l^rockton.  He  is  a 
member  of  Campello  Lodge,  Ancient  Order 
of  United  Workmen,  and  of  the  Commercial 
Club  of  Brockton.  He  attends  worship  at  the 
Porter  Congregational  Church. 


rp)TULDA  BARKER  LOUD,  of  Rock- 
r^\  land,  Mass.,  is  one  of  the  bright  and 
li®  ^  ^  progressive  women  of  the  day, 
strong  in  mental  gifts  and  executive  ability. 
She  was  born  in  East  Abington  (now  Rock- 
land), September  13,  1844,  daughter  of 
Reuben  and  Betsey  (Whiting)   Loud. 

Reuben  Loud,  Miss  Loud's  father,  was  a 
native  of  Weymouth,  Mass.  He  owned  a 
farm  in  Rockland,  and  after  being  engaged  for 
several  years  as  a  shoe  manufacturer  he  retired 
from  business  to  farm  life.  He  died  at  the 
age  of  seventy-eight.  His  wife,  now  scvent}- 
seven  years  old,  a  native  of  historic  Plym- 
outh, is  living  on  the  homestead  in  Ruck- 
land.  She  is  the  mother  of  seven  children, 
namely:  Rienzi,  formerly  a  lawyer  in  Albion, 
Mich.,  now  deceased;  Marcus  M.,  deceased; 
Georgianna  S.,  wife  of  Major  E.  P.  Reed,  of 
North  Abington;  Hulda  B. ,  the  subject  of 
this  sketch;  Eugene  P.,  a  resident  of  San 
Francisco,  now  serving  his  si.xth  year  in  Con- 
gress; Sarah  Ann;  and  Clarice  A.,  wife  of 
James  Beverly,  of  Rockland. 

Hulda  Barker  Loud  was  educated  in  East 
Abington,  graduating  from  the  high  school  at 
the  age  of  seventeen ;  and  she  began  to  teach 
when  she  was  eighteen  years  old.  As  a 
teacher  she  displayed  marked  ability,  and  she 
had  the  courage  to  battle  against  an  injustice 
which  many  bear  in  meek  silence.  A  woman 
teacher,  though  performing  as  much  work  and 


work  of  as  high  a  grade  as  a  man.  usually  re- 
ceives a  much  smaller  salary;  but  ]\Iiss  Loud, 
who  for  thirteen  years  held  a  high  position  as 
a  teacher  in  Rockland,  received  the  salary  of  a 
male  principal.  She  was  awarded  this  salarx' 
because  she  demanded  it,  and  constantly  agi- 
tated the  question  of  equal  rights  with  the 
school  committee. 

In  i<S84  the  publishers  of  a  new  paper  asked 
Miss  Loud  to  take  the  editorial  chair,  and  she 
consented,  naming  the  paper  the  Rockland 
FndcpLiuhnt.  ( )f  this  publication  she  is  still 
editor-in-chief.  Her  energy  would  not  be 
confined  to  the  editorial  chair  alone,  and  in 
1889  she  purchased  the  business  —  job  print- 
ing and  publishing —  and  is  now  sole  proprie- 
tor of  the  office.  The  paper  bears  the  impress 
of  strong  mentality,  and  has  always  been  the 
vehicle  of  reformatory  principles,  social  and 
]x)litical.  When,  in  1889,  Miss  Loud  became 
head  of  the  establishment,  she  announced  in 
the  opening  number  that  she  had  bought  the 
business  "  to  help  save  the  wi.irld  ;  that  it  was 
not  a  business  venture  in  any  sense  of  the 
word ;  that  the  business  would  always  be  in 
charge  of  a  foreman ;  that  she  desired  a 
mediimi  through  which  she  could  convey  her 
best  thought  to  the  world,  unhampered  by 
worldly  interests"  (see  "A  Woman  of  the  Cen- 
tury," published  in  1893).  In  addition  to  the 
Independent  she  publishes  the  North  Abington 
Nezvs  and  the  North  River  Pioneer.  The  In- 
dependent was  founded  by  \\.  C.  Osborne  and 
W.  J.  Barry,  and  Mr.  Barry  is  at  present  local 
editor  and  has  charge  of  the  Imsiness  matters 
to  a  great  extent. 

Miss  Loud  began  to  speak  in  public  a  num- 
ber of  years  ago,  advocating  woman  suffrage  in 
1872-74,  and  speaking  in  behalf  of  the 
Knights  of  Labor  at  different  times.  At  the 
Women's  International  Council,  held  in  Wash- 
ington   in    1888,   she   represented   the   Knights 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


of  Labor,  and  her  address  was  received  with 
enthusiasm.  She  spoi<e  also  at  that  time  before 
the  Knights  of  Labor  and  the  Anti-Povert)' 
Society  of  Washington.  But  though  very  suc- 
cessful as  a  speaker,  she  prefers  home  to  pub- 
lic life,  and  finds  newspaper  work  more  con- 
genial than  lecturing.  She  has  been  Chairman 
of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  the  Rockland- 
Public  Library  for  the  past  six  years;  served 
three  years  on  the  School  Board  of  the  town  ; 
and  for  many  years  she  has  been  accustomed 
to  address  town  meetings  on  important  tojjics, 
no  one  questioning  her  right  to  do  so.  In  the 
spring  of  1891  Miss  Loud  adopted  two  boys, 
her  niece's  children,  whom  she  governs  wholly 
without  force.  She  is  a  zealous  apostle  of  the 
new  mental  science,  though  recognizing  the 
claims  of  tiie  body. 

She  has  built  a  house  on  her  mother's  farm, 
in  a  retired  spot  outside  the  village,  and  at- 
tends to  her  own  domestic  affairs,  spending  a 
few  hours  of  the  afternoon  in  her  office,  and 
passing  the  rest  of  the  time  in  her  own  home. 
Though  Miss  Loud  works  from  sixteen  to 
eighteen  hours  a  day,  she  was  never  [physically 
or  mentally  stronger  than  now.  She  boasts 
that  through  sheer  force  of  will  she  has  never 
known  a  day's  sickness,  though  she  inherits 
many  weaknesses.  Altogether  she  is  a  re- 
markable woman,  exemplifying  strongly  the 
power  of  mind  over  matter.  She  attends  the 
Unitarian  church. 


/It, 


ILLIAM  BROWN,  of  Abington,  is 
a  self-made  man,  who,  without  edu- 
cational or  other  advantages,  has 
raised  himself  to  a  position  of  prominence  and 
honor  in  the  community.  He  was  born  No- 
vember 6,  1813,  in  Abington,  a  son  of  Wal- 
ston  and  Betsey  (Wales)  Brown.  Like  man)' 
of    the    citizens    in    this    part    of    Plymouth 


County  he  comes  of  old  New  England  stock, 
his  ancestors  having  settled  in  Newburyport  at 
an  early  date.  Walston  Brown  was  born  in 
West  Abington.  He  died  in  1857,  aged 
sixty-nine  years.  His  wife  died  at  the  age  of 
seventy-nine  years.  They  were  the  parents 
of  the  following  children:  Mary  Adeline, 
Julia  Caroline,  Caroline  Goodwin,  Anna  How- 
ard, and  Nellie  Davis. 

William  Brown  had  but  a  limited  school- 
ing in  the  days  of  his  youth,  a  liberal  educa- 
tion being  harder  to  obtain  then  than  now ; 
but  he  was  blessed  with  natural  ability  and  an 
enterprising  spirit,  and  early  began  to  work 
his  way  toward  prosperity.  In  iS39he  started 
in  the  confectionery  business  in  Abington, 
and  he  managed  a  successful  trade  for  twelve 
years ;  then  for  about  twenty  years  he  was 
prosperously  engaged  in  manufacturing  shoes. 
In  I.S73  he  retired  from  business,  and  has 
since  been  living  quietly  upon  the  fruits  of 
his  years  of  activity.  Mr.  Brown  has  been 
for  a  number  of  years  a  Director  of  the  Abing- 
ton Savings  Bank,  and  was  Vice-President 
from  July,   18S2,  serving  until  July,   1889. 

He  was  married  November  17,  1845,  ^^ 
Julia  Whiting,  of  Hingham,  and  five  children 
blessed  their  union,  two  of  whom  are  living: 
Mary  Adeline,  wife  of  George  E.  Curtis,  of 
Boston;  and  Anna  Howard  Brown,  who  is  at 
home  with  her  parents. 

Mr.  Brown  has  four  grandchildren,  as  fol- 
lows: William  Goodwin,  George  Carroll, 
Paul  Revere,  children  of  Adeline,  wife  of 
George  E.  Curtis;  and  Jesse  Howard,  son  of 
the  late  Nellie  Davis  and   Thomas  Ford  Giles. 

Mr.  Brown  is.  a  Mason,  belonging  to  John 
Cutler  Lodge,  of  Abington,  and  Pilgrim 
Lodge,  Royal  Arch  Chapter.  In  religious 
belief  he  is  a  Universalist.  Lie  has  been 
doubly  blessed.  Providence  having  given  him 
wealth  of  years  as  well  as  wealth  of  this  world's 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


goods ;  and  at  the  advanced  age  of  eighty-three 
he  can  look  forward  with  reasonable  hope  to 
many  pleasant  hours  to  be  enjoyed. 


(^IvSSE  HARLOW,  who  was  for  many 
years  extensively  engaged  in  the  ship- 
ping business  in  Plymouth,  Mass.,  was 
born  in  this  historic  old  New  England  town, 
October  5,  1821.  He  was  a  son  of  Jesse  and 
Mary  L.  (Nelson)  Harlow,  and  a  lineal  de- 
scendant of  William  Harlow,  who  was  in 
Massachusetts  as  early  as  1637  and  later  settled 
in  Plymouth.  Jesse  Harlow,  the  younger, 
acquired  a  part  of  his  education  at  the  Hiram 
F"uller  School  in  Athens,  and  at  one  time,  it 
is  said,  taught  school  in  Plymouth.  His 
health  failing  he  took  passage  to  Liverpool, 
England,  with  the  hope  of  recruiting  his 
wasted  energies.  The  sea  voyage  produced 
the  desired  effect,  and  after  returning  to  Plym- 
outh he  was  able  to  enter  upon  his  business 
career,  succeeding  to  the  charge  of  his  father's 
shipping  interests  and  attaining  marked  suc- 
cess. He  was  engaged  in  trade  with  the  West 
India  Islands  and  other  countries,  and  was  the 
owner  of  many  fishing  vessels,  beside  the  other 
crafts  that  bore  his  cargoes  to  and  fro. 

Eebruary  26,  1S67,  was  the  date  of  his  mar- 
riage with  Miss  -Sarah  E.  Cobb,  a  daughter  of 
Heman  Cobb, who  was  a  well-known  boot  and 
shoemaker  of  Plymouth.  Mr.  Cobb  died 
March  22,  1857.  He  was  the  father  of  a  fam- 
ily of  four  children,  of  whom  Mrs.  Harlow  is 
the  only  one  now  living.  Devoting  himself 
exclusively  to  business,  Jesse  Harlow  was  an 
unusual  type  of  man ;  for,  though  possessing 
sufficient  influence  to  have  easily  attained  any 
position  or  secured  any  office  he  desired,  he 
had  no  ambition  in  this  direction,  and  took 
but  little  interest  in  politics,  belonging  to 
none  of  the  numerous  popular  fraternal  organ- 


izations of  the  day.  He  was  loyal  to  the  re- 
ligious faith  of  his  fathers,  and  for  a  quarter 
of  a  century  he  was  Deacon  of  the  Church  of 
the  Pilgrimage  in  his  native  town;  while  for 
the  same  period  of  time  he  taught  in  the  Sun- 
day-school, leaving  the  impress  of  his  instruc- 
tion and  example  upon  the  mind  of  many  of 
Plymouth's  present  citizens. 

On  the  2 1  St  of  August,  i8<S7,  Jesse  Harlow 
passed  through  the  valley  of  the  shadow  of 
death,  leaving  a  vacant  place  in  the  list  of 
Plymouth's  most  respected  citizens  that  will 
not  be  easily  or  speedily  filled.  He  had  some 
time  before  sold  out  his  shipping  interests, 
which  had  proved  of  great  pecuniary  value 
under  his  management.  His  bereaved  widow 
is  still  a  resident  of  the  town  in  which  her 
husband's  honorable  career  began  and  ended, 
and  where  his  memory  is  affectionately 
cherished. 


OHN  C.  BATCHELDER,  M.D.,  of 
Rockland,  Plymouth  County,  Mass., 
homteopathic  jihysician  and  surgeon, 
was  born  in  Middleton,  Elssex  County,  this 
State,  May  9,  1S64,  and  is  a  son  of  John  A. 
and  Laura  A.  (Couch)  Batchelder.  John  A. 
Batchelder  was  born  in  Middleton,  Mass.  He 
has  been  in  business  as  a  shoe  manufacturer 
for  a  number  of  years  in  Salem,  Mass.,  his 
wife's  birthplace.  His  family  consists  of 
three  sons  and  two  daughters,  namely  :  Henry 
E. ,  a  practising  physician  in  Danvers,  Mass.  ; 
John  C,  of  Rockland;  Joseph  W.,  who  is  in 
the  fire  insurance  business  in  Hartford,  Conn.  ; 
Clementine  L.,  in  Salem;  and  a  child  who 
died  in  infancy. 

John  C.  Batchelder  was  one  year  old  when 
his  father  removed  to  Salem,  antl  in  the 
famous  city  of  witches  he  received  his  early 
education.  He  had  a  natural  inclination  for 
the  profession  of  medicine;  and  after  gradual- 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


103 


ing  from  the  high  school,  while  employed  as 
a  book-keeper,  he  studied  medicine  with  his 
brother,  Henry  F.  Batchelder,  M.D.  In  1883 
he  entered  Boston  University,  and,  graduating 
from  the  Medical  Department  in  1887,  he  en- 
tered upon  the  duties  of  his  profession  in 
Melrose,  Mass.  He  subsequently  practised  in 
Wenham,  Mass.,  for  three  or  four  years,  and 
then  moved  to  Rockland,  where,  as  successor 
to  Dr.  Southgate,  he  has  since  conducted  a 
successful  practice.  Dr.  Batchelder  is  well 
pre]3ared  for  bis  life-work,  and  is  endowed 
with  the  fine  qualities  that  help  to  make  the 
successful  physician.  He  is  a  member  of  the 
Essex  County  Homoeopathic  Medical  Society 
and  of  the  Massachusetts  Surgical  and  Gynae- 
cological Society  in  Boston. 

Dr.  Batchelder  is  independent  in  politics, 
favoring  the  election  to  office  of  the  men  best 
qualified  to  advance  the  interests  of  the  people, 
irrespective  of  party.  He  is  a  member  of 
Amity  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Danvers, 
Mass.,  and  in  religious  belief  he  is  a  Unita- 
rian. Although  he  has  been  in  Rockland  but 
two  years,  he  has  made  many  friends  in  the 
town  and  vicinity,  and  is  especially  popular 
with  the  young  people. 


|APTAIN  JOHN  H.  PAUN,  of 
Lakeville,  Mass.,  a  retired  ship- 
master, was  born  in  New  Bedford, 
Bristol  County,  this  State,  August  15,  1831. 
His  parents  were  John  and  Sarah  (Tripp) 
Paun.  They  lived  for  a  number  of  years  in 
New  Bedford,  but  Mr.  John  Paun  eventually 
purchased  the  farm  in  Lakeville  on  which  his 
son  is  now  living,  and  spent  his  last  days 
there.  He  was  the  father  of  ten  children, 
namely:  Sarah;  William;  Benjamin;  John 
H.,  the  subject  of  this  sketch;  Gilbert;  Deb- 
orah; Charles;   David;  Amos;  and  Ellen. 


John  H.  Paun,  the  third  son,  grew  to  man- 
hood in  the  city  of  New  Bedford,  receiving 
there  a  high  school  education.  When  fifteen 
years  of  age  he  began  to  learn  the  cooper's 
trade,  and  when  only  seventeen  was  engaged 
as  cooper  on  the  whaling  ship  "Eagle,"  which 
sailed  from  New  Bedford  to  the  whaling 
grounds  of  the  South  Pacific,  and  was  gone 
forty-nine  months.  Having  become  accus- 
tomed to  the  adventurous  life  of  a  whaler,  he 
then  shipped  on  the  ship  "Pantheon"  as 
cooper  and  fourth  male,  and  cruised  in  the 
Okhotsk  Sea,  along  the  coast  of  California 
and  -South  Pacific  Ocean.  When  two  and  one- 
half  years  out  the  ship  took  fire  and  was  com- 
pletely destroyed ;  but  the  crew  fortunately 
escaped  and  landed  on  the  island  of  Nukahiva, 
where  they  stayed  three  months,  and  were  then 
taken  off  by  an  English  brig  and  landed  in 
San  Francisco. 

Young  Paun  ne.xt  shipped  as  first  mate  on 
the  barque  "Massachusetts, "  which  was  out 
from  New  Bedford  forty  months,  cruising  in 
the  Okhotsk  and  the  South  Seas ;  and  he  was 
subsequently  master  of  the  barque  "Ana- 
conda," which  was  under  his  charge  some 
forty-five  months,  returning  safely  to  New 
Bedford  with  a  good  cargo.  His  next  charge 
was  the  barque  "Cicero,"  which  was  out 
forty-six  months,  visiting  the  whaling  grounds 
of  the  Arctic  Ocean,  the  Okhotsk  Sea,  and  the 
South  Pacific.  After  twenty  years  of  constant 
voyaging,  enduring  the  bitter  cold  of  the  Arc- 
tic regions,  the  fierce  heat  of  the  tropics,  and 
exposure  to  the  perils  of  the  deep.  Captain 
■  Paun  retired  to  his  present  home,  the  farm  in 
Lakeville  purchased  by  his  father. 

Captain  Paun  married  Miss  Sarah  C. 
Coombs,  and  has  four  children  —  S.  Ida, 
John  G.,  Isabella  F.,  and  Grace  I.  In  poli- 
tics he  is  a  Republican.  Intelligent  and 
energetic,    his   mind   broadened   by   travel   and 


10  + 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


wide  e.\])erience  in  positions  of  responsibility, 
he  is  held  in  much  respect  by  his  townsmen, 
and  for  ten  years  he  has  served  on  the  Board  of 
Selectmen  and  Assessors,  presiding  during 
eight  years  of  that  time  as  Chairman  of  the 
Selectmen. 


<^*^» 


-f(2)TENRV  J.  MILLER,  manufacturer  of 
rprl  tacks  and  shoe  nails,  is  proprietor 
J->'^  V  ^  and  manager  of  one  of  the  impor- 
tant industrial  enterprises  of  Bridgewater, 
Mass.  He  was  born  in  Hanover,  Germany, 
December  3,  1847,  a  son  of  David  and  Mary 
(Alden)  Miller,  both  natix'es  of  Hanover. 

The  lad  was  twelve  years  old  when  his 
father  died,  and  he  was  early  thrown  on  his 
own  resources;  but  he  received  a  good  com- 
mon-school education  in  his  native  country, 
and  this,  with  his  natural  intelligence  and  the 
knowledge  gained  by  travel,  combined  to  make 
him  a  remarkably  capable  man.  He  left  Ger- 
many for  England,  and  on  June  21,  1868,  he 
embarked  from  Liverpool  in  a  sailing  vessel  for 
India,  landing  at  Calcutta,  November  10  of 
that  year;  and  on  January  8,  1S69,  he  sailed 
from  Calcutta  for  America,  landing  in  I^oston, 
May  13,  1869.  He  soon  obtained  employment 
as  a  farm  hand  in  North  Hanson,  Mass.,  and 
in  1 87 1  he  found  work  of  the  same  kind  in 
Bridgewater,  which  kept  him  busy  about  a 
year.  He  then  entered  a  shoe  factory  in 
Brockton,  Mass.,  and  in  18.72,  returning  to 
Bridgewater,  was  hired  as  engineer  at  the 
State  Normal  School.  This  position  he  held 
thirteen  years. 

He  started  first  in  the  manufacture  of  nails 
and  shoe  tacks  in  Brockton,  and  about  a  year 
later  moved  his  business  to  Camijcllo.  There 
he  remained  about  a  year,  and  then  removed  to 
Bridgewater,  adding  steel  shanks  to  his  prod- 
ucts. Within  si.Y  or  seven  months  he  returned 
to    Campello,    and    was   there  engaged    in    the 


matuifacture  of  tacks  and  nails  onlv,  until  De- 
cember, 1889,  when  he  returned  to  Bridge- 
water.  Since  that  time  his  Bridgewater  plant 
has  been  in  operation,  with  such  good  results 
that  its  success  is  assured.  The  main  build- 
ing is  a  two-story  structure  on  Hale  Street, 
one  hundred  by  thirty  feet  in  dimensions. 
The  ]3lant  is  well-equipped  with  modern  ma- 
chinery, and  the  output  is  considerable.  The 
products  are  sold  mainly  in  New  York  City. 

Mr.  Miller  was  married  in  1872  to  Cather- 
ine Lynch,  a  native  of  Bridgewater,  and  has 
four  children  —  Mary  L. ,  Arthur  C. ,  Harry  T. , 
and  Chester  F.  Politically,  he  favors  the  Re- 
publican side.  He  is  a  Mason,  belonging  to 
Fellowship  Lodge,  of  Bridgewater.  Dili- 
gently and  sagaciously  applying  himself  to 
business,  Mr.  Miller  has  achieved  success 
by  his  own  efforts  alone,  and  has  won  the 
respect  of  all  with  whom  he  has  had  dealings. 
He  has  one  of  the  handsomest  residences  in 
Bridgewater,  a  monument  to  his  energy  and 
worthv  ambition. 


DONIRAM  VAUGHN,  a  trustee  and  a 
member  of  the  Board  of  Investment  of 
the  Abington  Savings  Bank,  be- 
longs to  one  of  the  old  families  of  this  section 
of  the  State  which  have  produced  the  liest  ]jart 
of  the  population.  He  was  born  in  the  town 
of  Carver,  December  4,  1820,  a  son  of  A  Ivan 
and  Sarah  S.  (Ripley)  Vaughn.  His  lineage 
both  on  the  maternal  and  the  paternal  side  is 
easily  traced  for  nearly  two  hundred  years, 
and  includes  generations  of  hale  and  hearty 
New  Fngland  people,  who  have  lived  to  ath 
vanced  age. 

Adoniram  \'aughn  was  reared  on  a  farm  in 
Carver  and  acquired  his  education  in  the  dis- 
trict school.  At  the  age  of  sixteen  he  re- 
moved  with   his  parents  to  Warren,  Me.,  and 


i^^^_       ..  X. 


W^^  m^ 


WALTER    L.    FRENCH. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


107 


tiir  ten  years  devoted  his  energies  to  farming 
and  lumbering  in  the  same  place.  Coming  to 
Abington  he  was  engaged  for  fifteen  years  as 
superintendent  of  the  shoe  factory  of  J. 
Vaughn  &  Hersey.  A  conservati\e  citizen  nf 
marked  ability  and  good  judgment,  he  has  the 
full  confidence  of  his  townsmen,  and  his  opin- 
ion is  always  received  with  respect.  Though 
for  some  time  retired  from  active  work,  he 
still  retains  his  connection  with  the  Abington 
Savings  Bank,  and  he  is  also  a  Director  of  the 
Mount  Vernon  Cemetery  Association.  In  pol- 
itics he  is  a  strong  Republican.  Appointed 
Postmaster  of  Abington  some  time  in  Presi- 
dent Grant's  last  administration,  he  served  to 
its  close  and  during  the  early  part  of  the  term 
of  President  Hayes,  then  voluntarily  resigning. 
Mr.  Vaughn  was  married  January  i,  1855, 
to  Hethiah  ]5re\vster,  of  Hanson,  daughter  of 
Phili])  and  Hethiah  Brewster,  and  has  one 
child,  A.  Brewster  Vaughn.  In  religious  be- 
lief he  is  a  Congregationalist. 


ALTER  L.  FRENCH,  of  Brockton, 
Mass.,  is  an  enterprising  business 
man  who  has  achieved  success  in 
various  branches  of  industry  and  trade.  He 
was  born  in  Brockton  (at  that  time  North 
Bridgewater),  May  4,  1843,  a  son  of  Francis 
M.  and  Nancy  I..  (Blake)  French.  His  pa- 
ternal grandfather,  William  F"rench,  was  born 
in  North  Bridgewater.  A  shoemaker  by  trade, 
he  was  in  a  small  way  a  manufacturer  of  boots. 
He  lived  to  be  eighty-four  years  of  age. 
William  French  was  one  of  the  first  in  this 
part  of  the  .State  to  embrace  the  Swedenbor- 
gian  faith,  and  he  helped  to  found  the  New 
Jerusalem  Church  here.  He  married  Ann, 
daughter  of  John  Wales,  of  North  Bridgewater, 
and  had  si.x  children,  three  of  whom  are  now 
living. 


Francis  M.  P'rench,  who  was  the  eldest  of 
the  family,  was  born  in  North  Bridgewater, 
July  20,  181  I.  When  he  was  twenty  years 
old  he  engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  shoes, 
his  factory  standing  on  the  site  of  the  store 
now  owned  by  his  son,  Walter  L.  ;  and  with 
the  exception  of  two  and  a  half  years,  when  he 
was  engaged  as  book-keeper  for  William  F. 
Brett,  he  was  in  the  shoe  business  some  forty 
years.  He  was  afterward  associated  with  his 
son  in  various  enterprises.  In  politics  he  has 
always  been  identified  with  Republican  prin- 
ciples, voting  originally  with  the  Whigs.  He 
cast  his  first  Presidential  ballot  for  Henry 
Clay.  He  was  aid  to  the  marshal  who  headed 
a  deputation  escorting  the  Hon.  John  Ouincy 
Adams  from  Randolph  to  North  Bridgewater, 
where,  on  November  6,  1844,  the  venerable 
ex-President  delivered  a  lecture.  Mr.  P"rancis 
M.  French  has  officiated  as  Justice  of  the 
Peace  for  forty-two  years,  holding  his  commis- 
sion under  si.x  governors.  He  was  at  one  time 
nominated  for  the  State  legislature.  A  Mason 
in  high  standing,  he  is  Past  Master  of  Paul 
Revere  Lodge,  of  Brockton ;  belongs  also  to 
Satucket  Chapter  and  Bay  State  Commandery, 
and  has  been  offered  several  chairs,  but  mod- 
estly declined.  His  first  wife,  Nancy,  daugh- 
ter of  Elias  Blake,  of  Wrentham,  died  in  1845, 
leaving  two  children:  Edward  Augustus,  who 
died  August  9,  1849;  and  Walter  L.  His 
second  wife  was  Mary  Ann  Maghie. 

Walter  L.  French  acquired  his  education  in 
North  Bridgewater,  attending  Loomis  Acad- 
emy and  Hunt's  Academy.  He  went  to  work 
in  the  grocery  store  of  William  V.  Brett  when 
he  was  twelve  years  old,  and  w-as  employed 
there  some  two  years,  returning  then  to  .=chool 
for  a  while.  He  was  next  employed  in  the 
shoe  factory  of  French  &  Packard  (Mr.  French, 
the  senior  member  of  the  firm  being  his 
father),  and  remained  there  until  the  breaking 


io8 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


out  of  the  war.  In  1861  he  enlisted  in  Com- 
pany F,  Twelfth  Massachusetts  Regiment,  and 
was  waiter  for  Captain  Hichborn  until  the 
regiment  was  mustered  into  service  at  Fort 
Warren.  On  August  9,  1862,  he  enlisted  in 
the  navy  and  was  assigned  to  the  United 
States  steamship  "Hunchback"  in  the  North 
Atlantic  .squadron.  He  received  his  discharge 
August  15,  1863.  During  his  service  he  took 
part  in  a  number  of  important  engagements, 
including  the  siege  at  New  Berne  and  the  siege 
of  Little  Washington,  both  in  North  Carolina. 
After  his  second  discharge  he  attempted  to  en- 
list again,  but  failed  to  pass  the  physical  ex- 
amination. 

In  1864  he  became  a  member  of  the  firm  of 
French  &  Packard,  which  was  then  changed  to 
French,  Packard  &  Sons,  the  factory  being  the 
(jld  one  on  the  site  of  the  present  store.  The 
partnership  was  dissolved  a  year  later,  and  Mr. 
French  was  employed  in  Porter  &  Packard's 
shoe  factory  for  si.x  months;  then,  his  father's 
partner  dying,  he  took  his  place,  and  the  firm 
became  V.  M.  and  W.  L.  French.  In  1870 
father  and  son  startetl  in  the  grocery  business, 
and  for  some  time  were  the  leading  grocers  of 
the  place.  At  the  time  of  the  great  horse  dis- 
temper in  1870  they  delivered  their  goods  with 
a  team  of  oxen.  They  were  very  successful, 
and,  though  they  went  out  of  business  in  1879, 
they  started  again  in  1880,  and  were  together 
until  1890,  when  the  elder  gentleman  retired. 
Mr.  Walter  L.  French  has  since  managed  the 
grocery  business  alone,  and  is  also  engaged  in 
brokerage  and  dealing  in  leather  remnants.  In 
the  latter  business  he  is  a  member  of  the  firm 
of  W.  L.  I'^rench  &  Co.,  organized  in  1895, 
his  partners  being  V.  L.  Price  and  N.  C. 
Clark.  Mr.  P"rench  is  likewise  extensively 
engaged  in  farming,  owning  three  hundred 
acres  of  land,  and  sells  considerable  wood. 

In    1864    he   was    married    to    Lucy    Ames, 


daughter  of  Daniel  Ames,  of  North  Bridge- 
water.  Mrs.  French,  who  is  an  intelligent 
and  capable  lady,  assumes  much  of  the  man- 
agement of  the  farm.  They  have  one  child  — 
PZllen  Lucinda,  born  September  11,  1868. 
Mr.  French  generally  votes  the  Republican 
ticket.  He  belongs  to  Paul  Revere  Lodge, 
A.  V.  &  A.  M.  ;  to  the  Brockton  Commercial 
Club;  to  Fletcher  Webster  Post,  No.  13, 
Grand  Army  of  the  Republic;  and  is  a  char- 
ter member  of  Appomatox  Command,  No.  22, 
Union  Veterans'  Union.  He  is  a  member  of 
the  Porter  Congregational  Church. 


/^^JeORGE  S.  HASKINS,  one  of  the 
V  f5 1  prominent  citizens  of  Lakeville, 
Plymouth  County,  Mass.,  was  born  in 
this  town,  January  27,  1856,  the  .son  of  Ce- 
phas and  Betsey  M.    (Soule)  Haskins. 

Cephas  Haskins  was  a  well-known  and  in- 
fluential resident  of  Lakeville,  where  he  was 
in  trade  some  forty-five  years,  and  was  station 
agent  thirty-nine  years.  An  independent  in 
politics,  he  held  the  confidence  and  esteem 
of  both  parties,  and  was  elected  to  several 
important  offices  of  trust.  He  was  the  first 
Postmaster  of  the  town,  holding  the  office 
thirty-six  years.  He  served  as  Selectman, 
Assessor,  and  Overseer  of  the  Poor  for  a  num- 
ber of  years,  and  was  in  the  State  legislature 
in  1872.  In  religious  belief  he  was  a  Congre- 
gationalist.  He  lived  to  be  seventy  years  of 
age,  passing  away  January  19,  1896.  Mr. 
Cephas  Haskins's  first  wife  died  in  1857,  leav- 
ing three  children:  Lydia  K.  ;  Mary  A.,  the 
present  Postmistress  at  Lakeville;  and  George 
S. ,  the  subject  of  this  sketch.  His  second 
wife,  Mary  E.  Mason,  had  two  children  —  Ar- 
lena  and  Anna  M. 

George  S.  Haskins  received  a  good  educa- 
tion,   attending    the    district    school    near    his 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


109 


home,  Pierce  Academy  at  Middleboro,  and 
Bridgewater  Academy.  When  but  a  boy  he 
began  to  assist  his  father  in  the  store,  and  he 
grew  up  in  the  business,  also  aiding  in  distrib- 
uting the  mail;  and  after  attaining  his  major- 
ity he  was  appointed  Assistant  Postmaster, 
an  office  he  held  until  his  fathers'  death,  giv- 
ing universal  satisfaction  by  his  courtes)'  and 
promptness  in  delivery.  Mr.  Haskins  is 
widely  known  and  is  very  popular  among  his 
townsmen. 

He  was  married  June  14,  1882,  to  Miss 
Lizzie  E.  Harlow.  In  politics  he  favors  the 
Democratic  side;  and  he,  too,  has  been  in 
office  for  a  number  of  years.  He  has  served 
as  Selectman  and  Assessor  for  ten  years, 
from  1886  to  1896,  and  for  the  past  three  years 
has  officiated  as  Overseer  of  the  Poor.  Mr. 
Haskins  is  an  Odd  PYdlow,  belonging  to 
Middleboro  Lodge. 


OHN  H.  RYDKR,  a  well-known  farmer 
and  lumberman  of  Midtlleboro,  Mass., 
son  of  Wilson  C.  and  Katherine  (Mil- 
lett)  Ryder,  was  born  on  the  jjaternal  farm  in 
this  town,  November  16,  1848.  His  father 
also  was  a  native  of  Middleboro.  After  ob- 
taining his  early  education  in  the  common 
school,  Wilson  C.  Ryder  attended  Waterville 
College  and  fitted  himself  for  the  gospel  min- 
istry. The  duties  of  this  office  he  fulfilled 
until  1840,  when  he  settled  on  the  farm  in 
Middleboro  now  occupied  by  his  son,  John  H. 
The  Rev.  Wilson  C.  Ryder  and  Katherine 
Millett  joined  hearts  and  hands  at  the  mar- 
riage altar,  and,  as  the  years  passed  by,  four 
children  were  born  to  them;  namely,  Wilson 
C,  Henry  K.  W.,  Nathaniel  F.,  and  John  H., 
all  of  whom  are  residents  of  Plymouth  County. 
John  H.  Ryder  in  his  childhood  and  youth 
attended  the  common  schools  and  Pierce  Acad- 


emy, acquiring  a  good  education.  When  he 
attained  his  majority  he  went  to  Boston  in 
search  of  Dame  Fortune,  remaining  two  years. 
He  then  returned  to  the  farm,  where  he  has 
resided  continuously  ever  since.  He  owns  in 
all  one  hundred  acres  of  land,  and  carries  on 
general  farming  and  lumbering.  In  politics 
Mr.  Ryder  is  a  Republican.  In  his  religious 
faith  he  is  orthodo.v,  being  a  member  of  the 
Rock  Congregationalist  Church. 

In  1872  he  was  united  in  marriage  with 
Miss  Eliza  F.  Gibbs.  P"our  children  are  the 
result  of  this  union;  namely,  Howard  I*".,  Kate 
W. ,  Henry  L.,  and  Reuben  H.  Ryder. 


ISAAC  PACKARD,  late  an  extensive 
land-owner  and  farmer  of  Brockton, 
Mass.,  who  died  on  May  30,  1892,  in 
the  seventy-second  year  of  his  age,  was  born 
here  at  the  old  homestead  on  Poorest  Avenue, 
July  3,  1820.  His  parents  were  David  and 
Susanna  (Perkins)  Packard.  The  father  was 
a  highly  respected  farmer,  who  owned  most  of 
the  land  in  what  was  then  North  Bridgewater, 
now  Brockton.  He  married  Susanna  Perkins 
of  that  town.  By  religious  ]ireference  they 
attended  the  P'irst  Congregational  Church. 

Isaac  Packard,  after  acquiring  a  common- 
school  education,  worked  on  shoes  for  a  num- 
ber of  years.  Later  he  became  a  stone  mason, 
but  he  finally  settled  on  a  small  farm.  In 
politics  he  affiliated  witli  ihe  Republican 
party,  and,  being  a  man  of  jniblic  spirit,  he 
was  actively  alive  to  local  interests.  Mr. 
Packard's  religious  interest  deepened  as  the 
years  rolled  on.  He  attended  the  South  Con- 
gregational Church  in  Campello,  where  his 
faith  was  shown  by  his  works  in  the  gift  of 
land  on  Warren  Street  for  a  chapel. 

He  married  in  1849  Sarah  H.  Bonney, 
daughter  of    Captain    Ezekiel    and    Lydia    H. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


lioniiey.  Her  father,  who  was  Captain  of  a 
passenger  vessel  for  a  number  of  years,  lived 
in  Kingston  between  voyages  until  his  death, 
which  occurred  at  the  age  of  forty-two.  The 
maternal  ancestors  belonged  to  one  of  the  old 
families  in  Kingston,  where  Mrs.  Packard  was 
born.  Of  the  five  children  born  to  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Packard,  four  now  survive;  namely, 
Sarah  F.,  George  W.,  William  H.,  and  Julia 
A.  Sarah  F.  Packard  married  Sylvanus  Cook 
Packard,  of  Brockton  ;  George  W.  works  in  a 
shoe  factory;  William  H.  works  for  Moses 
Packard,  and  resides  in  North  Fasten ;  and 
Julia  A.  became  the  wife  of  Edward  C.  I.each, 
of  Boston,  and  resides  in  that  city. 


fHOMAS  STOTT,  an  expert  spinner, 
employed  at  the  Plymouth  Woollen 
Mills,  was  born  in  Lancashire,  F^ng- 
land.  May  28,  183.S.  In  his  early  youth  he 
began  work  in  the  cotton  mills,  where  he 
learned  the  spinner's  trade,  and  in  July,  1864, 
he  emigrated  to  the  United  States,  first  set- 
tling in  Norwich,  Conn.,  where  he  was  for  a 
time  employed  at  the  armory.  From  Norwich 
he  went  to  Pockatannock,  where  he  pursued 
his  calling  as  a  spinner  in  Hall  Brothers' 
Woollen  Mills  for  some  four  years;  and,  after 
working  in  the  Bean  Hill  Mills,  Conn.,  and 
at  Lake  Village,  N.H.,  for  a  time,  he  was  for 
three  years  employed  at  the  Belknap  Mills  in 
Laconia,  N.  H.  He  was  subsequently  em- 
ployed in  the '  stocking-mills  in  Ipswich, 
Mass.,  and  in  the  woollen-mills  in  Mystic, 
Conn.,  until  1880,  when  he  came  to  Plym- 
outh under  engagement  to  the  concern  which 
started  what  is  now  known  as  the  Plymouth 
Woollen  Mills,  and  he  has  since  remained 
here.  His  long  and  successful  experience  as 
a  spinner  in  both  England  antl  the  United 
States  places  him    in   the  foremost  rank  among 


the  experts  of  his  line  in  this  locality;  and, 
aside  from  the  confidence  with  which  he  is  re- 
garded by  his  employers,  he  is  highly  es- 
teemed by  the  community  generally  as  a 
woithy  and  useful  citizen. 

On  December  13,  1869,  in  Laconia,  N.H., 
Mr.  .Stott  was  married  to  Mary  Madowall,  who 
was  born  in  Banbridge,  Ulster  County,  Ire- 
land, and  from  her  native  country  removed  to 
lingland.  In  1869  she  emigrated  to  the 
United  States,  arriving  on  the  17th  of  June, 
and  going  direct  to  Laconia,  N.H.,  where  the 
marriage  took  place  si.x  mouths  later,  as  above 
mentioned.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Thomas  Stott  have 
had  two  children.  The  eldest,  a  girl,  died 
October  10,  1877;  and  the  youngest,  a  son, 
Thomas  H.,  is  now  employed  as  a  job   jjrinter. 


/pTrii 


ILMAN  OSGOOD,  M.D.,  of  Rock- 
VJ5T  land,  Mass.,  is  among  the  best- 
qualified  physicians  and  surgeons  in 
the  county.  He  was  born  in  Abington,  Mass., 
P'ebruary  26,  1863,  a  son  of  Oilman  and  Isa- 
bella (Foster)  Osgood. 

Oilman  Osgood,  Sr. ,  was  born  in  Durham, 
Me.  He  was  engaged  in  the  manufacture  of 
.shoes  in  Rockland  and  Abington  for  a  num- 
ber of  years,  and  is  now  retired  from  business, 
living  in  Belmont,  Mass.  Mrs.  Osgood,  wlio 
was  born  on  the  Cape,  is  a  daughter  of  Free- 
man Foster,  now  one  of  the  oldest  citizens  of 
Abington,  having  passed  his  ninetieth  birth- 
day. Four  children  were  i^orn  to  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Oilman  O.sgood,  Sr.  ;  namely,  Isabella, 
Marion,  Oilman,  and  Charles. 

Oilman  O.sgood,  Jr.,  was  graduated  from  the 
Abington  High  School  in  18S0,  and  in  1886 
he  was  graduated  from  the  BeJlevue  Hospital 
Medical  College  at  New  York,  one  of  the  fore- 
most schools  in  the  world,  and  was  then  ap- 
pointed to  the  staff  of  the  King's  County  (New 


BAALIS    SANFORD. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


113 


York)  Hospital,  serving  one  year.  A  year 
fater  he  was  made  assistant  physician  on  the 
Asylum  Staff,  devoting  two  years  to  this 
specialty;  and  he  was  subsequently  for  two 
years  superintendent  of  the  King's  County 
Hospital.  During  his  connection  with  this 
institution  he  acquired  a  practical  knowledge 
and  experience  rarely  given  to  a  young  ph}'si- 
cian.  In  iSgoDr.  Osgood  resigned  his  posi- 
tion and  settled  in  Rockland  as  successor  to 
Dr.  J.  C.  Gleason  (deceased),  and  from  the 
beginning  he  has  had  a  large  general  practice. 
He  is  a  member  of  the  King's  County  (N.Y.) 
Medical  Association  and  of  the  Massachusetts 
Medical  Society. 

On  January  14,  i8gi.  Dr.  Osgood  was 
united  in  marriage  \Vith  Miss  Mabel  Russell, 
who  was  born  in  Bethel,  Me.,  and  reared  by 
an  uncle,  George  L.  Richardson,  of  Abington, 
Mass.  Dr.  and  Mrs.  Osgood  have  two  chil- 
dren :  Louise,  born  November  6,  1891;  and 
Oilman,  born  Ajiril  11,  1895.  The  Doctor  is 
prominent  as  a  member  of  society,  and  belongs 
to  the  Masonic  fraternity  and  the  Independent 
Order  of  Odd  F"ellows.  Mrs.  Osgood  is  a 
member  of  the  Congregational  church. 


y-j^AALIS  SANFORD,  one  of  the  able 
,  .  business  men  of  Brockton,  is  the 
'  '  eldest  son  of  the  Rev.  Baal  is  and 
Abby  (Burt)  Sanford,  born  in  East  Bridge- 
water,  October  4,  1833.  He  is  of  Revolution- 
ary stock.  His  grandfather,  Captain  Joseph 
Sanford,  was  an  officer  in  the  Continental 
army.  Captain  Sanford,  who  was  a  mason  by 
trade,  while  stationed  at  Fort  Warren  in  Bos- 
ton Harbor,  built  within  the  precincts  of  the 
fort  a  chimney  that  still  stands  in  testimony 
of  the  quality  of  the  work  he  was  accustomed 
to  perform.  Of  the  Captain's  children  four 
sons  became  clergymen;  and  one,  Enoch,  who 


preached  in  Raynham,  Mass.,  many  years, 
lived  to  be  ninety-si.x  years  of  age.  The  Rev. 
Baalis  Sanford,  a  native  of  Berkley,  Bristol 
County,  born  July,  1801,  graduated  from 
Brown  University  in  1827,  and  in  1831  took 
charge  of  the  Congregational  parish  in  l-last 
Bridgewater,  where  he  labored  for  more  than  a 
quarter  of  a  century.  He  was  much  respected 
and  beloved,  and  he  died  in  1880,  aged 
seventy-nine  years. 

Baalis  Sanford  acquired  an  excellent  educa- 
tion at  the  common  schools  of  his  native  town 
and  Bridgewater,  and  at  the  East  Bridgewater 
academies.  When  fourteen  years  of  age  he 
learned  the  shoemaker's  trade,  and  worked  at 
it  when  not  in  school  for  the  ensuing  three 
years.  In  April,  1851,  he  entered  the  dry- 
goods  house  of  Robinson  &  Barry,  of  North 
Bridgewater  (now  Brockton),  as  book-keeper 
and  cashier,  taking  the  place  of  Melville  Hay- 
ward.  This  gentleman  had  left  to  engage  in 
the  study  of  law,  and  afterward  became  dis- 
tinguished in  his  profession  in  New  York 
City.  Mr.  Sanford  was  admitted  February  i, 
1858,  as  a  member  of  the  firm  of  H.  W. 
Robinson  &  Co.,  successors  to  Robinson  & 
Barry,  Messrs.  Gorham  B.  Howard  and  El- 
bridge  W.  Morse  becoming  members  of  the 
company  at  the  same  time.  These  relations 
remained  unchanged  until  1869,  when  Messrs. 
Howard  and  Morse  retired  from  the  firm,  and 
Mr.  Joseph  \V.  Robinson,  son  of  H.  W. 
Robinson,  was  admitted  to  partnership.  Mr. 
Sanford  is  now  the  senior  partner  of  the  firm, 
and  attends  to  the  book-keeping  and  financial 
affairs.  Since  his  connection  with  the  busi- 
ness began  it  has  grown  to  an  importance  ex- 
celled by  few  houses  in  Eastern  Massachu- 
setts. Mr.  Sanford  has  many  other  business 
interests.  He  was  book-keeper  for  the  Brock- 
ton Gas  Light  Company  for  twenty  years,  and 
in  1886-88  was  Treasurer  of  the  corporation. 


114 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


He  was  elected  the  first  President  of  the  Se- 
curity Co-operative  Bank  in  1878,  and  was  re- 
elected in  1879,  but  declined  to  serve  longer 
on  account  of  business  cares.  He  was  elected 
President  of  the  Brockton  Savings  Bank  in 
April,  1892,  and  still  holds  that  position. 
He  is  one  of  the  Vice-Presidents  and  a  Di- 
rector of  the  Brockton  Agricultural  Society; 
Chairman  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  Ceme- 
tery Funds  for  the  perpetual  care  of  lots  in 
Union  Cemetery;  Auditor  of  the  Wales 
Home  Corporation;  and  Treasurer  and  Di- 
rector of  the  Lugonia  Fruit  Growing  and 
Packing  Company  of  Redlands,  Cal.  He 
was  one  of  the  charter  members  of  the  Com- 
mercial Club;  served  as  its  Secretary  for 
twelve  years,  and  as  Treasurer  for  five  years ; 
and  is  at  present  a  member  of  the  Board  of 
Management. 

Mr.  Sanford  was  married  in  North  Bridge- 
water,  then  I^rockton,  August  19,  1856,  to 
Lucy  Cotton,  daughter  of  Captain  Benjamin 
and  Anne  (Whitman)  Hapgood.  Of  the  three 
children  born  to  him,  Irene  Gertrude  is  liv- 
ing. Anna  Cora  and  Mable  Louise  died  suc- 
cessively in  i860  and  1869.  Though  not  an 
active  politician,  Mr.  Sanford  is  an  ardent 
supporter  of  the  Republican  party,  and  has 
served  with  credit  in  public  office.  He  was  a 
member  of  the  Brockton  School  Committee 
from  1875  to  1885  inclusive,  acting  as  Secre- 
tary of  the  Board  during  the  entire  period. 
He  was  elected  one  of  the  Town  Auditors  in 
1879,  and  served  three  years  in  that  capacity. 
In  1882,  when  the  town  became  a  city,  he  was 
elected  City  Auditor,  and  served  fourteen 
years,  resigning  at  the  end  of  that  time.  He 
has  been  Justice  of  the  Peace  since  1881  ;  and 
in  1879  he  was  a  member  of  the  lower  branch 
of  the  State  legislature,  serving  on  the  Com- 
mittee on  Mercantile  Affairs.  He  has  been 
identified    with    the   Masonic    fraternity   since 


1864,  filling  with  dignity  the  highest  official 
positions.  From  1867  to  1869  he  was  Worthy 
Master  of  Paul  Revere  Lodge;  from  1869  to 
1872  he  was  High  Priest  of  Satucket  Royal 
Arch  Chapter;  from  1876  to  1878,  Eminent 
Commander  of  Bay  State  Commandery, 
Knights  Templars;  at  present  he  is  Thrice 
Illustrious  Master  of  Brockton  Council  of 
Royal  and  Select  Masters ;  and  he  was  Re- 
corder of  Bay  State  Commandery  for  fifteen 
years.  He  is  a  permanent  member  of  the 
Grand  Lodge,  Grand  Chapter,  Grand  Council, 
and  Grand  Commandery  of  Massachusetts,  and 
of  the  Grand  Council  of  the  American  Legion 
of  Honor;  and  he  is  a  life  member  of  the  Mas- 
sachusetts Consistory,  thirty-second  degree. 
In  religious  matters  he  is  affiliated  with  the 
Congregationalists,  and  was  Treasurer  of  the 
Porter  Society  for  seven  years. 


HARLES    FRANKLIN    DAVID,    one 
of  the  alert   and   enterprising  citizens 

,^2 -    of   Abington,    Mass.,    widely   known 

as  a  newspaper  man  from  his  former  connec- 
tion with  the  Plymouth  County  J  on  run/,  and 
later  as  the  founder  of  the  C.  F.  David  Adver- 
tising Agency,  is  now  the  proprietor  of  the 
popular  medicines  for  stock  and  fowls  known 
as  "The  Big  Three."  He  was  born  in  South 
Braintree,  Mass.,  April  4,  1856,  and  is  a  son 
of  Charles  and  Elizabeth  (Stone)  David,  of 
that  town.  On  the  paternal  side  he  is  of 
French  Huguenot  descent,  and  the  composer 
David  was  a  kinsman  of  his  father  and  grand- 
father. 

As  a  lad  Charles  ¥ .  David  was  a  precocious 
scholar.  He  had  completed  the  grammar- 
school  course  in  South  Braintree  when  only 
nine  years  old,  and  he  entered  the  high  school 
at  an  age  when  the  majority  of  pupils  are  just 
going     into    the    grammar.        Leaving    school 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


when  fourteen  years  old,  he  first  went  to  work 
for  Jordan,  Marsh  &  Co.,  of  Boston.  He  was 
fifteen  years  of  age  at  this  time,  and  when  he 
had  been  in  the  employ  of  the  great  dry-goods 
firm  only  two  months  he  was  given  charge  of 
one  of  the  store-houses.  After  working  for 
Jordan,  Marsh  &  Co.,  about  a  year,  he  took  a 
course  in  Comer's  Commercial  College,  and 
then  obtained  employment  as  accountant  in 
Moore's  printing  office. 

Here  his  ability  was  soon  recognized,  and, 
Mr.  Moore  being  taken  sick,  Mr.  David  for  a 
time  carried  on  the  business.  Two  years  later 
he  purchased  the  entire  outfit,  and  removed  to 
South  Braintree;  and  after  staying  there  si.x 
months,  at  the  earnest  solicitation  of  the  Ab- 
ington  people,  he  came  to  this  town,  and  took 
charge  of  the  Plymouth  Conniy  Jottrnal.  The 
paper  was  then  in  a  languishing  condition,  and 
had  only  a  quarter  of  a  column  of  advertise- 
ments, the  lifeblood  of  the  modern  periodical. 
Mr.  David  went  to  work  with  characteristic 
energy,  and  within  six  months  the  paper  dis- 
played over  thirty  columns  of  "ads."  For 
about  twenty  months  he  worked  with  such 
unceasing  energy  that  lie  undermined  his 
health,  and  was  advised  by  his  physician  to 
give  up  the  business.  Accordingly,  he  sold 
X.\\iiJonni<il  in  Mr.  F.  W.  Rollins. 

.  His  next  venture  was  in  the  advertising 
agency  business,  in  which  he  was  interested 
some  ten  years,  founding  a  corporation  styled 
the  C.  I-'.  David  Advertising  Agency.  In 
1895  he  purchased  Dole's  Horse  and  Cattle 
Invigorator,  and  he  has  since  added  David's 
Hen  and  Chicken  Invigorator  anil  David's 
Cure  for  Hog  Cholera  and  Swine  Distemper. 
The  combination  is  known  as  "The  Big 
Three";  and  these  specifics,  it  is  said,  actually 
do  more  than  is  claimed  for  them,  being  the 
acknowledged  leaders  in  their  line.  They 
are  in  constant  demand  among  stock  breeders. 


Like  most  men  who  have  had  a  taste  of  the 
newspaper  business,  Mr.  David  still  has  lean- 
ings toward  his  old  sphere  of  work,  and  has 
many  friends  among  the  printers. 

He  was  married  May  8,  1876,  to  Miss 
Lizzie  A.  Reynolds,  of  Abington,  daughter  of 
Griffin  Clark  and  Sarah  Maria  Reynolds.  Mr. 
Reynolds,  her  father,  now  deceased,  was  a 
prominent  shoe  manufacturer.  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
David  have  no  children.  Mr.  David  is  a 
member  of  Pilgrim  Lodge,  Independent  Order 
of  Odd  Fellows,  of  Abington. 


NDREW  JACKSON  GARDNER,  Tax 
Collector  of  Hingham,  Plymouth 
County,  Mass.,  was  born  here  on 
January  11,  1815,  son  of  Jesse  and  Delight 
(Lincoln)  Gardner.  His  paternal  grandfather, 
Samuel  Gardner,  was  also  a  native  of  Hing- 
ham, where  he  engaged  in  farming,  both  he 
and  his  wife  living  to  a  good  old  age.  He 
was  a  hard-working  man,  who  stood  well  among 
his  townspeople.  In  politics  he  affiliated  with 
the  Whigs,  and  in  his  religious  belief  he  was 
a  Unitarian.      He  had  ten  children. 

Jesse  Gardner,  son  of  Samuel,  was  born  in 
this  town,  December  15,  1780.  In  early  man- 
hood he  learned  the  carpenter's  trade,  and  that 
was  his  life  occupation.  In  politics  he  was  a 
Democrat,  and  served  as  a  member  of  the 
School  Committee  several  years.  He  married 
Delight  Lincoln,  daughter  of  Laban  and  P]liz- 
abeth  Lincoln,  of  Hingham.  She  was  born 
September  24,  1793,  and  died  at  the  age  of 
fifty -three  years,  August  17,  1846.  Jesse 
Gardner  survived  his  wife  several  years,  and 
died  October  30,  1851,  aged  seventy-one 
years.  They  were  both  highly  respected 
members  of  the  Unitarian  church.  Only 
three  of  the  seven  children  born  to  them  are 
now    living  —  Andrew    Jackson,     Laban,    and 


ii6 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Elizabeth  Ann.  Laban  married  Catherine 
Burrell,  of  Hingham,  and  they  had  six  chil- 
dren, five  of  whom  are  now  living  —  Laban  F., 
Catherine  B.,  Arthur,  Walter,  and  Martin  B. 
lilizabeth  Ann  was  united  in  marriage  with 
Edwin  D.  Gardner,  of  this  town,  and  had  five 
children,  three  of  whom  are  living — Edwin 
A.,  Sarah,  and  Lizzie. 

Andrew  J.  Gardner,  after  attaining  a  public- 
school  education  in  his  native  town,  learned 
the  shoemaker's  trade,  which  he  followed  in 
this  town  for  twenty-five  years.  In  1850, 
when  the  town  offices  were  put  up  at  auction, 
he  purchased  the  office  of  Tax  Cgl lector,  to 
which  he  was  elected  by  the  people  in  1852. 
He  is  the  present  incumbent,  having  served 
for  forty  four  consecutive  years.  In  days  gone 
by  he  was  on  the  police  force,  and  subse- 
quentl}'  served  in  the  offices  of  Constable  and 
Highway  Surveyor.  In  politics  he  affiliates 
with  the  Republican  party. 

Mr.  Gardner  married  first  Mary  Ann,  daugh- 
ter of  Stephen  and  Peggy  Remington  Stod- 
dard. She  was  a  native  of  this  town,  and  was 
born  March  3,  1822,  and  she  died  April  17, 
1 847,  at  the  age  of  twenty-five  years.  Mr. 
Gardner  married  second,  February  13,  1848, 
Rebecca  Ann  Ewell,  of  Marshfield,  Mass.  .She 
died  March  27,  1892,  at  the  age  of  sixty- 
nine  years  and  five  months.  Mr.  Gardner's 
children  by  his  wife,  Mary,  were:  Lucy  Stod- 
dard, born  December  12,  1842,  who  married 
October  i,  1SS4,  Frazer  F.  Blauvelt ;  Andrew 
Wallace,  born  December  i,  1844;  and  Albert 
-Stoddard,  born  March  11,  1847.  His  children 
by  his  wife,  Rebecca,  were:  John  Hersey, 
born  February  ri,  1850,  who  died  April  30, 
1891;  and  Mary  Ann,  born  May  26,  1851, 
died  August  19,  1853.  Andrew  Wallace 
Gardner,  his  eldest  son,  married  May  24, 
1868,  Mary  Jane  Price,  daughter  of  James  and 
Rebecca   (Souther)    Price.      She  was    born    in 


Hingham,    August    19,    1843.      They    have  a 
child,  Mary  Ann,  born  January  19,   1871. 

Albert  Stoddard  Gardner,  the  second  son, 
married  January  5,  1868,  Mary  Ellen  P'earing, 
daughter  of  Henry  and  Mary  (Gushing)  Fear- 
ing. She  was  born  in  Hingham,  February  13, 
1844,  and  died  February  20,  1871,  aged 
twenty-seven  years.  Albert  S.  Gardner  died 
March  29,  1873,  aged  twenty-six  years.  He 
had  one  child,  Henry  Fearing,  born  in  Hing- 
ham, April  29,  1869.  Both  wives  attended 
the  Universalist  church,  in  which  Mr.  Gardner 
has  been  prominently  active.  For  thirty-six 
years  he  has  been  Collector  of  the  Universalist 
Society.  Personally,  he  is  a  man  of  the  high- 
est integrity,  who  has  ably  filled  most  impor- 
tant offices  of  trust. 


TIS  COBB,  a  successful  carpenter  and 
contractor  of  Brockton,  was  born 
March  17,  1827,  in  Carver,  this 
county,  son  of  Otis  and  Mercy  B.  (Morse) 
Cobb.  He  is  descended  from  immigrants  who 
came  with  the  early  settlers  of  the  Plymouth 
Colony.  Benjamin  Cobb,  his  grandfather, 
born  in  Carver,  February  13,  1750,  was  a 
farmer,  and  served  in  the  militia.  He  died 
on  March  3,  1812.  Sarah,  his  wife,  born 
April  I,  1754,  died  October  20,  1820.  Their 
son  Otis,  born  November  20,  179S,  was  a 
farmer,  who  also  manufactured  nails  by  hand. 
He  was  a  member  of  the  Congregational 
church,  and  sang  in  the  choir.  His  wife, 
Mercy,  had  two  children  besides  Otis.  Of 
these,  Benjamin  died  at  the  age  of  two  years. 
The  other  was  a  daughter,  who  is  now  the  wife 
of  Henry  B.  Whitman,  and  resides  in  Brain- 
tree,  Mass.  The  father,  who  was  a  resident 
of  Carver  all  his  life,  died  April  4,  1840. 
The  mother  lived  until  December  31,  1841. 
At    the    age   of    sixteen,    after    acquiring    a 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


117 


coinnion-school  education,  Otis  Cobb  came  to 
North  Bridgevvater,  now  Brockton,  and  worked 
with  Vinal  Lyon  at  the  carpenter's  trade  for 
several  years,  and  then  went  into  business  for 
four  years.  He  subsecjuently  worked  as  a 
journeyman  for  himself.  In  1864  he  enlisted 
in  one  of  the  unattached  companies  of  the  old 
Boston  ]<"usileers,  which  afterward  formed  a 
part  of  the  P'ourth  Massachusetts  Artillery 
and  was  stationed  at  Fort  Richardson  for  eight 
months.  They  had  [ireviously  lantied  at  Fort 
Albany,  where  they  stayed  a  month,  taking 
charge  of  forts  extending  all  the  way  to 
Alexandria.  He  was  put  to  carpenter's  work 
for  a  while,  after  which  he  became  regimen- 
tal carpenter,  having  the  supervision  of  fifty 
men.  Returning  home  in  1865,  he  soon  re- 
sumed business,  which  he  managed  success- 
fully until  1893.  He  has  built  forty-four 
factories,  mostly  plants,  for  the  manufacture 
of  shoes,  and  more  than  one  hundred  houses, 
besides  four  school-houses  for  Brockton,  and 
some  public  buildings  for  other  towns.  In 
politics  Mr.  Cobb  is  a  Republican,  and  he  has 
been  Surveyor  of   Lumi^er  for  twelve  years. 

On  May  7,  1848,  Mr.  Cobb  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Lydia  L.  Packard,  daughter  of 
Lebba^us  Packard,  of  West  Bridgcwater.  They 
have  three  chikh-en — Jane,  Sarah,  and  Nor- 
man. Jane  married  S.  S.  B.  French,  and  re- 
sides in  Braintree;  Sarah,  who  married  Frank 
P.  Brown,  is  at  home;  and  Norman,  who  mar- 
rieil  I'anny  Hayden,  is  in  Haverhill,  Mass. 
Mrs.  Cobb's  father,  Lebbasus,  was  Selectman 
in  West  Bridgcwater  for  sixteen  consecutive 
years.  During  the  War  of  181  2  he  served  as 
fifer  on  the  march  from  West  Bridgcwater  to 
Plymouth.  He  was  a  member  of  the  Metho- 
dist Episcopal  church,  and  he  died  at  the  age 
of  si.\ty-four.  Mr.  Cobb  is  a  member  of  Paul 
Revere  Lodge,  Brockton,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.; 
a   charter   member   of    St.    George    Lodge,    of 


Campello;  a  member  of  Satucket  Royal  .'Xrch 
Chapter;  of  Brockton  Council,  Royal  and  Se- 
lect Masters;  of  Bay  State  Comniafidcry, 
Knights  Templars;  and  of  Aleppo  Temple, 
being  a  Mason  of  the  thirty-second  degree. 
He  also  belongs  to  the  Order  of  Rose  Croi.x, 
and  has  been  Tyler  of  St.  George's  Lodge  to 
Massasoit  Lodge,  No.  69,  Independent  Order 
of  Odd  Fellows;  to  Fletcher  Webster  Post, 
Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  No.  13;  to  the 
Legion  of  Honor,  of  which  he  was  Commander 
for  two  years,  having  occupied  all  the  other 
chairs.  In  religious  circles  he  is  also  prom- 
inent, having  been  a  member  of  the  South  Con- 
gregational Church  at  Campello  for  forty-two 
years.  He  has  served  on  various  committees, 
was  a  member  of  the  Parish  Committee  for 
three  years,  usher  for  nearly  twelve  years,  and 
sang  in  the  choir  about  ten  years.  He  recently 
severed  his  connection  with  the  Congregational 
church,  and  became  a  member  of  the  .South 
Street  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  of  Brockton. 


E COLEMAN  BROWN,  M.D.,  city 
physician  of  Brockton,  was  born  in 
East  Boston,  June  4,  1869,  son  of 
Lieutenant  Edwin  Young  and  P"rances  (Saw- 
yer) Brown,  residents  of  PZast  Boston.  The 
Doctor  is  a  descendant  of  Peter  Brown,  one  of 
the  Colonial  settlers  of  New  England.  His 
grandfather's  grandfather  served  on  General 
Washington's  staff,  and  his  great  grandfather 
was  in  the  War  of  1812.  His  grandfather, 
Charles  Brown,  died  in  Scituate  about  twenty 
years  ago,  aged  about  seventy  years;  and  his 
grandmother  was  ninety-two  when  she  passed 
away  in  1893.  This  couple  had  a  family  of 
fourteen  children,  five  of  whom  are  living: 
one,  Charles,  who  has  served  in  the  State 
legislature,  and  is  a  comrade  of  the  Grand 
Army,    resides   on    the    family    homestead    in 


iiS 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Scituate;  James,  killed  in  action;  Wilbur  and 
lulwin  Young  also  served  in  the  late  war. 
Moses,  another  of  the  sons,  owns  and  lives 
upon  the  noted  "Bulrush  Farm"  at  North 
Scituate,  the  largest  farm  in  Plymouth  County. 

At  the  first  call  to  arms,  Edwin  Young 
Brown  enlisted  as  a  private  in  Company  B, 
First  Massachusetts  \'olunteer  Regiment,  and 
served  throughout  the  war,  winning  promo- 
tion to  the  rank  of  Lieutenant  for  meritorious 
conduct  on  the  field.  His  regiment  was  at- 
tached to  General  Joseph  Hooker's  brigade, 
and  shared  in  several  of  the  engagements  of 
that  command.  In  the  second  battle  of  Bull 
Run  he  was  shot  in  the  head,  and,  having  been 
left  for  dead  on  the  field,  was  taken  prisoner 
and  confined  in  Libby  Prison  for  a  year.  He 
and  a  number  of  other  prisoners  were  then 
packed  in  freight  cars,  and  sent  to  Anderson- 
ville.  On  the  way  Mr.  Brown,  with  two  com- 
panions, cut  the  lock,  and  jumped  from  the 
moving  car  into  the  darkness  of  the  night. 
After  wandering  about  for  three  months,  en- 
during many  privations,  they  reached  the 
Union  lines.  Lieutenant  Brown  was  dis- 
charged in  1S65,  at  the  close  of  the  war.  He 
is  highly  esteemed  in  East  Boston,  and  has 
been  State  Inspector  of  Factories  and  Public 
Buildings  for  some  time.  He  is  the  father  of 
three  children,  who  are  all  living. 

After  acquiring  his  preliminary  education 
in  the  public  schools  of  East  Boston,  E.  Cole- 
man Brown  graduated  from  the  Boston  Latin 
School.  He  received  his  medical  training  at 
the  Boston  College  of  Physicians  and  Sur- 
geon.s,  his  degree  being  conferred  upon  him 
in  1894.  He  then  became  attending  physi- 
cian at  the  Deer  Island  Hospital.  In  Sep- 
tember of  that  year  he  located  in  Brockton, 
where  he  has  remained  since.  In  the  short 
time  that  has  elapsed  since  he  has  won  the 
confidence  and   regard   of    a    large  number   of 


citizens.  Dr.  Brown  was  elected  City  Physi- 
cian in  1S96,  succeeding  Dr.  Roland  M. 
Hammond.  In  politics  he  is  a  Republican. 
He  was  married  September  25,  1SS9,  to  a 
daughter  of  Captain  Joseph  F..  Kimball,  his 
father's  comrade  all  through  the  war.  Cap- 
tain Kimball  also  rose  from  the  ranks.  Of 
the  three  children  born  to  Dr.  and  Mrs. 
Brown,  one  is  living.  The  Doctor  has  held 
nearly  all  the  chairs  in  the  East  Boston  Ma- 
sonic lodges,  and  is  second  officer  at  present 
in  the  Chapter  and  Council.  He  now  belongs 
to  the  Masonic  bodies  of  Brockton,  and  to 
Aleppo  Temple  of  the  Mystic  Shrine  of  Bos- 
ton. He  is  a  member  of  Zenith  Lodge,  Inde- 
pendent Order  of  Odd  Fellows,  of  East  Bos- 
ton; Medical  Examiner  for  Montello  Lodge, 
Knights  of  Pythias;  a  Director  of  the  Union 
Pythian  Relief  Association;  a  member  of  Bay 
State  Commandery,  Knights  Templars,  of 
Brockton,  and  of  R.  B.  Grover  Camp,  Sons  of 
Veterans.  He  attends  the  Universal ist  church 
in  this  city;  and  he  resides  at  32  Lapland 
Road,  in  the  northern  part  of  the  city,  called 
Montello,  where  he  lately  purchased  a  resi- 
dence. 


ON.  CHARLES  H.  HOWLAND, 
of  Plymouth,  has  represented  the 
i®  V^^^  old  Colonial  town  in  the  State 
.Senate  and  House  of  Representatives,  and  has 
served  it  as  Land  and  Harbor  Commissioner 
for  a  number  of  years.  He  was  born  in  Plym- 
outh, September  15,  1826,  son  of  John  and 
Nancy  (Lucas)  Howland,  who  were  both  born 
in  this  vicinity.  The  family  comes  of  old 
Puritan  stock.  It  began  with  three  brothers, 
John,  Charles,  and  Henry,  who  came  origi- 
nally from  England.  John  made  the  voyage 
in  the  "Mayflower,"  and  Charles  and  Henry 
in  the  ship  "Ann"  which  followed.  The 
family  has  been  content  to  remain  in  the  home 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


119 


established  by  their  forefathers,  and  genera- 
tion after  generation  of  it  has  lived  and  died 
in  Plymouth.  John  Howland,  the  father  of 
Charles  H.,  was  a  seafaring  man.  While 
serving  in  tlie  War  of  1812  he  was  taken 
prisoner,  carried  to  England,  and  for  some 
time  was  confined  in  Dartmoor  Prison,  from 
which  he  eventually  escaped.  He  died  in 
1 84 1  at  the  age  of  fifty-four.  His  wife,  who 
was  a  daughter  of  Lazarus  Lucas,  of  West 
Plymouth,  died  in  Plymouth  in  1890,  at  the 
advanced  age  of  ninety-two.  They  reared 
four  children,  of  whom  the  subject  of  this 
sketch  was  the  third  child  born. 

Charles  H.  Hf)wland  was  educated  in  the 
common  schools  of  Plymouth.  His  parents 
being  poor,  he  was  obliged,  at  the  age  of 
nine,  to  take  employment  of  George  Bramhall, 
a  grocer,  of  Plymouth.  He  was  afterward 
em]3loyed  in  the  Harvard  University  book- 
store in  Cambridge,  Mass.  Here  his  health 
became  impaired.  To  restore  it,  he  joined  a 
fishing  expedition,  under  the  condition  that  he 
would  be  paid  just  what  he  was  found  to  be 
wortli.  He  proved  so  useful  on  that  occasion 
that,  at  the  end  of  the  trip,  he  had  as  much 
money  as  the  other  boys,  some  of  whom  were 
accustomed  to  the  work.  I^'or  some  years 
after  he  followed  the  sea,  and  in  due  time  be- 
came captain  of  a  schooner  and  part  owner  of 
a  vessel,  l^^inally  he  gave  up  seafaring,  and 
at  the  age  of  twenty,  learned  the  painter's 
trade  from  Calvin  Howland,  of  Stoughton, 
Mass.  He  remained  with  Mr.  Howland  some 
three  years,  and  for  some  time  subsequent 
was  employed  as  a  clerk  in  different  places. 
Then,  starting  in  business  for  himself,  he 
managed  a  general  store  in  Chiltonville, 
Plymouth,  for  a  number  of  years.  This  store 
he  left  when  the  Rebellion  broke  out,  in 
order  to  enlist.  When  President  Lincoln's 
first  call  for  seventy-five  thousand  men  reached 


Plymouth,  he  was  the  second  man  to  write 
his  name  on  the  list  of  volunteers,  and  he 
was  subsequently  appointed  one  of  the  mili- 
tary storekeepers  of  Massachusetts,  under 
Quartermaster  General  John  H.  Reed,  in 
which  capacity  he  served  until  1862.  Com- 
missioned First  Lieutenant  in  the  Thirty- 
fourth  Massachusetts  Regiment  of  Volunteer 
Infantry,  June  9,  1863,  he  was  appointed 
Quartermaster  of  the  regiment,  and  served  as 
Regimental  and  Acting  Assistant  Brigade 
Quartermaster  until  Jul\-,  1865,  when  he  was 
mustered  out  of  the  service  at  Richmond,  Va. 
Returning  to  Plymouth,  he  remained  for  a 
while.  Subsequently  he  was  in  the  clothing 
business  in  Boston  for  two  or  three  years. 
His  ne.xt  venture  was  in  the  oil  regions  of 
Canada,  where  he  dug  one  or  two  wells;  but, 
being  unsuccessful,  he  returned  home. 

Mr.  Howland  cast  his  first  Presidential  vote 
for  the  Free  Soil  candidate  in  1848,  and  he 
has  long  been  prominent  as  a  Republican,  and 
has  filled  a  number  of  public  offices.  In  1870 
he  took  the  census  of  Plymouth  and  Carver, 
anil  in  1880  he,  in  company  with  Thomas 
Loring  and  another  gentleman,  took  the 
census  of  Plymouth.  In  the  State  Senate  in 
i860  he  was  House  Chairman  of  the  Commit- 
tee on  F'isheries,  and  one  of  the  Committee 
on  the  Valuation  of  the  Commonwealth,  which 
sat  during  recess;  and  in  the  House  of  Reja- 
resentatives  in  1879,  18S0,  1883,  and  1884, 
he  presided  as  Chairman  of  the  Committee  on 
Labor,  F^isheries,  and  Prisons,  and  of  a  special 
committee  appointed  in  1883  to  sit  during  the 
recess,  which  was  to  make  certain  inquiries 
relative  to  the  charitable  and  penal  institu- 
tions of  the  State.  Again  elected  to  the 
Senate,  he  was  in  1885  Chairman  of  the  Com- 
mittee on  Taxation  and  was  a  member  of 
Committees  on  Public  Charitable  Institutions 
and  Woman  Suffrage.      Mr.    Howland   was  ap- 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


])ointc(I  Land  and  Harbor  Commissioner  by 
Governor  Robinson  in  1886,  to  fill  out  Joseph 
K.  Baker's  unexpired  term  of  three  years. 
He  was  reappointed  by  Governor  Ames  in 
1887,  and  received  three  subsequent  reappoint- 
ments, one  by  Governor  Brackctt  in  1890,  one 
by  (iovernor  William  K.  Russell  in  1893,  and 
one  by  Roger  Wolcott  in  1896.  Governor 
Russell  having  been  a  Democrat,  it  is  evident 
that  Mr.  Howland's  efficiency  in  office  is  the 
cause  of  his  many  reappointments. 

Mr.  Howland  has  been  twice  married.  His 
present  wife,  to  whom  he  was  united  in  No- 
vember, 1869,  is  the  daughtei;  of  John  and 
Deborah  Finney,  of  Plymouth,  and  also 
belongs  to  an  old  Puritan  family.  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Howland  have  six  children  —  Henry  B., 
a  graduate  of  the  Plymouth  High  School  and 
Bryant  &  Stratton's  Commercial  College,  who 
has  been  for  some  time  in  the  employ  of  Jo- 
seph Huse  &  Son,  dealers  in  stoves  and  fur- 
naces, Boston,  Mass.;  Lucy  W.,  a  graduate 
of  the  Plymouth  High  School;  Deborah,  a 
graduate  of  the  Plymouth  High  School  anil  of 
the  Ikidge water  Normal  School,  where  she 
took  the  four  years'  course,  and  is  now  a 
teacher  in  the  public  schools  of  her  native 
town;  George  B.,  a  high-school  graduate,  who 
is  now  attending  Bryant  &  Stratton's  Com- 
mercial College  at  Boston;  and  Charles  B. 
and    Rose   W.,  who  are   in   the   lower  schools. 


JZEKIEL  R.  STUDLEY  may  be  called 
the  father  of  Rockland,  for  at  the  time 
when  the  town  was  organized  he  was 
the  leading  spirit  in  the  movement,  and, 
elected  Town  Clerk  and  Treasurer  and  First 
Chairman  of  the  Selectmen,  he  did  an  im- 
mense amount  of  clerical  and  other  work;  and 
after  the  new  town  was  fairly  established  he 
still  continued  to  guide  its  affairs  in  the  tlirec- 


tinn  of   prosperity.      Mr.  Studley  was   born    in 
Hanover,  Mass.,  November  30,   1S31. 

His  parents,  David  and  Hannah  (Torrey) 
Studley,  were  of  English  descent.  David 
Studley,  who  also  was  born  in  Hanover,  Mass., 
was  a  clockmaker,  and  followed  his  trade  until 
1835,  when  he  turned  his  attention  to  the  pur- 
suit of  agriculture.  He  attained  the  great  age 
of  ninety  years  and  six  months,  his  wife  hav- 
ing died  at  the  age  of  fifty-eight.  This  couple 
were  the  parents  of  twelve  children,  ten  of 
whom  lived  to  be  over  fifty  years  of  age.  The 
onl)'  survivors  to-day  are  Walter  B.,  a  jeweller 
in  Rockland;  and  Ezekiel  R.,  the  special  sub- 
ject of  this  biographical  sketch. 

Ezekiel  R.  Studley  acquired  his  education 
in  the  common  schools  of  Hanover  and  the 
seminary  at  Easthampton  ;  and  after  finishing 
his  studies  he  taught  school  for  two  winters, 
working  at  farming  in  the  summer.  He  began 
to  make  shoes  in  his  fifteenth  year,  and  later 
he  was  employed  as  a  cutter  in  a  factory  some 
twenty  years.  In  1857  he  located  in  Abing- 
ton,  where  he  was  engaged  in  shoe  cutting  and 
shoe  manufacturing  until  1874,  when  his  re- 
sponsibility in  connection  with  town  affairs 
was  so  great  that  he  was  obliged  to  devote  all 
his  time  to  their  management. 

He  joined  the  Republican  party  when  he 
was  qualified  to  vote,  and  cast  his  first  Presi- 
dential ballot  for  John  C.  F"remont;  but  his 
character  and  conduct  have  been  such  that, 
from  the  very  beginning,  he  has  had  the  fullest 
confidence  of  both  parties.  He  was  elected  to 
the  legislature  in  1864,  and  again  in  1877  and 
1878,  serving  in  the  latter  year  as  Chairman 
of  the  Committee  on  Towns.  In  1871  he  was 
elected  to  the  Abington  Board  of  Selectmen, 
and  served  until  1874;  and  he  was  one  year 
on  the  School  Board.  When  Rockland  was 
separated  from  Abington  he  was  invested  with 
authority   to    manage   the   work   of   organizing 


WILLIAM     H,    BATES. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


123 


the  new  town,  and,  with  the  entire  confidence 
of  the  people,  he  gave  heart  and  hand  to  its 
accomplishment,  collecting  and  wisely  expend- 
ing the  funds,  and  discharging  efficiently  the 
duties  of  his  triple  office  of  Clerk,  Treasurer, 
and  Chairman  of  the  Selectmen,  Assessors, 
and  Overseers  of  the  Poor. 

For  twenty  years  he  served  ably  and  consci- 
entiously as  both  Treasurer  and  Clerk,  and  no 
smallest  item  was  neglected.  In  1894  he 
resigned  the  office  of  Treasurer,  but  is  still 
acting  as  Town  Clerk.  In  1890  he  was  a 
member  of  the  Rockland  School  Committee. 
Mr.  Studley  was  made  a  Justice  of  the  Peace 
twenty  years  ago,  and  is  still  e.xercising  the 
functions  of  his  office.  In  addition  to  his 
official  duties  he  has  had  charge  of  the  Rock- 
land Savings  Bank  for  twenty  years,  having 
been  appointed  Treasurer  in  1876  to  succeed 
his  brother,  Walter  B.  Studley.  He  is  one  of 
the  best-known  figures  in  Rockland,  and  is 
held  in  the  highest  regard  by  his  townsmen. 
Mr.  Studley  is  an  active  member  of  the  Rock- 
land Commercial  Club. 

In  1855  he  was  united  in  marriage  with  R. 
Augusta  Studley,  and  his  married  life  of 
thirty-five  years  was  an  unusually  happy  one, 
a  bond  of  the  strongest  sympathy  existing  be- 
tween himself  and  his  wife.  Mrs.  Studley 
died  in  1890,  leaving  three  sons:  Orville  F. ; 
Hermon  L.,  cashier  of  the  savings  bank;  and 
Harold  F. 


ILLIAM  H.  BATES  is  President 
and  Manager  of  the  Rockland  Com- 
jiany,  a  large  shoe  and  leather  cor- 
poration. Me  was  born  in  Rockland  (then 
Plast  Abington),  May  8,  1S37,  a  son  of  George 
and  Lucy  W.  (Warren)  Bates.  George  Bates 
passed  his  life  in  Abington  and  the  adjoining 
town  of  Hanover.  He  died  in  1859,  in  the 
fifty-second  year  of  his  age;  his  wife,  also  a 


native  of  l'l)'mouth  County,  lived  to  be  sev- 
enty-eight years  old.  They  were  the  parents 
of  three  children,  two  of  whom,  William  H. 
and  George  W.,  are  living,  both  citizens  of 
Rockland. 

William  H.  Bates  was  one  year  old  when 
his  parents  removed  to  Hanover,  and  he  was 
there  reared  and  educated,  qualifying  as  a 
book-keeper.  In  1862  he  enlisted  in  the 
Thirty-eighth  Regiment,  Massachusetts  Vol- 
unteer Infantry,  and  was  assigned  to  the  non- 
commissioned staff  of  General  William  H. 
Emory.  His  proficiency  in  clerical  work 
made  his  services  of  value  in  that  line,  and 
for  a  year  he  was  thus  employed  in  the  Depart- 
ment of  the  Gulf.  After  his  return  to  Hano- 
ver he  was  engaged  as  book-keeper  in  the  shoe 
manufactory  of  George  B.  Clapp  some  ten  or 
twelve  years,  obtaining  a  practical  knowledge 
of  the  shoe  business,  which  has  since  been  of 
much  iise  to  him. 

He  then  took  an  interest  in  the  firm  of 
W.  E.  Putnam  &  Co.  ;  and  from  this  association 
he  formed  the  Rockland  Company  —  W.  E. 
Putnam  and  H.  S.  Jenkins,  former  members 
of  the  house,  retiring  from  active  business,  but 
taking  stock  in  the  new  concern.  The  new 
company  erected  a  factory  which  is  a  model  of 
completeness  and  convenience  —  an  attractive 
building  without  and  within — and  moved  into 
their  new  quarters  January  i,  1896.  Their 
business,  which  includes  not  only  the  (iut|nit 
from  this  factory,  Ijut  also  work  duiic  in  other 
places,  amounts  to  over  half  a  million  a  year. 
The  enterprise,  as  conducted  under  the  name 
of  W.  PZ.  Putnam  &  Co.,  had  been  established 
about  eleven  years  when  Mr.  Bates  took  charge 
of  it.  The  present  board  of  management  con- 
sists of  William  H.  Bates,  President  and  Man- 
ager;  Henry  M.  Currier,  Vice-President; 
William  P.  Taylor,  Treasurer;  and  William 
E.   Putnam  and  H.   S.  Jenkins,  stockholders. 


124 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Mr.  Bates  was  united  in  marriage  with  Julia 
A.  Turner,  of  Hanover,  Mass.,  on  May  8, 
i860,  and  five  children  have  blessed  their 
union:  Nettie  W. ,  wife  of  George  T.  .Smith, 
of  Hanover,  and  mother  of  two  children  — 
Ethel  and  Julia;  Annie  E.,  wife  of  Fletcher 
Jenkins,  manager  of  an  express  business  in 
Rockland,  who  has  two  children  —  Nettie  B. 
and  Helen;  George  A.,  superintendent  of  the 
Rockland  Company's  factory;  Samuel  T.  ;  and 
Marion  F. ,  now  thirteen  years  old. 

Mr.  Bates's  ancestors  for  generations  were 
strong  Democrats,  and  his  grandfather  rejoiced 
in  the  election  to  the  Presidency  of  James 
Buchanan  ;  but  he  has  departed  from  the  family 
traditions,  and  is  firm  in  his  support  of  the 
Republican  side.  He  cast  his  first  Presiden- 
tial vote  for  Abraham  Lincoln.  Prominent  so- 
ciall\-  as  well  as  in  a  business  way,  he  is  a 
Mason,  a  Knight  of  Pythias,  a  Knight  of 
Honor,  and  a  Grand  Army  man;  and  he  is 
President  of  the  Rockland  Commercial  Club. 
He  has  a  pleasant  home  in  Rockland  and  a 
cottage  at  the  beach;  and  his  happiest  hours 
are  spent  with  his  family,  to  whom  he  is 
deeply  attached. 


"ON.  JOHN  JAY  WHIPPLE,  the 
first  of  Brocktoii's  mayors  who  have 
1^  V^  ^  sat  in  the  City  Hall,  was  born  in 
.Worcester,  Mass.,  December  31,  1847,  son  of 
Ferdinand  and  Hannah  (Sweet)  Whipple. 
His  ancestors  on  the  paternal  side  settled  in 
Rhode  Island,  and  in  that  State  his  father  was 
born,  and  was  engaged  in  business  for  a  num- 
ber of  years.  His  mother  was  a  native  of  New 
Hampshire.  She  reared  two  daughters  and 
three  sons,  John  Jay  being  the  youngest  of  the 
family. 

John  Jay  Whipple  received  his  preliminary 
schooling  in  the   common    schools   of   Hopkin- 


ton,  Mass.,  and  subsequently  graduated  from 
Hopkinton  Academy.  He  commenced  his 
business  life  in  the  general  store  of  e.\-Gover- 
nor  William  Claflin  at  Hopkinton,  wJiere  he 
was  employed  as  clerk  for  a  year.  Afterward 
he  was  engaged  as  clerk  in  the  drug  store  of 
Dr.  W.  D.  Burdett.  In  December,  1866,  he 
purchased  a  drug  store  in  Brockton,  and  in 
partnership  witli  iiis  father,  under  the  firm 
name  of  J.  J.  Whipple  &  Co.,  conducted 
it  for  a  quarter  of  a  century.  In  1891  he 
sold  the  drug  store,  to  which  for  some  years 
he  had  given  merely  a  general  supervision. 
In  the  spring  of  1892  he  was  elected  Presi- 
dent of  the  Wildey  Savings  Bank  at  52  Boyl- 
ston  Street,  Boston.  He  was  subsequently 
President  of  the  Brockton  Savings  Bank 
for  twelve  years,  was  one  of  the  incorpo- 
rators of  the  Brockton  National  Bank,  and  has 
been  one  of  its  Directors  since  its  incorpora- 
tion. He  is  President  of  the  Independent 
Order  of  Odd  Fellows  Accident  Insurance 
Company  of  Boston,  has  been  President  of  the 
New  England  Mutual  Fire  Insurance  Com- 
pany of  the  same  city  for  the  past  four  years, 
and  was  one  of  the  incorporators  of  the  Brock- 
ton, Bridgewater  &  Taunton  lilectric  Street 
Railroad.  His  real  estate,  which  is  consider- 
able, is  located  principally  in  13rockton,  and 
includes  a  quarter  interest  in  the  Brockton 
City  Theatre  that  cost  one  hundred  and  sixty 
thousand  dollars. 

Mr.  Whipple  has  long  been  identified  witli 
the  Republican  party,  and  has  filled  almost 
every  office  within  the  gift  of  the  city.  He 
was  Selectman  and  Road  Surveyor  under  the 
old  town  government,  and  was  one  of  the  orig- 
inal signers  of  the  petition  for  a  city  charter 
in  1 88 1.  He  served  on  the  School  Board  for 
eleven  years.  Elected  Mayor  of  the  city  in 
1886  he  served  through  1887,  and  re-elected 
in    1894  he  served  through   1895.      During  his 


JOHN    J.    WHIPPLE. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


127 


administration  the  grade  crossing,  with  which 
the  city  had  been  afflicted,  was  abolished.  He 
has  been  associated  with  many  of  the  enter- 
prises marlving  Brockton's  progress,  including 
the  introduction  of  pipe  water  and  sewerage. 
His  political  honors  have  not  been  limited  by 
local  boundaries.  I"or  three  years  he  served 
as  personal  aid  on  Governor  Robinson's  staff; 
and  he  was  two  years  Secretary  of  the  Repub- 
lican State  Central  Committee  under  H.  C. 
Lodge  and  A.  \V.  Beard.  In  18S5  he  was  in 
the  State  legislature,  where  he  presided  as 
House  Chairman  on  Water  Supply,  was  clerk 
of  the  Committee  on  Insurance,  and  reported 
on  fifty-four  bills,  the  largest  number  ever  put 
through  at  one  session.  He  was  appointed  by 
Governor  Ames  one  of  the  State  Commis- 
sioners of  Pharmacy  for  five  years,  and  subse- 
quently declined  a  reappointment  tendered  him 
by  Governor  Russell. 

Mr.  Whipple  was  married  in  June,  1867,  to 
a  daughter  of  I-"ranklin  Otis  Howard,  of  Brock- 
ton. Her  great-grandfather,  Barnarbas  How- 
ard, fought  in  the  Revolutionary  War.  He 
kept  the  first  hotel  in  North  Bridgewater,  as 
the  town  was  then  called,  and  was  well  known 
in  the  vicinity.  Franklin  Otis  Howard  was  a 
boot  and  shoe  manufacturer  of  some;  promi- 
nence in  Brockton,  and  at  one  time  owned 
what  was  alleged  to  be  the  handsomest  resi- 
dence in  the  city.  His  other  daughter  is  the 
wife  of  Dr.  George  E.  Freeman,  of  Brockton. 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Whipple  have  three  children  — 
Mary  Helen,  Edith  Bell,  and  Howard  Frank- 
lin. Mr.  Whipple  is  a  member  of  the  Inde- 
pendent Order  of  Odd  Fellows.  He  was  rep- 
resentative to  the  Sovereign  Grand  Lodge  at 
Toronto,  Canada,  in  1879,  the  only  time  the 
order  ever  held  a  session  outside  of  the  United 
States.  As  a  Knight  of  Pythias  he  holds  the 
highest  office  in  the  State,  that  of  Past  Grand 
Chancellor     and      Supreme      Representative. 


Under  his  charge,  in  the  twenty-fifth  year  of 
the  lodge's  history,  the  increase  of  member- 
ship was  greater,  and  more  lodges  were  insti- 
tuted, than  in  any  previous  year.  Mr.  Whipple 
was  one  of  the  founders  of  the  New  England 
Order  of  Protection,  and  he  was  two  years  at 
the  head  of  the  Grand  Lodge  of  the  State,  and 
three  years  at  the  head  of  the  Supreme  Lodge. 
During  these  five  years  the  membership  was 
increased  by  ten  thousand.  In  the  mean  time 
he  established  a  lodge  in  Brockton,  of  which 
three  hundred  and  fifty  of  the  leading  citizens 
are  now  members.  Interested  also  in  relig- 
ious work,  he  attends  the  Unity  Church  (Uni- 
tarian) of  Brockton,  and  was,  for  a  number  of 
years,  until  obliged  to  resign  by  the  pressure 
of  business.  Chairman  of  the  Standing  Com- 
mittee, and  a  member  of  the  Building  Com- 
mittee. 


ILLIAM  RAPP,  manufacturer,  of 
Brockton,  was  born  in  1833  in 
Cheadle,  Staffordshire,  England. 
His  grandfather,  also  named  William,  was  a 
political  agitator  of  either  France  or  Ger- 
many. Obliged  to  flee  his  country,  the 
grandfather  went  to  luigland,  where  he  was 
a  coal  merchant,  and  owned  several  vessels, 
which  he  kept  plying  in  his  business  to  dif- 
ferent ports.  He  died  at  the  age  of  ninety 
years.  His  wife  was  an  Englishwoman, 
whose  children  by  him  were:  Matthew, 
David,  William,  and  Amelia,  all  now  de- 
ceased. Matthew  Rapp,  who  was  a  shoe  man- 
ufacturer of  Cheadle,  England,  died  while  yet 
a  young  man.  His  wife,  who  was  a  native 
of  Staffordshire,  after  surviving  him  a  long 
time,  died  in  1894,  at  the  age  of  eighty-four 
years. 

Matthew's  second  son  was  William  Rajip, 
the  subject  of  this  sketch.  In  his  youth 
William  learned  the  trade  of  weaver.      Being; 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


industrious,  capable,  and  trustworthy,  he,  in 
course  of  time,  was  put  in  charge  of  a  room. 
In  1.862  he  commenced  manufacturing  hub 
gorings  in  Leicester,  Leicestershire.  He 
was  the  first  man  in  England  to  do  that  work 
in  the  power  loom.  On  May  12,  1866,  he 
was  presented  with  a  fine  gold  watch  by  his 
employees,  some  of  whom  are  yet  in  his 
employ.  He  carried  on  manufacturing  in 
Leicester  until  18S1,  shortly  after  which  he 
came  to  America.  Within  four  days  after 
landing  he  was  offered  the  foremanship  of 
T.  Martins  Brothers"  Goring  Factory  at  Chel- 
sea, Mass.  Accepting  this,  he  remained 
with  them  about  eighteen  months,  and  then 
resigned  his  position,  although  he  was  offered 
a  partnership  to  induce  him  to  stay.  His 
purpose  in  leaving  this  employment  was  to 
form  the  partnership  for  the  establishment  of 
a  hub  goring  manufactory  at  Brockton,  after- 
ward known  as  the  firm  of  Herbert,  Rapp  & 
Co.  After  buying  their  machinery  in  Eng- 
land, they  planned  and  built  their  factory  in 
May,  1883.  Of  the  situation  of  the  factory, 
experts  said  that  it  was  the  best  for  its  pur- 
pose in  the  State.  The  company  purchased 
in  1 891  the  Martins  Brothers'  factory  at  Chel- 
sea, one  at  Camden,  N.J.,  and  one  at  Rock- 
land, Mass.,  all  of  which  they  have  conducted 
up  ti)  the  present  time. 

In  1895  Mr.  Rapp  became  interested  in  the 
Glentlale  Elastic  Fabric  Company  at  FLast- 
iiampton,  Mass.,  of  wliich  he  is  now  a  Di- 
rector. Such  was  his  energy  and  ability  in 
management  that,  when  he  had  been  superin- 
tendent there  only  nine  months,  the  first  divi- 
dend in  thirty  years  was  declared.  He  is  now 
President  of  the  Pawtucket  (R.I.)  Bleach  & 
Dye  Company,  of  the  Monarch  Rubber  Com- 
pany at  Campello,  of  the  City  Ice  Company 
at  Brockton,  and  of  the  New  England  Shoe 
&  Leather  Company,  whose  office   is   on    Lin- 


coln Street,  Boston.  In  acc<:)rdance  with  the 
system  that  he  enforces,  each  factory  furnishes 
an  inventory  every  Saturday  evening.  Sit- 
ting at  his  desk,  he  writes  his  instructions  to 
the  heads  of  the  various  departments  in  his 
several  factories;  yet  all  the  detail  work  is 
under  his  immediate  supervision.  He  came 
here  with  a  thorough  knowledge  of  liis  lousi- 
ness, and  superseded  a  good  many  older  gor- 
ing men. 

Mr.  Rapp  married  Martha  Walker,  of  Der- 
byshire, England,  and  has  had  six  children,  . 
of  whom  one  son,  Walter,  is  now  living. 
Walter  resides  in  Brockton,  but  is  a  business 
man  of  Boston.  The  eldest  daughter  married 
Robert  Cook,  the  partner  of  B.  E.  Jones,  and 
died  in  1890,  leaving  three  children.  Mr. 
Rapp  is  a  member  of  the  Porter  Congrega- 
tional Church  of  Brockton.  He  is  one  of  the 
Trustees  of  the  Brockton  Hospital  and  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Committee  of  the  Wales  Home  for 
Old  Ladies  at  Brockton.  He  is  a  strong  ad- 
vocate of  the  temperance  movement.  He  has 
served  in  both  the  City  Council  and  the  Board 
of  Alderman.  He  was  elected  to  the  latter 
body  by  an  overwhelming  majority.  From 
time  to  time  he  has  received  gratifying  tokens 
of  the  esteem  and  good  will  of  his  associates 
and  subordinates.  When  leaving  England, 
his  fellow-townsmen  united  in  presenting  him 
with  a  written  testimonial,  signed  by  the 
mayor  and  other  prominent  men  of  Leicester, 
of  their  deep  affection  and  regret  at  his  deter- 
mination to  go,  accompanied  by  a  gift  of  one 
hundred  pounds.  Another  testimonial,  very 
elegantly  executed  in  old  English  text,  at  the 
same  time  expressed  the  sorrow  of  his  em- 
ployees. On  the  occasion  of  his  leaving 
Chelsea,  a  hearty  expression  of  regret  was 
given  him  by  the  employees  of  the  Elastic 
Gusset  Company,  accompanied  by  a  handsome 
French   marble  clock.      On  August   31,    1891, 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


when  he  returned  from  a  trip  to  England,  his 
employees  at  Brockton  presented  him  with  a 
fine  silver  water  pitcher  and   lemonade  cooler. 


ILLIAM  P.  NASON,  a  well-known 
and  successful  business  man  of 
Rockland,  Mass.,  was  born  at 
Wakefield,  N.H.,  September  23,  1S40.  son  of 
Nahum  and  Hannah  (Watson)  Nason.  Both 
his  parents  were  natives  of  the  town  of  Wake- 
field, and  his  father  owned  a  fine  farm  in  that 
place.  Nahum  Nason  died  at  the  age  of 
seventy-seven  years.  His  wife  also  died  in 
Wakefield,  aged  sixty-six  years.  They  were 
the  parents  of  six  children,  of  whom  three, 
including  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  are  now 
living. 

William  P.  Nason,  who  was  the  youngest 
child  of  his  parents,  was  born  on  his  father's 
farm  in  Wakefield.  He  attended  the  district 
schools  of  the  town  in  his  boyhood,  but  is 
mainly  self-educated,  having  gained  his  pres- 
ent knowledge  of  the  world  and  its  affairs 
through  experience,  and  by  exercising  his 
faculty  of  observation  rather  than  from  what 
little  schooling  he  received.  In  the  long  va- 
cations, and  out  of  school  hours,  from  the 
time  he  was  old  enough  to  handle  a  rake  or 
hoe,  or  to  milk  a  cow,  he  made  himself  useful 
on  tlie  farm  until  fifteen  years  old,  when  he 
left  iiome  to  seek  his  own  fortunes  in  the 
world.  Going  to  Boston,  Mass.,  he  found 
employment  in  a  livery  stable,  remaining  there 
for  about  a  year,  and  from  Boston  he  went  to 
South  Weymouth,  where  he  worked  with  a 
livery  man  named  Rogers,  with  whom  he 
stayed  for  three  years. 

At  the  expiration  of  this  period,  having 
acquired  a  good  knowledge  of  the  business,  he 
left  his  employer,  and  came  to  the  town  of 
East   Abington,   now   Rockland,  where   he   set 


up  for  himself  in  a  small  way.  In  a  com- 
paratively short  time  he  had  established  his 
business  on  a  solid  footing,  and  he  has  since 
gradually  enlarged  it  up  to  its  present  satisfac- 
tory proportions.  Besides  his  livery  business 
he  carries  on  a  large  and  successful  trade  in 
horses.  Mr.  Nason's  commodious  and  well- 
managed  stables,  which  are  conveniently  situ- 
ated on  \'ernon  Street,  are  marvels  of  cleanli- 
ness, being  superior  in  this  respect  to  the  best 
of  the  large  city  stables.  They  are  equipped 
with  all  the  latest  improvements,  and  contain, 
besides  a  large vnumber  of  horses,  vehicles  of 
every  description,  including  buggies,  phae- 
tons, surreys,  coaches,  busses,  hacks,  tra]5S, 
dog-carts,  and  a  large  and  handsome  Phiglish 
tally-ho. 

Mr.  Nason  and  Miss  Mary  E.  Bicknell,  of 
Abington,  were  married  in  September,  1861, 
and  they  are  the -parents  of  two  children: 
John,  who  is  at  present  the  foreman  in  his 
father's  stables;  and  Fannie,  wife  of  Fred  O. 
Baker,  a  clothing  merchant  of  Rockland.  Mr. 
Nason  belongs  to  the  order  of  the  Knights  of 
Pythias.  Since  the  Civil  War  he  has  been' 
a  Republican  in  his  political  affiliations. 


-^ENJAMIN  OWEN  STRONG,  a 
[Mominent  merchant  of  Plymouth, 
was  born  P'ebruary  25,  1832,  in 
Granville,  Hampden  County,  son  of  Ely  and 
Betsy  (Baldwin)  Strong.  Ebenezcr  Strong, 
the  grandfather,  a  prominent  farmer  who 
owned  a  large  tract  of  land  in  Granville,  was  a 
member  of  the  Presbyterian  church.  He  had 
three  sons  and  two  daughters,  of  whom  Ely, 
was  the  third  born. 

Ely  Strong  was  a  native  of  Granville,  and 
lived  there  all  his  life.  His  trade  was  that  of 
a  carpenter  and  builder.  About  1835  he  re- 
moved to  Cabot,  Mass.,  where  he  was  engaged 


13° 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


for  some  years  in  furniture  dealing  and   under- 
taking.     His  wife,  Betsy,  who  was  a  daughter 
of  Benjamin  Baldwin,  of  Syracuse,  N.Y.,  bore 
him     nine    children,    of    whom    Benjamin    O. 
Strong    was    the    youngest.       She    died    nine 
months  after  the  birth  of  her  last  child.      Some 
time   after,    Ely   married    her  sister,   then  the 
widow,    Sally    Frary.       She     died    in     1846. 
After  an  interval  of  two  years  Ely  contracted 
a  third  marriage    with    Caroline  O.    Sheldon, 
who     bore     him     three    children.      His    death 
occurred   in     1876,    at    the   age    of   eighty-two 
years.      He    was    a    member  of   the   Universa- 
list  church,  which    he    served    in   the  capacity 
of  Deacon.      Benjamin  Owen  Strong  was  edu- 
cated   in     the     common     schools     of     Cabot. 
He  left  home  at   the  age  of  eleven  for  a  farm 
at    Ashleyville,    where   he   remained    for    four 
years,    attending     school     during    the    winter 
months,    and    working     for      his      board     and 
clothes  in  the  summer.      He   next  worked    for 
a    year  on    Mr.    Day's    farm     near    Holyoke, 
and  then,  for   the   following  year   in   a   brick- 
yard.     In  the  fall  of    1851  he  went  to   Boston, 
from    which,    two    months    later,    he    came    to 
Plymouth.       Here    he    was    clerk    in     N.    M. 
Perry's  hotel,  the  Mansion  House,  until   May, 
1852,    when   he   entered   the   general    store   of 
Jameson  &  Co.,  as  general   clerk.      After  Mr. 
Jameson's    death    in     1854,     Mr.     Strong    was 
given  entire  charge  of  the  store.      In    1861    he 
bought  out  the  dry  goods  and  millinery  depart- 
ments, and  has   carried   them   on   at   the    same 
place  under  his  own   name.      He  has  enlarged 
the  premises  so  as  to  make   room    for  his   con- 
stantly increasing  trade. 

Mr.  .Strong  was  first  married  to  Betsy  J. 
Chute,  of  Newburyport,  Mass.,  now  deceased. 
On  February  17,  1891,  he  entered  a  second 
marriage,  contracted  with  lilizabeth  H.  Snow, 
of  Orleans,  Mass.  He  has  two  children  — 
Charles  Alexander  and  Martha  Jane.      In  F'eb- 


ruary,  1SS4,  he  took  his  son  into  partnership 
with  him,  and  the  firm  name  is  now  B.  O. 
Strong  &  Son.  They  carry  a  full  line  of 
silks,  dress  goods,  cloaks,  sacques,  wraps, 
carpets,  paper  hangings,  curtains,  and  small 
wares.  Mr.  Strong  is  a  good  Republican,  but 
he  has  always  kept  out  of  political  circles. 
He  is  a  faithful  member  of  the  Unitarian 
church   of  his  adopted   town   of   Plymoutli. 


4^»  ^> 


-I^TON.  CHARLES  W.  TILTON,  a  well- 
r^-I  known  citizen  of  Brockton,  was  born 
Ji®  V  April  6,  1836,  in  China,  Kennebec 
County,  Me.,  son  of  Zadoc  and  Tiley  (Snell) 
Tilton.  His  grandfathers  were  natives  of 
Massachusetts.  Gibbs  Tilton,  his  father's 
father,  who  was  born  in  Martha's  Vineyard, 
Mass.,  moved  to  Albion,  Me.,  where  in  early 
manhood  he  was  a  farmer,  and  subsequently 
became  a  carpenter  and  contractor.  He  died 
at  the  age  of  ninety-six.  His  wife,  whose 
maiden  name  was  Huldah  Chase,  a  daughter 
of  the  first  white  settlers  in  Unity,  Me.,  had 
eight  children.  Of  these  six  attained  matur- 
ity; namely,  Stephen,  Zadoc,  Hezekiah, 
Bethiah,  Jane,  and  Hannah.  Hezekiah  is  a 
Methodist  minister  and  a  Presiding  lilder  in 
the  West;  Stephen  is  now  ninety-four  years 
old:  and  Jane  and  Bethiah  lived  about  eighty 
anfl  ninety  years  respectively.  Both  parents 
were  members  of  the  Society  of  Friends.  The 
mother  lived  to  be  ninety-six  years  old.  Her 
mother  had  reached  the  remarkable  age  of  one 
hundred  and  six  years. 

Zadoc  Tilton,  the  father  of  Charles  W.,  was 
a  native  of  Albion,  Me.  lie  learned  the  car- 
penter's trade  with  his  father,  and  subse- 
quently became  a  contractor  in  Troy,  Me.  He 
married  Tiley,  a  daughter  of  Zebedee  and 
Hannah  Snell,  of  China,  Me.  By  their  union 
there  were  nine  children,  eight  of  whom  grew 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


131 


to  maturity.  These  were:  John  Warren, 
Lavinia  S.,  Eunice  A.,  Charles  VV. ,  Hubert 
P.,  George  E. ,  Bryon  P.,  Horace  A.,  and 
Abby  P.  George  died  in  the  service  of  his 
country  during  the  Civil  War;  Lavinia  died 
in  this  city  when  a  young  woman;  and  Hu- 
bert has  also  passed  away.  The  father  was  a 
member  of  the  Society  of  Friends  in  his  early 
life,  but  later  became  a  Methodist  exhorter. 
He  lived  to  be  sixty-five,  while  his  wife,  who 
died  at  the  old  homestead  in  Troy,  was  but 
fifty  years  old. 

Charles  W.  Tilton  removed  with  his  parents 
to  Jackson,  Me.,  when  he  was  but  three  years 
old.  F"our  years  after  he  accompanied  them 
to  Troy,  where  he  worked  on  the  farm.  At 
the  age  of  eighteen,  having  acquired  a  com- 
mon-school education,  he  came  to  Brockton, 
to  work  for  J.  B.  Ames  in  the  express  busi- 
ness. A  year  later  he  obtained  employment 
in  a  shoe  factory,  and  was  afterward  connected 
with  shoemaking  for  over  forty  years,  serving 
as  foreman  in  different  finishing-rooms  for 
thirty-five  years.  In  1862,  responding  to  the 
call  for  men  to  aid  in  suppressing  the  Rebell- 
ion, he  enlisted  for  nine  months  in  Company 
K,  Forty-third  Massachusetts  Volunteer  In- 
fantry, and  afterward  fought  in  the  battles  of 
Kingston,  N.  C,  Whitehall,  and  Goldsboro. 
During  a  part  r>f  the  time  he  was  in  the  Forty- 
third  Pioneer  Corps,  in  which  department  he 
rendered  efficient  service.  In  July,  1863,  he 
was  honorably  discharged.  In  politics  Mr. 
Tilton  affiliates  with  the  Republican  party. 
In  1882  he  was  Inspector  of  Elections,  and  for 
the  five  years  following  served  in  the  City 
Council.  In  1886  he  was  a  member  of  the 
Board  of  Aldermen  from  Ward  i .  The  next 
year  he  was  appointed  to  the  Board  of  Registra- 
tion, on  which  he  served  for  three  terms  of 
three  years  each.  In  i8g6  he  was  sent  to  the 
legislature,  where  he  was  placed  on   the  Com- 


mittee of  Counties,  and  on  Special  Committee 
to  redistrict  the  State. 

On  January  20,  1858,  he  was  united  in  mar- 
riage with  Lydiaette,  daughter  of  Eli[)halet 
and  Lydia  Thayer,  of  this  city.  By  this  union 
there  are  four  children  —  George  L. ,  Rufus 
E.,  Edward  E.,  and  C.  Herman.  George  L. 
is  foreman  in  the  finishing-room  of  Thompson 
&  Brothers'  shoe  factory;  Rufus  E.  and  Ed- 
ward E.  constitute  the  Brockton  Welting 
Company;  C.  Herman  is  a  foreman  in  the 
finishing-room  of  the  Bion  F.  Reynold's  shoe 
factory.  Mr.  Tilton  is  fraternally  connected 
with  the  Fletcher  Webster  Post,  No.  13, 
Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  in  which  he  has 
oflficiated  as  Chaplain  for  two  years.  He  is 
likewise  well  known  in  religious  circles,  hav- 
ing served  the  First  Congregational  Church, 
of  which  he  is  a  member,  on  the  Building 
Committee,  and  on  the  Parish  Committee 
nearly  three  years. 


ON.  LEWIS  PRATT  LORING,  one 
of  Hull's  former  legislative  represen- 
^  V  ^  tatives,  was  born  here,  July  10, 
1S22,  son  of  Samuel  and  Lucy  (Pratt)  Lor- 
ing.  He  is  a  lineal  descendant  of  Thomas 
and  Jane  (Nevvton)  Loring,  who  came  to  Amer- 
ica with  their  two  children  in  1634,  locating 
temporarily  in  Dorchester,  Mass.  These  an- 
cestors subsecjuently  moved  to  Hingham,  where 
Thomas  drew  a  lot  on  Town  Street.  The 
latter  was  made  a  freeman  in  1635  or  1636, 
after  which  he  came  with  his  family  to  Hull, 
where  his  last  days  were  spent.  He  officiated 
as  Deacon  in  Hingham  for  eleven  years.  By 
his  marriage  to  Jane  Newton,  there  were  six 
children,  namely:  Thomas,  born  in  1629; 
John,  born  in  1630;  Isaac,  born  in  1639; 
Isaac  (second)  and  his  twin  brother,  Josiah, 
born    in    1642;  and   Benjamin,    born    in    1644. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


'riie    father    died    in     April,     1661,     and     the 
mother  in  June,   1672. 

Benjamin  Loring,  who  was  a  farmer  and  a 
lifelong  resident  of  Hull,  on  December  8, 
1670,  married  ^lary  Hawk,  daughter  of  Mat- 
thew and  Margaret  Hawk.  He  was  made  a 
freeman  in  1673,  and  also  officiated  as  Deacon 
for  many  years.  His  son  Samuel,  born  in 
1680,  who  was  also  a  farmer  and  spent  his  life 
in  Hull,  was  married  April  19,  1716,  to  Jane, 
daughter  of  John  and  Mary  Colyer.  Samuel's 
son,  Samuel  (second),  the  next  in  line,  was 
born  February  3,  1720.  He  also  passed  his 
entire  life  in  his  native  town,  married  Jane 
Gould,  and  died  in  18  13,  the  ninety-third  year 
of  his  age.  His  son,  Samuel  (third),  the 
grandfather  of  Lewis  Pratt  Loring,  was  born 
on  November  9,  1753.  He  married  Huldah 
Gould,  a  native  of  this  town,  and  a  daughter 
of  John  and  Hannah  (Brewster)  Gould.  Her 
mother  was  a  lineal  descendant  of  Elder  Will- 
iam Brewster,  the  spiritual  adviser  of  the  Pil- 
grims, who  was  born  in  England  in  1560,  and 
died  in  Plymouth  in  1644.  His  son  Love 
married  Sarah,  daughter  of  Mr.  Colyer,  May 
16,  1634.  William,  son  of  Love  and  Sarah 
(Golyer;  Brewster,  married  Lydia  Partridge, 
January  2,  1672.  Their  son  William,  born 
May  4,  1683,  married  Hopestill  Wadsworth. 
Huldah,  the  next  in  line,  married  John  Gould, 
Jr.,  the  maternal  great-grandfather.  He  was 
a  descendant  of  Lieutenant  Robeit  Gould,  a 
native  of  lingland,  who  came  to  America  in 
1660,  when  he  was  eighteen  years  old.  He 
had  an  uncle  in  Hull  whom  he  joined,  and 
whose  property  he  subsequently  inherited, 
thereafter  becoming  a  prominent  man  in  town 
affairs.  The  line  of  descent  is  as  follows: 
Robert  Gould's  son  Joseph  had  a  son  John, 
whose  son,  John,  Jr.,  had  a  daughter  Huldah, 
who  married  Samuel  Loring,  the  grandfather 
of  the  subject  of  this  sketch. 


Samuel  Loring,  Jr.,  the  father  of  the  subject 
of  this  sketch,  was  born  in  Hull,  October  21, 
1784.  He  received  his  education  in  the  com- 
mon school.  At  the  age  of  fifteen  he  lost  his 
right  hand.  About  four  years  later  he  went 
to  Boston,  where  he  served  as  clerk  until  the 
War  of  18  12.  Then  he  returned  to  Hull,  and 
engaged  in  farming.  He  officiated  as  Town 
Clerk  for  many  years,  besides  filling  other 
local  offices.  He  died  November  9,  1868,  at 
the  age  of  eighty-four.  His  wife,  Lucy, 
a  daughter  of  Laban  and  Lucy  Pratt,  was  a  de- 
scendant of  Matthew  Pratt,  one  of  the  first 
settlers  of  Weymouth,  and  a  Revolutionary 
soldier.  She  died  in  1871,  in  the  eighty-fifth 
year  of  her  age,  having  reared  eight  of  her 
nine  children;  namely,  Lucy,  Abner,  Samuel 
H.,  Nancy,  Lewis  P.,  Sarah  J.,  Rachel,  and 
Ansel  P. 

Lewis  P.  I-oring  acquired  his  education  in 
the  public  school.  In  his  early  manhood  he 
went  to  Boston  to  learn  the  trade  of  copper- 
smith and  plumber,  remaining  there  until 
1850.  He  then  returned  to  his  native  town, 
where  he  has  since  continued  to  reside. 
Formerly  a  Whig  in  politics,  he  has  been  a 
stanch  supporter  of  the  Republican  party  since 
its  organization.  Besides  serving  creditably 
in  various  town  offices,  he  represented  Hull  in 
the  legislature  of  1890-91.  A  man  of  much 
public  spirit,  he  has  always  been  actively  in- 
terested in  the  welfare  of  his  native  town. 


[MIL  LAGERGREN,  of  Brockton,  the 
well-known  elocutionist  and  teacher  of 
kmguages,  was  born  here,  September 
3,  1858,  a  son  of  John  C.  and  Wilhelmina 
(Hedelius)  Lagergren.  His  parents  are  of 
Swedish  birth,  and  both  of  good  family.  The 
mother,  now  seventy-five  years  old,  who  is  now 
residing   in    Sweden,    is    a   daughter   of    Eric 


EMIL    LAGERGREN. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


135 


Hedelius,  an  eminent  lawyer  of  that  country, 
who  was  on  the  Oueen's  Bench,  and  a  sister 
of  a  well-known  banker  of  Sweden.  The 
Hedelius  estates  have  been  in  the  family  three 
hundred  years.  Her  children  were  a  son  and 
daughter.  The  daughter,  who  is  married, 
lives  in  Brockton. 

Emil  Lagergren  graduated  from  the  Brock- 
ton High  School,  the  academy  at  East  Green- 
wich, R.I.,  and  the  Boston  School  of  Oratory. 
He  studied  the  German  and  Swedish  languages 
in  Europe,  and  afterward  taught  those  tongues 
to  English  pupils.  Eor  a  year  he  had  charge 
of  the  English  department  in  Ansgari  College 
at  Kn(j.\ville,  111.,  a  Swedish-American  insti- 
tution. While  there  he  accepted  the  proffer 
of  the  Assistant  Postmastership  at  Campello. 
He  was  subsequently  in  the  Brockton  post- 
ofifice  for  some  time.  Then  he  was  engaged  as 
elocution  teacher  at  the  "Old  Den,"  Ridgeway 
Lane.  Eor  the  past  ten  years  he  has  given 
lessons  in  English  and  Swedish  in  different 
places,  having  classes  in  Worcester,  Cam- 
bridge, 15oston,  and  Chicago;  and  for  the 
past  six  years  he  has  had  charge  of  the  Swed- 
ish department  in  the  evening  schools  of 
Brockton.  His  Boston  address  is  the  Tremont 
Temple,  where  he  hires  a  room.  As  an  elo- 
cutionist, he  has  made  a  special  study  of  noted 
actors  and  actresses;  and  he  studied  Shakspere 
with  Professor  R.  R.  Raymond,  who  was  con- 
sidered the  best  Shaksperian  reader  in  Amer- 
ica. Add  to  this  exceptional  training  a  natu- 
ral talent  for  his  art,  and  it  is  needless  to  say 
that  as  a  public  reader  he  is  very  popular,  and 
has  many  engagements.  His  dialect  readings 
are  good,  while  his  Shaksperian  renditions 
are  very  fine.  Mr.  Lagergren's  boyish  ambi- 
tion was  to  be  an  actor,  but  his  parents  disap- 
proved of  the  stage.  He  occasionally,  how- 
ever, takes  part  in  dramatic  productions. 
When    the   dramatization    of    "Ben-Hur"   was 


given  in  Brockton,  he  admirably  sustained  the 
leading  part.  He  also  derives  some  income 
from  acting  as  a  broker  in  real  estate,  mort- 
gages, and  investments. 

Mr.  Lagergren  was  married  March  13,  i8g6, 
to  Miss  Nora  Condon,  daughter  of  Captain 
R.  B.  Condon,  of  Brockton. 

He  is  a  Mason  in  good  standing,  and  has 
been  Chaplain  of  Paul  Revere  Lodge,  of 
Brockton.  He  is  also  a  member  of  the  United 
Order  of  Pilgrim  Fathers. 


fOSEPH  HEWETT,  for  thirty  years  a 
resident  of  Brockton,  where  he  will 
long  be  remembered  for  his  nobility  of 
character  and  his  hearty  interest  in  educa- 
tional and  religious  work,  was  born  in  Dux- 
bury,  Mass.,  August  6,  1S04,  and  died  in 
Brockton,  May  13,  1894.  His  parents  were 
Joseph  and  Abigail  (Harlow)  Hewett,  both  of 
whom  traced  their  ancestry  to  the  seventeenth 
century.  This  branch  of  the  family,  which 
began  with  Thomas  "Huet,"  who  was  born  in 
1609  and  died  in  1670,  was  continued  by 
Solomon,  son  of  Thomas,  born  in  1670,  who 
died  in  1715;  by  Joseph  (first),  born  in  1702, 
who  died  in  1749;  by  Joseph  (second),  the 
grandfather  of  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  born 
in  1739,  who  died  in  1769;  Joseph  (third), 
the  father,  born  November  13,  1764,  married 
in  March,  1796,  Abigail  Harlow,  who  was 
born  November  26,  1770.  He  was  a  sea  cap- 
tain until  between  1800  and  1804,  when  he 
purchased  a  farm  in  Marshfield,  and  settled 
down  to  the  life  of  an  agriculturist.  He  was 
very  influential  in  local  affairs,  and  served  in 
many  of  the  town  ofifices.  He  died  in  No- 
vember, 1833.  Gideon  Harlow,  the  father  of 
Abigail,  was  born  in  1744,  and  died  in  181 1, 
aged  sixty*seven.  Eleazer,  the  father  of 
Gideon,  was  born    in    1720,  and  died   in  1812, 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


aged    ninety-two.      His    father,    Eleazer,    Sr., 
was  a  son   of   William   Harlow. 

When  his  parents  moved  to  Marshfield, 
Joseph  Hewett  was  a  mere  child.  After  at- 
tending the  district  school  for  the  customary 
period,  he  took  up  the  study  of  languages 
under  the  tuition  of  the  Rev.  Martin  Paris. 
When  about  twenty  years  old  he  commenced 
teaching  in  the  school  of  his  own  district, 
having  some  of  his  former  schoolmates  among 
his  pupils.  He  followed  this  occupation  until 
1844,  a  period  of  about  twenty  years,  and  then 
devoted  his  time  exclusively  to  the  duties  of 
the  various  political  and  religious  positions 
he  held,  and  to  the  management  of  his  farm. 
On  this  property,  which  contained  about  one 
hundred  acres,  he  raised  considerable  stock, 
giving  employment  to  a  number  of  men.  He 
was  a  leader  in  politics,  and  counted  among 
his  intimate  friends  Daniel  Webster,  who 
used  to  frequently  visit  at  his  house.  He 
was  not  of  those  who  sought  ofifice,  but,  owing 
to  the  high  esteem  in  which  he  was  held  by 
the  community,  was  often  importuned  to  ac- 
cept office,  and  served  several  years  as  As- 
sessor, a  number  of  years  as  Selectman,  also 
as  Overseer  of  the  Poor.  He  was  particularly 
interested  in  educational  matters,  and  was  a 
member  of  the  School  Committee  of  Marsh- 
field.  In  1864  he  came  to  Ikockton,  where 
he  purchased  a  place  of  sixteen  acres,  but  did 
not  engage  in  active  business.  He  was  for 
many  years  a  member  of  the  Congregational 
church  and  a  Deacon,  both  in  Marshfield  and 
Ikockton.  Though  of  a  modest  and  retiring 
disposition,  his  counsel  was  frequently  sought 
in  legal  and  other  matters.  He  was  very 
benevolent,  and  his  assistance  was  bestowed 
with  so  little  ostentation  that  few  besides 
those  he  aided  ever  knew  of  his  numerous 
kindly  deeds. 

On    December   25,   1830,    Mr.    Hewett   mar- 


ried Sarah  T.  Baker,  who  was  born  November 
28,  1809,  daughter  of  Samuel  Baker,  of  Marsh- 
field. Of  Mr.  Hewett's  children,  all  but 
two  attained  maturity.  Lucius  died  .in  No- 
vember, 1859,  aged  twenty-seven;  Herman 
died  at  Brockton  in  January,  1885,  aged  fifty- 
one  years  and  two  months;  Ellen  E.  lives  in 
Brockton;  Edward  A.,  a  resident  of  Bridge- 
water  is  in  business  in  Brockton ;  Abbie  is 
the  wife  of  Harvey  O.  Mitchell,  of  Brockton; 
S.  Myron  died  in  1887;  Nancy  lives  in  Brock- 
ton; Sarah  A.  died  in  September,  1857;  and 
Justin  resides  in  Brockton.  The  mother,  who 
was  a  member  of  the  Congregational  church, 
died  in  January,   1886. 


DMUND  THURSTON  DAMON,  of 
Plymouth,  the  organizer  and  conductor 
of  the  Plymouth  l^and,  and  a  well- 
known  teacher  of  instrumental  music,  was 
born  in  Plymouth,  September  7,  1858,  son  of 
Calvin  S.  Damon.  The  family  descends  from 
a  Scotchman,  who  settled  in  Marshfield,  this 
county.  Lincoln  Damon,  Mr.  Damon's  grand- 
father, was  born  in  Marshfield,  and  was  one  of 
a  family  of  seven  sons.  He  was  a  ship-car- 
penter, and  followed  his  trade  in  Scituate  and 
Cohasset,  Mass.,  for  a  number  of  years.  He 
finally  bought  the  old  homestead  in  Marsh- 
field, where  he  was  engaged  in  general  farm- 
ins  for  the  rest  of  his  life.  With  his  wife, 
who  in  maidenhood  was  a  Miss  Sherman,  of 
Marshfield,  he  reared  a  family  of  three  sons 
and  two  daughters,  of  whom  Calvin,  Sr. ,  Mr. 
Damon's  father,  was  the  fourth-born. 

Calvin  S.  Damon  passed  his  youth  in  Marsh- 
field. In  young  manhood  he  came  to  Ply- 
mouth, where  his  natural  business  ability 
found  a  broader  field  of  action.  He  became 
manager  for  the  Plymouth  Cordage  Company, 
a  position  which  he  ably  filled  for  twenty-five 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


137 


years.  Fond  of  music  from  early  boyhood,  he 
devoted  much  time  to  the  study  of  that  art, 
and  was  afterward  organist  at  the  Unitarian  and 
Baptist  churches  in  Plymouth  and  at  a  church 
in  Kingston.  He  continued  to  cultivate  the 
art  in  his  leisure  hours  until  his  death,  which 
happened  in  the  spring  of  1884.  His  wife 
was  a  daughter  of  James  Crossley,  of  Duxbury, 
Mass.,  a  gentleman  of  English  birth,  and  a 
son  of  the  Earl  of  Crossley.  On  account  of 
a  mesalliance,  he  was  disowned  by  his  family, 
and  came  to  America.  It  is  said  that  a  large 
fortune  awaits  his  descendants.  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Calvin  S.  Damon  were  the  parents  of  six  chil- 
dren, four  sons  and  two  daughters,  of  whom 
three  sons  are  now  living. 

Edmund  Thurston  Damon,  the  fifth  born  of 
his  parents'  children,  acquired  his  education 
at  a  private  school.  At  an  early  age  he  gave 
abundant  evidence  that  he  had  inherited  his 
father's  talent  for  music.  He  subsecjuently 
became  proficient  in  instrumental  music,  and 
while  still  a  youth  he  joined  Gilmore's  famous 
band  of  Boston  as  a  trombone  player.  His 
connection  with  this  organization  lasted  until 
Mr.  Gilmore  removed  to  New  York,  when  he 
joined  the  Boston  Cadet  Band.  After  playing 
with  the  Cadets  for  fifteen  years  he  returned 
to  Plymouth,  and  opened  music  rooms.  Here 
he  has  since  been  giving  instruction  in  instru- 
mental music,  making  a  successful  specialty 
of  preparing  pupils  for  bands  and  orchestras. 
Some  time  ago  he  organized  the  Plymouth 
Band,  of  which  he  is  still  the  conductor. 
This  body  of  instrumentalists,  consisting  of 
twenty-seven  men,  ranks  among  the  best  bands 
in  the  State.  During  the  summer  season,  at 
the  Casino,  it  gives  a  series  of  concerts  that 
are  highly  enjoyed  by  the  citizens,  and  all 
others  who  attend  them.  At  different  times 
he  has  played  with  "picked"  orchestras  on 
special     occasions.      Among    these    was    that 


which    played   at    the    farewell    appearance    of 
Madame   Patti    in    Boston. 

On  September  19,  18S6,  Mr.  Damon  was 
united  in  marriage  to  Amy  W.  Phinney, 
daughter  of  Lcavitt  and  Rebecca  I'hinney,  of 
Kingston,  Mass.  He  belongs  to  the  Plymouth 
Musical  Club,  and  is  a  member  of  the  Stand- 
ing Committee.  He  has  also  membership  in 
Plymouth  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.  ;  and  in 
Mayflower  Lodge,  Independent  Order  of  Odd 
Fellows. 


IDEON  STUDLEY,  a  manufacturer 
Si\  of  the  town  of  Rockland,  was  born 
here  June  12,  1851,  son  of  Gideon 
and  Priscilla  B.  (Shaw)  Studley.  His  father, 
who  was  a  native  of  Hanover,  this  county, 
after  following  for  a  time  the  trade  of  a  car- 
penter, established  himself  in  the  business 
of  manufacturing  boot  and  shoe  boxes,  box 
boards,  and  other  similar  articles.  His  fac- 
tory is  the  oldest  of  the  kind  in  the  vicinity. 
After  the  establishment  of  this  business,  how- 
ever, he  resumed  carpentering,  and  the  town 
of  Rockland  contains  many  buildings  after- 
ward put  up  under  his  supervision.  His  wife, 
Priscilla,  now  eighty-one  years  old,  and  resid- 
ing in  Rockland,  was  born  in  East  Abington. 
By  her  he  became  the  father  of  six  children, 
who  all  reached  maturity.  A  public-spirited 
citizen,  he  was  personally  popular,  not  only 
from  the  keen  interest  he  took  in  the  general 
welfare  of  the  comnuinity,  but  because  of  his 
ready  sympathy  and  aid  for  the  unfortunate. 
He  died  in  his  home  at  Rockland,  at  the  age 
of  seventy-two  years,  mourned  by  all  who 
knew  him. 

Gideon  Studley,  the  youngest  surviving 
child  of  his  parents,  received  his  education  in 
the  public  schools.  At  the  age  of  sixteen  he 
went  into  his  father's  box  factory.  Here  he 
soon  acquired   a  mastery  of  the   business,  and 


i38 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


ci}ntinuccl  to  work  at  it  until  his  father's 
death.  The  factory  then  came  into  his  pos- 
session, and  he  has  since  successfully  con- 
ducted it  alone.  Including  the  time  spent 
with  his  father,  he  has  manufactured  bo.xes 
and  sold  lumber  and  real  estate  for  about 
twenty-nine  years. 

On  January  i,  1874,  Mr.  Studley  married 
Hannah  E. ,  a  daughter  of  Horace  C.  Totman, 
and  they  became  the  parents  of  eleven  chil- 
dren, of  whom  five  sons  and  five  daughters  are 
living.  Mr.  -Studley  generally  affiliated  with 
the  Republican  party,  but  of  late  years  he  has 
been  independent  in  his  political  action.  He 
is  a  man  of  keen  intelligence  and  much  gen- 
eral information,  and  his  opinions  on  the 
leading  questions  of  the  day  are  respected  by 
those  who  know  his  sincerity.  He  belongs  to 
Standish  Lodge,  Independent  Order  of  Odd 
Fellows.  The  family  occupy  a  pleasant  resi- 
dence on  Market  Street,  not  far  from  Mr. 
Studley's  factory  and  mill. 


•MASA  S.  GLOVER,  of  Brockton,  is 
a  veteran  of  the  late  war,  who  during 
his  term  of  service  became  a  close 
friend  of  General  Sherman.  He  was  born  in 
Dorchester,  Mass.,  July  25,  1 8 17,  a  son  of 
Alexander  and  Jemima  (Tolman)  Glover,  and 
is  of  the  ninth  generation  of  his  family  in 
this  country.  The  immigrant  progenitor, 
Mr.  John  Glover,  son  of  Thomas  and  Margery 
(Deane)  Glover,  of  Rainhill  Parish,  Prescot, 
P^ngland,  came  to  America  about  1630,  and 
settled  in  Dorchester.  He  possessed  large 
estates,  and  some  of  the  land  that  he  owned 
was  held  by  the  Glover  family  from  1628  to 
1891,  in  all  that  time  —  two  hundred  and 
sixty-three  years  —  being  neither  mortgaged 
nor  sold.  John  Glover  was  a  captain  of  the 
Ancient  and   Honorable  Artillery  Company  of 


London.  He  was  a  Selectman  of  Dorchester, 
Representative  to  the  General  Court,  and  an 
Assistant  in  1651.  He  was  a  I'ree  Mason. 
Several  generations  of  Glovers  succeeding  the 
Hon.  John  Glover  lived  and  died  in  Dorches- 
ter. Alexander,  the  father  of  the  direct  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch,  was  the  son  of  Alexander, 
Sr.,  and  Hannah  (Pope)  Glover,  of  Dorches- 
ter. He  died  in  1846,  and  his  wife  in  1873. 
They  were  the  parents  of  eleven  children. 

Amasa  S.  Glover,  the  youngest  of  his 
father's  family,  was  born  in  the  old  house 
built  by  his  remote  ancestor,  the  Hon.  John 
Glover.  At  the  age  of  fifteen  he  entered  the 
employ  of  Howard  &  Clark,  furniture  manu- 
facturers of  Brockton.  In  their  establishment 
he  learned  the  trade  of  cabinet-making,  and  he 
was  the  only  apprentice  that  they  ever  freed 
properly.  In  1839  his  health  was  so  poor  that 
he  was  obliged  to  give  up  his  trade,  and  from 
1840  till  1842  he  remained  at  home  with  his 
parents.  He  then  went  to  work  in  a  shoe  fac- 
tory, and  in  1858  he  began  to  manufacture 
shoes.  The  breaking  out  of  the  war  ruined 
his  business,  as  he  had  creditors  in  the  South, 
and,  closing  up  his  establishment,  he  enlisted, 
being  one  of  the  first  volunteers  from  Brock- 
ton. He  was  first  enrolled  as  a  musician  in 
the  Twelfth  Massachusetts  Regiment,  under 
Colonel  Fletcher  Webster.  Subsequently  he 
re-enlisted  in  Company  H,  Thirty-third 
Massachusetts  Regiment,  and  was  requested 
to  take  a  horse.  This  he  at  first  declined  to 
do,  but  afterward  consented.  He  was  with 
General  Sherman  during  his  entire  campaign, 
and  was  offered  an  officer's  commission,  but 
refused  to  take  it. 

An  incident,  mentioned  in  the  Rev.  Minot 
J.  Savage's  sermon  on  "Trifles,"  illustrates 
the  executive  ability  of  Mr.  Glover,  and  at 
the  same  time  shows  the  utility  of  the  "army 
of    tradesmen,"    as     it     has     been     scornfully 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


139 


called.  Sherman's  men,  while  climbing  the 
Tennessee  Mountains  after  the  battle  of 
Chickamanga,  became  barefoot  in  their  prog- 
ress over  the  rough  roads;  and  the  General 
was  at  his  wit's  end  to  supply  their  needs. 
Learning  that  Mr.  Glover  had  been  a  shoe 
manufacturer,  he  said  to  him  :  "  I  cannot  move 
the  army.  Can  you  help  me?  All  that  I  can 
give  you  is  plenty  of  raw  hides."  Mr.  Glover 
set  to  work  immediately  and  cut  out  patterns. 
Sherman  placed  a  thousand  men  at  his  dis- 
posal, and  the  ne.xt  afternoon  the  men  were 
shod  and  ready  to  march.  The  acquaintance 
thus  begun  between  Mr.  Glover  and  General 
Sherman  ripened  into  a  warm  friendship,  and 
Mr.  Glover  cherishes  as  a  memento  a  letter 
from  him  dated  in  1888,  couched  in  the  most 
cordial  terms.  Among  his  other  valued 
friends  in  the  army  were  General  Henry  W. 
Slocum,  of  Brooklyn,  N.Y. ,  and  the  late  Gen- 
eral William  Cogswell.  Mr.  Glover  received 
his  discharge  in  June,  1865,  after  four  years 
of  service.  On  his  return  to  Brockton,  he 
resumed  work  in  Howard  &  Clark's  furniture 
manufactory,  and  remained  some  twelve  years. 
His  mind  is  always  in  a  state  of  earnest  activ- 
ity, and  he  is  now  elaborating  a  plan  to  dis- 
pose of  sewerage,  which  has  already  become 
popular.  At  present  his  engineer,  Mr.  B.  T. 
Wheeler,  ex-Superintendent  of  Streets  of  Bos- 
ton, is  putting  in  some  plants. 

Air.  Glover  married  Sophia,  daughter  of 
Samuel  Packard,  of  North  Bridgewater,  and  he 
has  four  children,  namely:  Sarah  B.,  widow 
of  A.  M.  Farrar,  Gilmanton,  N.  H.  ;  Amanda, 
wife  of  D.  P.  Kenny,  of  Abington,  now  resid- 
ing in  Brockton;  Hannah  B. ,  widow  of  Walter 
M.  Holmes,  of  Brockton,  who  was  a  drummer 
in  Sherman's  army;  and  Walter  S.,  a  citizen 
of  Boston.  In  politics  Mr.  Glover  is  a  strong 
Republican.  He  was  elected  to  the  Common 
Council  from   Ward  i,  and   served   two  years. 


He  keeps  up  his  army  associations  by  attend- 
ing the  meetings  of  Fletcher  Webster  Post, 
No.  13,  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  of 
Brockton,  of  which  he  is  a  charter  member. 


ILLIAM  H.  THOMAS,  the  effi- 
cient superintendent  of  the  Hing- 
ham  Water  Company,  was  born  in 
Hingham,  June  12,  1845,  son  of  Benjamin 
and  Sally  L.  (Leavitt)  Thomas.  His  great- 
grandfather. Prince  Thomas,  came  from  Wey- 
mouth, Norfolk  County,  to  Hingham,  where 
he  resided  for  several  years.  Prince  was  a 
blacksmith  by  trade,  and  died  June  4,  1797,  at 
the  age  of  forty-si.\.  His  wife,  in  maidenhood 
Abigail  Pratt,  to  whom  he  was  married  in 
Weymouth,  died  in  Hingham,  August  30, 
1833,  at  the  age  of  seventy-seven.  Of  their 
seven  childien,  Benjamin,  the  eldest,  born  at 
Weymouth,  January  i8,  1776,  was  also  a 
blacksmith.  He  first  married,  August  ig, 
1798,  Lydia  Whiton,  who  was  a  daughter  of 
Jacob  and  Elizabeth  (Marble)  Whiton,  and 
died  May  24,  1837.  On  February  27,  1842, 
he  entered  a  second  marriage,  contracted  with 
Ann  Webb,  of  Weymouth.  Benjamin  died 
September  13,  1S48.  He  was  a  forcible  pub- 
lic speaker,  while  uniformly  courteous,  and 
he  was  greatly  missed  in  town  meetings.  By 
his  first  marriage  there  were  five  children  — 
Benjamin,  William,  Reuben,  Lydia,  and 
David.  Benjamin,  the  father  of  the  subject 
of  this  article,  was  born  in  Hingham,  Febru- 
ary 9,  1799.  On  April  22,  1827,  he  married 
Sally  Lincoln  Leavitt,  who  was  born  in  Hing- 
ham, January  i6,  1803,  daughter  of  Jerome 
and  Sally  (Lincoln)  Leavitt.  Their  children 
were  George  and   William   Henry. 

After  acquiring  his  education,  William  H. 
Thomas  worked  at  farming,  and  at  whatever 
else  offered  by  which  he  could  earn  an  honest 


140 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


living.  In  October,  1861,  he  enlisted  for  the 
Civil  War,  and  in  the  following  November 
was  mustered  into  Company  A,  First  Battal- 
ion of  Massachusetts  Infantry,  recruited  for 
garrison  duty,  and  commenced  service  at  Fort 
Warren  in  Boston  Harbor.  Six  months  later 
his  company  formed  the  nucleus  of  the  Thirty- 
second  Regiment,  Masschusetts  Volunteer  In- 
fantry, which  was  then  organized  and  assigned 
to  the  Army  of  the  Potomac,  Fifth  Army 
Corps.  Mr.  Thomas  was  taken  sick,  and  re- 
mained in  the  Emory  Hospital,  Washington, 
D. C,  for  eighteen  months.  While  he  was 
convalescent  he  served  as  nurse,  and  proved 
himself  so  helpful  that  he  was  detailed  as 
ward  master.  At  the  end  of  his  three  years' 
enlistment  he  was  honorably  discharged,  and 
returned  to  Hingham.  He  then  learned  the 
house  painting  trade,  which  he  followed  until 
1880,  when  he  was  employed  by  the  Hingham 
Water  Company  as  Assistant  Superintendent. 
In  the  fall  of  1893  he  became  superintendent, 
which  office  he  still  creditably  fills.  He  is 
also  Auditor  of  the  Hingham  Co-operative 
Bank,  and  Trustee  of  the  Hingham  Institu- 
tion for  Savings. 

On  October  30,  1867,  Mr.  Thomas  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Mary  W.  Higgins,  a 
native  of  this  town,  and  a  daughter  of  Ezra 
and  Mary  M.  (Seymour)  Higgins.  By  this 
marriage  there  were  four  children,  of  whom 
two,  Willie  L.  and  Theodore  W.,  are  de- 
ceased. The  others  are:  Harry  L.,  now  assist- 
ant superintendent  of  the  Hingham  Water 
Company;  and  Helen  A.,  who  resides  at 
home.  Mr.  Thomas  is  a  man  of  liberal  and 
progressive  ideas,  and  stands  high  in  the 
community.  He  is  in  communion  with  the 
old  Unitarian  First  Parish  Church  (formerly 
Congregational),  and  is  an  esteemed  member 
of  the  Parish  Committee.  He  is  the  .Secretary 
of  the  Hingham  Agricultural  Society,  and  he 


has  been  Secretary  of  the  Hingham  Horticult- 
ural Society  since  1S75.  In  politics  he  is  a 
loyal  Republican.  The  office  of  Secretary  of 
Old  Colony  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  has  been 
filled  by  him  since  1873.  He  has  also  mem- 
bership in  John  A.  Andrew  Lodge,  Knights 
of  Honor,  and  the  Veteran  Firemen's  Associa- 
ton;  in  the  Business  Men's  Club,  of  which  he 
is  the  Treasurer;  and  the  Edward  Humphrey 
Post,  No.  104,  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic, 
of  which  he  is  Past  Commander. 


AMUEL  PEARLY  GATES,  Treas- 
urer of  the  Eagle  Cotton  Gin  Com- 
pany, of  Bridgewater,  and  Treasurer 
also  of  the  Bridgewater  Savings  Bank,  is  one  of 
the  foremost  business  men  in  a  town  noted  for 
its  able  financiers.  A  son  of  Pearly  and  Mary 
(Burr)  Gates,  both  natives  of  Ashby,  Mass., 
he  was  born  in  that  town,  June  8,  1837.  The 
Gates  family  and  the  Burr  family  are  of  Eng- 
lish origin.  On  the  maternal  side  Mr.  Gates 
is  of  Revolutionary  stock,  his  mother's  grand- 
father, Abijah  Butler,  having  served  in  the 
Continental  army. 

Samuel  Pearly  Gates  was  reared  on  his 
father's  farm  in  Ashby,  and  acquired  his  edu- 
cation in  the  district  school  near  his  home. 
In  his  nineteenth  year  he  entered  the  State 
Normal  School  at  Bridgewater,  where  he 
studied  for  a  year  and  a  half;  and  he  then 
obtained  a  clerkship  in  the  office  of  Bates, 
Hyde  &  Co.,  now  the  Eagle  Cotton  Gin  Com- 
pany. After  serving  for  a  number  of  years  as 
clerk,  learning  thoroughly  all  the  details  of  the 
business,  he  became  a  member  of  the  company. 
Since  1877,  when  the  Eagle  Cotton  Gin  Com-' 
pany  was  incorporated,  Mr.  Gates  has  ably 
discharged  the  duties  of  Treasurer.  The 
Eagle  Cotton  Gin  manufactory  is  in  a  flourish- 
ing condition,  employing   on   an   average   fifty 


SAMUEL     P.    GATES. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


143 


hands.  Mr.  Gates  owns  a  controlling  interest 
in  the  business.  He  has  been  Treasurer  of 
the  Bridgewater  Savings  Bank  since  1872,  the 
year  of  its  incorporation.  He  is  a  Director  in 
the  Bridgewater  Water  Company;  one  of  the 
directors  in  the  Bridgewater  Box  Company; 
and  he  is  a  Trustee  of  the  Bridgewater  Public 
Library  and  the  Bridgewater  Academy,  and 
also  of  the  Bridgewater  Cemetery  Association. 
He  has  also  much  business  to  transact  in  the 
settling  of  estates. 

On  October  26,  1871,  he  was  united  in  mar- 
riage with  Marcia  E.,  daughter  of  Jacob  and 
Joan  (Holmes)  Jackson,  of  Plymouth,  Mass. 
Mrs.  Gates  died  in  January,  1873,  and  her 
little  daughter  also  passed  away  in  the  July 
following,  after  a  brief  existence  of  six- 
months. 

In  politics  Mr.  Gates  favors  the  Republican 
side.  When  President  Lincoln  v/as  calling 
for  volunteers  to  meet  the  uprising  in  the 
South  he  responded,  enlisting  in  April,  1863, 
in  the  regular  army  of  the  United  States  for 
five  years.  He  was  given  a  clerkship  in  the 
War  Department  at  Washington,  and  after 
about  one  year's  service,  by  special  permission 
of  the  Secretary  of  War,  he  was  discharged. 
Mr.  Gates  is  a  member  of  Bridgewater  Post 
No.  205,  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  and 
of  the  Society  of  the  Army  of  the  Potomac, 
headquarters  at  New  York;  also  of  the  Sons  of 
the  American  Revolution.  A  member  of  the 
New  Jerusalem  Church,  he  takes  a  deep  inter- 
est in  the  welfare  of  the  society,  and  has  been 
for  some  time  on  the  l-'inance  Committee. 


ii^aHILANDER  J.  HOLMES,  a  promi- 
nent manufacturer  of  Carver,  was 
born  in  Lakeville,  this  county,  Janu- 
ary 22,  1843,  son  of  Jacob  and  Ann  (McCora- 
ber)    Holmes.      Ann  was  Jacob's  second  wife. 


He  was  married  three  times.  By  his  first  wife 
he  became  the  father  of  William  Holmes,  who 
now  lives  at  Taunton,  Mass.  With  Ann  he 
reared  five  children  —  Charles,  Philander  J., 
Gardner  E.,  Achsah,  and  Fanny. 

When  he  was  quite  young,  Philander  J. 
went  with  his  parents  to  Middleboro,  where 
his  early  boyhood  was  spent.  At  the  age  of 
twelve  he  came  with  his  parents  to  Carver. 
He  lived  on  the  home  farm  until  he  was 
eighteen.  Then,  with  the  purpose  of  becom- 
ing a  machinist,  he  went  to  New  York,  and 
for  about  three  years  applied  himself  dili- 
gently to  the  task  of  learning  the  trade.  He 
was  not  yet  twenty-one  when  he  passed  an 
examination  as  a  marine  engineer  in  the  navy. 
He  was  at  first  appointed  on  special  duty  in 
New  York.  From  there  he  was  sent  to  New- 
burgh  as  assistant  engineer,  and  subsequently 
to  the  Philadelphia  Navy  Yard  to  serve  in  a 
similar  capacity.  After  ten  months  spent 
here,  he  was  assigned  to  a  war  vessel,  and 
subsequently  took  part  in  the  marine  blockade 
for  a  year.  The  man-of-war  made  a  voyage 
to  the  West  Indies  before  going  back  to  New 
York.  He  then  went  aboard  a  vessel  that 
cruised  off  the  South  American  coast  for  about 
a  year,  having  Aspinwall  as  its  objective 
point.  On  returning  to  New  York  the  ship 
went  out  of  commission.  Two  years  after,  he 
returned  to  Carver,  where  he  took  possession 
of  his  father's  manufacturing  interests  at 
the  location  he  now  occupies.  For  about 
twenty-two  years  he  has  been  engaged  in  the 
manufacture  of  kegs,  box  boards,  staves,  and 
headings.  He  also  owns  about  a  hundred 
acres  of  land,  where  he  carries  on  general 
farming. 

In  November,  1869,  Mr.  Holmes  was  mar- 
ried to  Miss  Helen  F.  Bent,  daughter  of  Ira 
and  Sally  Ann  Bent,  of  Carver.  Two  chil- 
dren have  been  born  to  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Holmes 


144 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


—  Mabel  and  Jessie.  In  politics  Mr.  Holmes 
takes  an  independent  course.  Besides  filling 
other  town  offices  he  has  been  Fire  Warden 
and  Surveyor  of  Lumber.  He  is  widely  and 
favorably  known  in  this  district.  In  religious 
belief  he  is  a  Swedenborgian,  and  he  is  con- 
nected by  membership  with  the  order  of 
United  Workmen. 


"ENRY  BRETT  PACKARD,  of 
Brockton,  a  prominent  business  man, 
1'^  ^  and  an  e.\-member  of  the  Massa- 
chusetts legislature,  was  born  here,  January 
21,  1823,  son  of  Apollos  and  Sophia  (Brett) 
Packard.  Mr.  Packard  is  a  descendant  of 
Samuel  Packard,  who  came  in  the  ship  "Dili- 
gence "  from  Windham,  near  Hingham,  Eng- 
land, and  settled  in  Hingham,  Mass.,  in 
1638.  His  great-grandfather  was  Thomas 
Packard.  Parmenus  Packard,  the  grandfather, 
who  was  an  invalid  for  many  years,  wedded 
Martha   Reynolds. 

Apollos  Packard  was  born  in  North  Bridge- 
water,  the  former  name  of  Brockton,  and  the 
active  period  of  his  life  was  spent  in  shoemak- 
ing  and  farming.  An  upright,  conscientious 
man,  and  a  worthy  citizen,  he  took  a  deep  in- 
terest in  religious  work,  was  a  member  of  the 
Porter  Congregational  Church,  and  died  at  the 
age  of  seventy-four  years.  His  first  wife, 
Sophia,  became  the  mother  of  three  children, 
of  whom  Henry  B.,  the  subject  of  this  sketch, 
is  the  only  one  now  living.  His  second  wife, 
before  marriage  Betsey  Packard,  became  the 
mother  of  three  children  —  Davis  S.,  Freder- 
ick W.,  and  Apollos  Moulton.  His  third 
marriage  was  contracted  with  Mrs.  Salome 
Bradford,  whose  first  husband,  William  Brad- 
ford, was  a  descendant  of  the  famous  Governor 
Bradford. 

Henry  Brett  Packard  acquired  a  good  practi- 


cal education.  When  a  young  man  he  became 
connected  with  the  shoemaking  industry,  and 
worked  in  the  factories  of  this  locality  until 
he  was  forty  years  old.  He  then  formed  a 
partnership  with  Darius  Howard,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  engaging  in  the  manufacture  of  boots 
and  shoes.  The  firm  of  Howard  &  Packard 
was  the  first  to  introduce  what  is  known  as  the 
gang  system.  They  continued  in  business  for 
nine  years,  at  the  expiration  of  which  time 
Mr.  Packard  withdrew  from  the  business,  and 
has  since  devoted  his  attention  to  real  estate. 
On  October  27,  1844,  Mr.  Packard  was  united 
in  marriage  to  Lucinda  Hayward,  who  was  born 
in  Kingston,  Mass.,  in  1824,  daughter  of  Ira 
Hayward.  By  him  she  became  the  mother  of 
si.x  children,  as  follows:  Davis  H.,  a  business 
man  of  Rochester,  N.Y. ;  Abbott  Winslow,  of 
Boston;  Elliott  Sampson,  who  died  in  1865; 
Lucy  Sophia,  who  successively  married  George 
Storey,  of  Manchester,  Mass.,  and  Charles  W. 
Hayden,  of  Brockton ;  Edith  Scott,  who  mar- 
ried Salmon  Tirrell,  a  native  of  Maine,  but 
now  a  resident  of  Brockton;  and  Susan  Brad- 
ford, who  married  Wallace  E.  Faxon,  a  native 
of  Abington,  who  now  resides  in  this  city. 

In  politics  Mr.  Packard  was  formerly  a 
Democrat.  He  represented  Brockton  in  the 
legislature  during  the  year  1877-78,  and 
was  a  member  of  the  State  House  Com- 
mittee. In  1878  he  was  a  member  of  the 
Board  of  ^Selectmen  of  North  Bridgewater; 
was  elected  Superintendent  of  Streets  in  1882, 
in  which  capacity  he  served  with  ability  for 
three  years;  and  he  acted  as  Chairman  of  the 
Board  of  Health  for  two  years.  Both  as  a  busi- 
ness man  and  a  public  servant,  he  has  gained 
the  respect  of  all  with  whom  he  has  come 
in  contact.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Porter  Con- 
gregational Church.  He  has  always  resided 
in  his  native  town,  and  his  daughters  are  liv- 
ing within   a  short  distance  of  his  homestead. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


145 


/^^^^TeORGE  M.  KEITH  is  the  Vice- 
VmT  President  of  the  East  Bridgewater 
Savings  Bank  and  the  Superintend- 
ent of  the  Bridgewater  Water  Company.  He 
was  born  November  i,  1830,  in  East  Bridge- 
water,  the  birthplace  also  of  his  parents, 
George  and  Fidelma  (Clift)  Keith.  By  both 
father  and  mother  he  is  of  Scotch  descent. 
The  founder  of  the  family  was  a  Scotch 
clergyman,  the  Rev.  James  Keith,  who  was 
the  pioneer  preacher  of  this  part  of  Massachu- 
setts. George  Keith,  a  son  of  Eleazer  Keith, 
was  born  in  1790,  and  died  in  1873.  Besides 
conducting  a  farm  he  worked  at  mechanical 
occupations  during  a  large  part  of  his  life. 
He  also  served  as  a  soldier  in  the  War  of 
1 8 12  and  subsequently  drew  a  pension  from 
the  government.  EI  is  wife  was  a  daughter  of 
Anthony  Winslow  Clift,  who  fought  for  inde- 
pendence in  the  Revolution.  His  surviving 
children  are:  Bethiah,  the  wife  of  Stephen 
Harlow,  a  retired  business  man  of  East 
Bridgewater;  and  George  M.,  the  subject  of 
this   article. 

George  M.  Keith  acquired  his  education  in 
the  common  schools  and  at  East  Bridgewater 
Academy.  He  began  to  learn  to  make  shoes 
when  he  was  thirteen  years  old,  and  subse- 
quently followed  the  trade  until  1886.  For 
seventeen  years  he  was  foreman  for  J.  S. 
Allen,  a  shoe  manufacturer  of  Brockton.  In 
the  fall  of  1862  he  enlisted  for  service  in  the 
Civil  War,  joining  Company  K,  Third  Massa- 
chusetts Volunteer  Infantry,  for  nine  months. 
For  some  time  he  was  stationed  at  New  Berne, 
N.C.,  and  he  participated  in  the  battles  of 
Kingston,  Whitehall,  and  Goldsboro.  At 
New  Berne  Mr.  Keith  superintended  the  car- 
penters who  were  employed  in  the  erection  of 
a  military  hospital.  After  receiving  his  dis- 
charge in  May,  1863,  he  returned  to  his  em- 
ployment   in    p;ast    Bridgewater.     A    man    of 


character  and  ability,  he  naturally  takes  a 
leading  part  in  the  community.  He  was  a 
member  of  the  Investment  Committee  of  the 
East  Bridgewater  Savings  Bank  for  a  number 
of  years.  He  has  held  his  present  office,  that 
of  Vice-President,  for  several  years.  He  has 
been  the  superintendent  of  the  Bridgewater 
Water  Company  since  1892.  Mr.  Keith, 
who  is  a  Republican  in  politics,  served  sev- 
eral years  as  Selectman  of  East  Bridgewater. 
By  his  marriage  with  Miss  Julia  Howard,  of 
West  Bridgewater,  Mr.  Keith  had  five  chil- 
dren, all  of  whom  have  passed  away.  One 
grandchild  is  living.  This  is  Miriam  K., 
the  child  of  their  daughter,  Ada  F.  and  her 
husband,  Zenas  A.  Jenkins,  of  East  Bridge- 
water.  Mr.  Keith  is  one  of  the  Deacons  of 
the  Union  Congregational  Church  in  this 
town. 


AMUEL  ADAMS  HOLBROOK, 
one  of  Brockton's  most  popular 
citizens  while  proprietor  of  the 
market  at  the  corner  of  Centre  and  Montello 
Streets,  was  born  in  Elmwood,  Mass.,  July 
24,  1834,  a  son  of  Arvin  and  Sarah  J.  (Keen) 
Holbrook.  Arvin  Holbrook,  a  native  of 
South  Weymouth,  Mass.,  had  three  other  chil- 
dren, all  daughters.  Samuel  having  been 
reared  and  educated  in  Elmwood,  came  in 
185s  to  Brockton,  then  North  Bridgewater, 
and  made  his  home  here  for  tl!e  rest  of  his  life. 
In  1S74  he  opened  a  market  on  Main  Street, 
and  in  course  of  time  acquired  a  flourishing 
trade.  His  ownership  of  the  market  on  Centre 
and  Montello  Streets  dated  from  1855.  An 
honest,  upright  man,  ami  of  the  cheery  dis- 
position so  frequently  a  trait  of  marketmen, 
he  kept  his  old  customers,  and  continually 
added  new  ones  to  his  list,  making  his  market 
one  of  the  most  successful  in  the  locality. 
Mr.  Holbrook  sang  bass   in   the  Gurney  Glee 


146 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


Club,  the  Masonic  Quartet  of  Paul  Revere 
Lodge,  which  he  joined  in  1870;  and  for  nine- 
teen years  he  was  a  member  of  the  choir  of  the 
First  Congregational  Church  of  Brockton. 
He  died  February  18,  1895,  aged  sixty  years, 
six  months,  and  five  days,  and  was  buried 
with  Masonic  honors. 

Mr.  Holbrook  was  married  December  28, 
1859,  to  Susan  J.,  daughter  of  Nathaniel  H. 
and  Lucy  C.  Cross,  of  Brockton.  Two  chil- 
dren blessed  the  union  — •  Lucy  Cross  and 
Jennie  Adams.  The  elder  daughter,  who 
had  a  fine,  alto  voice,  and  sang  a  great  deal 
in  public,  married  T.  A.  Norris,  of  Brockton, 
and  died  on  December  12,  1895.  Jennie  A. 
is  the  wife  of  VV.  Fred  Allen,  of  Brockton. 
Mrs.  Holbrook  now  manages  the  market  left 
by  her  husband.  An  intelligent  and  capable 
lady,  she  has  proved  herself  fully  equal  to 
the  responsibilities  devolving  upon  her. 


CjDWIN  MULREADY,  Chairman  of  the 
JP'  Board  of  Selectmen  of  Rockland,  Mass., 
is  one  of  the  active  business  men  of 
the  place,  engaged  extensively  in  placing  in- 
surance risks.  He  is  a  native  of  Rockland, 
born  November  18,  1853,  a  son  of  Luke  and 
Sarah  (Carroll)  Mulready.  Luke  Mulready, 
who  was  born  in  Mulligan,  Ireland,  came  to 
this  country  in  1849,  and  worked  for  some 
time  at  shoemaking.  He  died  in  his  fifty- 
fourth  year.  His  wife  is  still  living  in  Rock- 
land. Six  children  were  born  to  them  —  Ed- 
win, Marcella,  Luke  F.,  Maria,  John,  and 
Annie. 

Edwin  Mulready  was  graduated  from  the 
grammar  school  at  the  age  of  fifteen,  and  then 
went  to  work  in  a  shoe  shop.  Having  a  nat- 
ural bent  for  clerical  work,  after  a  while  he 
left  the  factory  to  take  a  course  of  study  at  a 
commercial   college;   but,   finding   no   suitable 


opening,  upon  the  completion  of  his  studies 
he  again  took  up  factory  work.  While  en- 
gaged in  the  shoe  shop  he  began  to  take  insur- 
ance risks,  and  in  1891  he  established  a  busi- 
ness of  his  own,  which  has  had  a  large  growth, 
and  which  includes  fire,  life,  accident,  and 
marine  insurance.  Being  a  man  of  more  than 
ordinary  intelligence  and  ability,  he  is  now 
on  the  high  road  to  success. 

He  was  married  in  1876  to  Miss  Catherine 
Kenneally,  of  Abington,  Mass.,  by  whom  he 
has  had  nine  children,  one  of  whom,  a  little 
daughter,  has  passed  away.  The  others  are 
named  respectively:  Luke,  Josephine,  Paul, 
Edwin,  Sadie,  Joseph,  Frank,  and  Marion. 
In  political  matters  Mr.  Mulready  is  inclined 
to  be  independent,  though  favoring  the  Demo- 
cratic side.  He  was  elected  to  the  Board  of 
Selectmen  in  1884,  and  has  presided  as 
Chairman  since  1892.  A  strong  believer  in 
total  abstinence,  he  is  an  active  worker  for 
the  temperance  cause,  and  has  been  connected 
with  a  temperance  society  for  a  quarter  of  a 
century.  In  religious  belief  he  is  a  Roman 
Catholic. 


ON.  ZIBA  CARY  KEITH,  President 
of  the  Plymouth  County  Safe  Deposit 
and  Trust  Company,  is  a  native  res- 
ident of  Brockton,  where  he  has  been  for  the 
last  twenty  years  an  important  factor  in  busi- 
ness and  civic  affairs.  Nor  is  his  merely  a 
local  reputation.  He  has  filled  various  re- 
sponsible positions  in  the  service  of  the  State. 
He  was  born  July  13,  1842,  at  the  homestead 
of  his  father,  Captain  Ziba  Keith,  on  the  op- 
posite side  of  the  street  to  his  present  resi- 
dence in  Campello. 

The  following  account  of  his  ancestry  we 
glean  from  the  Keith  Memorial  volume  pre- 
pared by  him  at  the  cost  of  great  labor  and  ex- 
pense   and    published    in    1889.       The    Keith 


ZIBA    C.    KEITH. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


149 


family  originated  in  Scotland.  Brown's  Peer- 
age makes  mention  of  one  Robert  (from  whom 
this  family  is  supposed  to  be  descended)  who 
was  a  chieftain  among  the  Cotti,  from  which 
tribe  the  surname  of  Keith  is  said  to  be  derived. 
He  was  at  the  battle  of  I'anbridge  in  1006 
A. D. ,  and  slew  Camus,  a  general  of  the  Danes, 
for  which  service  King  Malcolm  drew  red 
strokes,  or  pates,  on  Robert's  shield,  which  was 
the  origin  of  their  armorial  bearings.  In  loio 
he  was  made  hereditary  marischal  of  Scotland, 
and  was  presented  with  a  barony  and  also  with 
the  Island  of  Inchkeith  in  the  Firth  of  Forth. 
His  descendant.  Sir  William  Keith,  married 
a  daughter  of  the  Earl  of  Crawford,  and  had  a 
son  William,  who  was  created  Earl  of  Mari- 
schal before  June,   1458. 

The  title  descended  lineally  to  William, 
third  Earl,  who  had  two  sons  —  Robert  and 
William.  Robert  was  slain  at  Flodden  Field. 
William  had  a  son  William,  who  was  the 
fourth  Earl ;  and  he  had  a  grandson  George, 
fifth  Earl,  and  founder  of  Marischal  College  at 
Aberdeen.  He  married  Lord  Hume's  daugh- 
ter. The  tenth  Earl,  George,  was  a  Colonel 
in  Queen  Anne's  Guards.  His  brother  James 
was  a  Field  Marshal  in  the  service  of  Peter 
the  Great  of  Russia,  and  later  served  with  the 
same  rank  in  the  Prussian  army.  He  was 
killed  at  Huckkirch  in  battle  with  the  Aus- 
trians  in  1758,  and  a  monument  was  erected 
to  his  memory  by  the  King  of  Prussia. 

The  Rev.  James  Keith,  the  founder  of  the 
family  in  America,  was  born  at  Aberdeen, 
Scotland,  in  1644,  and  came  to  this  country  in 
1662.  He  was  introduced  to  the  church  in 
Bridgewater,  Mass.,  by  Dr.  Increase  Mather, 
and  was  settled  as  its  pastor  on  February  18, 
1664.  The  house  in  which  he  lived  still 
stands  in  West  Bridgewater.  He  died  July 
23,  1719.  His  first  wife  was  Susanna,  daugh- 
ter of  Deacon  Samuel  Edson.     They  were  mar- 


ried May  3,  1668,  and  had  nine  children; 
namely,  James,  Joseph,  Samuel,  Timothy, 
John,  Josiah,  Margaret,  Mary,  and  Susannah. 
Mrs.  Susanna  Keith  died  October  16,  1705, 
aged  si.xty  -  five  years.  The  Rev.  James 
Keith's  second  wife  was  Mary,  widow  of 
Thomas  Williams,  of  Taunton. 

Timothy  Keith,  his  fourth  son,  was  born  in 
1683,  and  became  one  of  the  first  settlers  of 
North  Bridgewater.  He  died  November  8, 
1767.  He  and  his  wife,  Hannah,  daughter  of 
Deacon  Edward  Forbes,  had  four  children : 
Timothy,  second;  Abiah ;  Nathan;  Hannah. 
Timothy  Keith,  second,  died  in  1740,  aged 
twenty-nine  years.  He  married  Bethiah, 
daughter  of  William  Ames,  June  2,  1737,  and 
had  two  children — Levi  and  Timothy. 

Levi,  the  elder,  born  August  25,  1738, 
married  Jemima,  daughter  of  Mark  Perkins, 
November  8,  1S59,  and  had  Bethiah,  Timothy, 
Reuben,  Benjamin,  Jemima,  Jemima  (second), 
Molly,  Levi,  Molly  (second),  and  Anna.  Levi 
Keith  owned  a  tannery  at  the  corner  of  Mon- 
tello  and  Garfield  Streets.  He  was  a  shoe 
manufacturer  to  some  extent,  being  the  pioneer 
of  that  industry  here,  and  was  a  man  of  con- 
siderable property  and  influence  in  the  town. 
He  owned  and  occupied  the  house  on  the  cor- 
ner of  Main  and  Plain  Streets,  where  now 
stands  the  mansion  of  Mr.  Ziba  C.  Keith. 
He  died  in  181  3. 

Benjamin  Keith,  born  in  1763,  third  son  of 
Levi,  was  principally  a  farmer,  and  owned  an 
extensive  tract  of  land  on  Main  Street,  though 
he  also  made  shoes  and  operated  his  father's 
tannery.  He  married  Martha,  daughter  of 
Colonel  Simeon  Cary,  December  18,  1788, 
and  had  seven  children;  namely,  Ziba,  Arza, 
Bela,  Charles,  Polly,  Jason,  and  Benjamin. 
Mr.  Benjamin  Keith  died  September  9,  1814. 
His  wife  died  June  10,  1852,  at  the  age  of 
eighty-six  years. 


'5° 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Ziba  Keith,  son  of  Benjamin  and  Martha 
(Cary)  Keith,  was  born  November  30,  1789,  at 
the  old  homestead  on  Main  Street.  He  was  a 
shoemaker  in  early  life,  and  carried  on  this 
business  in  the  "Old  Red  Shop"  of  his  ances- 
tors. He  taught  his  sons  shoemaking  also. 
May  29,  1 8 16,  he  was  commissioned  by  Gov- 
ernor Brooks,  Ensign  of  a  Company  in  the 
Third  Regiment  of  Infantry;  and  December  5, 
1822,  was  promoted  to  be  Captain,  which  title 
he  retained  through  life.  An  upright  and  just 
man  in  all  his  dealings,  and  a  kind  neighbor, 
he  was  much  respected.  He  married  Novem- 
ber 25,  1813,  Sally  Cary,  daughter  of  Jonathan 
Cary,  and  by  this  union  had  nine  children: 
Benjamin;  Franklin;  Martha  C.  ;  Martin,  who 
died  in  infancy;  Martin  L.  ;  Nancy,  who  died 
young;  David  and  Jonathan  (twins),  the  former 
of  whom  died  in  infancy;  and  Levi  W.  Mrs. 
Sally  C.  Keith  died  September  26,  1832,  and 
Captain  Ziba  Keith  married  March  13,  1834, 
Polly,  daughter  of  Daniel  Noyes,  of  Abington. 
By  his  second  wife  he  had  three  sons  —  Daniel 
N.,  Edwin,  and  Ziba  Cary.  The  father  died 
September  28,  1862,  and  the  mother  June  14, 
1882. 

Ziba  Cary  Keith,  early  learning  that  his 
success  in  life  must  depend  largely  upon  his 
own  e.vertions,  applied  himself  betimes  to  the 
work  before  him.  His  industrial  training 
began  as  soon  as  he  was  able  to  wield  a  ham- 
mer and  drive  pegs  in  the  "Old  Red  Shop" 
and  use  a  rake  in  the  hay  field.  Meantime  he 
diligently  improved  his  opportunities  for  ob- 
taining an  education  in  the  district  schools  and 
at  Pierce  Academy.  At  eighteen  years  of  age 
he  went  to  work  in  the  shoe  manufactor}'  of  his 
brothers,  Martin  L.  Keith  &  Co.,  then  doing 
a  large  business.  He  was  afterward  book- 
keeper for  them  in  Boston  until  July,  1S63, 
when  he  returned  to  Campello  and  started  in 
business  with  Embert  Howard,  under  the  firm 


name  of  Howard  &  Keith.  Thc\-  conducted 
a  dry-goods  and  variety  store  for  two  years  and 
then  sold  out  to  Jonas  Reynold.  Si.x  months 
later  Mr.  Keith  bought  the  business,  which, 
with  the  exception  of  the  dry-goods  depart- 
ment, for  some  time  controlled  by  H.  P.  Hub- 
bard, he  carried  on  alone  till  1SS2,  when  he 
disposed  of  the  entire  interests  to  Pitts  &  Hay- 
ward  and  Thayer  &  Whitman. 

In  1875  and  1876  Mr.  Keith  served  as  Rep- 
resentative to  the  General  Court.  In  1879  he 
was  one  of  the  Selectmen  of  the  town.  In 
1 88 1  he  was  a  member  of  the  Committee  for 
drafting  the  city  charter,  and  when  Brockton 
was  made  a  city,  in  1881,  he  was  elected  the 
first  Mayor,  being  re-elected  in  1883,  1884, 
1891,  1892,  and  1893.  He  was  State  Senator 
from  the  Second  Plymouth  Senatorial  District 
in  1887  and  in  1888,  and  was  Tax  Collector 
in  1887-89.  He  was  largely  instrumental  in 
organizing  the  Campello  Co-operative  Bank, 
which  has  been  of  great  service  in  building 
the  southerly  wards  of  the  city  and  stimulating 
the  workmen  in  the  many  large  factories  to 
own  their  own  homes.  He  was  also  Director 
and  first  Vice-President  of  the  Brockton  Sav- 
ings Bank,  Director  of  the  Brockton  National 
Bank,  and  one  of  the  incorporators  of  the  Plym- 
outh County  Safe  Deposit  and  Trust  Com- 
pany, of  which  he  is  President.  In  January, 
1890,  he  was  appointed  by  Governor  Ames  on 
the  State  Commission  of  Health,  Lunacy  and 
Charity.  He  was' elected  in  the  fall  of  1892 
a  member  of  the  Governor's  Council,  which 
office  he  held  to  1896. 

He  has  ever  had  the  interests  of  Campello 
in  mind,  and  has  done  much  to  promote  the 
growth  and  prosperity  of  the  place.  He  was  a 
member  of  the  Parish  Committee  several  year.s, 
and  when  the  society  remodelled  and  enlarged 
their  church  in  1888  he  was  one  of  the  Build- 
ing Committee.      He  is  prominently  identified 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


151 


with  the  Commandery,  Chapter,  and  Lodge  of 
the  local  Masons.  In  politics  he  is  a  stanch 
Republican,  and  in  religion  connected  with 
the  South  Congregational  Church  of  Campello. 
Mr.  Keith  was  a  corporate  member  of  the 
original  street  railwa}' corporation  in  Brockton, 
and  Treasurer  of  same  for  several  years,  and  is 
now  Treasurer  of  the  Monarch  Rubber  Com- 
pany at  Campello.  Wherever  he  has  served  it 
has  been  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  great  mass 
of  citizens  and  thus  with  honor  to  himself. 
During  the  mayoralty  of  Mr.  Keith  was  inaug- 
urated the  system  of  sewerage  for  the  city  of 
Brockton  which  has  recently  been  completed. 
Then  also  was  brought  about  the  building  of 
the  elegant  new  City  Hall,  and  by  the  city  in 
conjunction  with  the  Old  Colony  Division  of 
the  New  York,  New  Haven  and  Hartford  Rail- 
way, the  abolishment  of  sixteen  grade  crossings. 

It  is  a  well-known  fact  that  much  of  the 
early  prosperity  of  l^rockton  was  due  to  his 
able  and  energetic  administration  of  its 
affairs  and  his  wide  knowledge  of  men  and 
business,  added  to  a  courteous  personality, 
which  has  endeared  him  to  the  hearts  of  his 
fellow-citizens.  Mr.  Bradford  Kingman  in 
his  "History  of  Brockton,"  says,  "He  is  a 
person  as  universally  beloved  and  esteemed  as 
any  one  whom  it  is  our  pleasure  to  know." 
Any  one  meeting  him  to  know  him  could  not 
but  be  impressed  with  his  sterling  integrity  of 
character,  while  admiring  his  frankness  and 
kindly  bearing  toward  every  person  irrespec- 
tive of  nationality  or  station.  He  has  a  fine 
ear  and  a  cultivated  talent  for  music,  and  for 
forty  years  he  was  organist  in  the  South 
Church. 

Mr.  Keith  married  on  December  3,  1865, 
Abbie  Frances  Jackson,  who  was  born  October 
21,  1848,  daughter  of  Oliver  and  Malvina 
Frances  Packard  Jackson,  of  North  l^ridge- 
water,    now   Brockton.      They  have    one    son, 


Willie  Clifton  Keith.  He  was  born  August 
31,  1866,  married  Eva  M.  Place,  April  28, 
1887,  and  has  one  son  —  Ziba  Cary  Keith,  Jr., 
who  was  born  June  13,   1888. 


^^•^» 


STThec 


HEODORE  T.  VAUGHN,  the  pro- 
^1  prietor  of  a  saw-mill  in  Centre  Carver, 
was  born  here,  July  22,  1857,  son  of 
Thomas  Vaughn,  a  farmer,  who  was  also  a 
native  of  the  town.  He  grew  to  manhood  on 
the  home  farm,  having  more  than  the  usual 
advantages  enjoyed  by  a  country  lad.  After 
attending  the  district  schools  in  his  boyhood, 
he  became  a  pupil  of  the  Middleboro  Acad- 
emy when  he  was  nineteen  years  old.  After- 
ward he  spent  a  term  in  the  Eastman  Busi- 
ness College  of  New  York. 

After  leaving  college  he  and  his  brother, 
James  A.  Vaughn,  engaged  in  the  nursery 
business,  and  carried  it  on  for  about  five  years. 
At  the  expiration  of  that  time  he  withdrew 
from  it,  and  assumed  charge  of  a  steam  saw- 
mill in  Centre  Carver,  which  he  still  oper- 
ates. In  this  venture  he  has  been  quite 
successful.  The  mill  is  principally  engaged 
in  the  manufacture  of  box  boards.  Mr. 
Vaughn  has  also  been  successful  in  raising 
cranberries  for  the  city  markets.  On  Septem- 
ber 15,  1878,  he  was  married  to  Miss  Eliza- 
beth Leach,  daughter  of  Ezra  H.  and  Nancy 
W.  Leach,  of  Plymouth.  Their  three  chil- 
dren are:  Lillian  M.,  born  December  28, 
1879;  Bertha  F. ,  born  June  24,  1885;  and 
Herbert  J.,  born  March  25,  1887.  In  politics 
Mr.  Vaughn  acts  independently  of  party,  and 
takes  a  deep  interest  in  the  labor  question. 
He  has  served  in  the  offices  of  Overseer  of  the 
Poor  and  Assessor,  and  he  was  Selectman  for 
seven  years.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Order  of 
United  Workmen.  Both  he  and  his  family 
attend  the  Baptist  church. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


APTAIN   JUDAH    HATHAWAY,   of 
T        Rochester,  now  prosperously  engaged 

^f '  in   farming  and   the   manufacture   of 

lumber,  after  spending  many  years  in  seafar- 
ing, was  born  in  VVareham,  Mass.,  March  lo, 
1832,  son  of  Judah  and  Bethia  Hathaway. 
His  father  having  died  when  he  was  two  years 
old,  as  soon  as  he  was  able  to  be  of  service 
he  went  to  work  on  a  farm.  He  received  very 
little  schooling,  but  his  natural  intelligence 
has  since  adequately  made  up  for  that  loss. 
After  working  as  a  farm  hand  until  he  was 
seventeen  years  old,  he  shipped  before  the 
mast  on  a  New  Bedford  whaling-vessel,  under 
the  command  of  Captain  Alden  Besse.  In  his 
first  voyage,  which  was  a  long  one,  lasting 
three  years  and  a  half,  he  went  to  the  whaling- 
grounds  of  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific.  Before 
the  end  of  his  second  voyage,  which  was  made 
on  a  schooner  from  Marion,  he  had  taken  rank 
as  an  able  seaman,  and  was  promoted  to  the 
position  of  second  mate.  After  that  he  made 
several  whaling  voyages,  and  at  the  age  of 
thirty-three  became  master  of  a  vessel.  Dur- 
ing the  war  he  was  mate  of  the  brig  "Alta- 
hama,"  which  was  seized  by  the  famous  Con- 
federate privateer,  the  "Alabama."  The  brig 
was  burned,  and  the  crew  were  carried  by  the 
"Alabama"  to  one  of  the  Azores,  from  which, 
after  remaining  a  week,  they  were   sent   home. 

Captain  Hathaway  owned  shares  in  a  num- 
ber of  the  vessels  which  he  sailed,  and  had  an 
interest  in  several  when  he  retired  from  the 
sea  in  1869.  In  that  year  he  settled  in  his 
present  home,  which  has  been  his  abode  for 
nearly  thirty  years.  He  owns  one  thousand 
acres  of  land  and  two  mills.  In  the  mills  he 
manufactures  long  lumber  and  shingles. 

Captain  Hathaway  was  married  in  i860  to 
Miss  Ellen  L.  Lewis,  of  Rochester,  Mass. 
He  has  five  children  —  Mary  L. ,  Elizabeth  T., 
David   L.   K.,   Ellen  A.,    and  Hattie  F.      In 


politics  he  favors  the  Republican  side,  and 
was  in  the  State  legislature  in  1869.  Work- 
ing his  way  from  the  penniless  condition  of  a 
fatherless  boy,  he  has  well  earned  the  ease  and 
affluence  he  now  enjoys. 


ERBERT  L.  TINKHAM,  Treasurer 
of  the  W.  L.  Douglas  Shoe  Com- 
-  V  ^  pany,  is  one  of  the  capable  and  pro- 
gressive young  business  men  of  the  city  of 
Brockton,  Mass.  A  son  of  Charles  C.  and 
Abigail  ("Ashley)  Tinkham,  he  was  born 
March  13,  1869,  in  Middleboro,  Mass.,  and  is 
a  representative  of  one  of  the  old  families  of 
that  vicinity. 

A  Seth  Tinkham  served  in  the  French  and 
Indian  War.  John  Tinkham,  Mr.  Herbert  L. 
Tinkham 's  great-grandfather,  who  was  a 
farmer,  was  a  lifelong  resident  of  Middleboro, 
and  a  Deacon  of  the  first  church  there.  His 
son  Josiah,  the  ne.xt  in  this  line,  was  also  a 
farmer  of  Middleboro.  He  was  a  man  of 
character  and  ability,  commonly  called  Cap- 
tain Tinkham,  as  he  was  an  officer  in  the 
Plymouth  militia;  and  he  was  elected  to  the 
State  Senate  on  the  Democratic  ticket.  He 
lived  to  an  advanced  age.  Five  children 
grew  up  in  the  home  of  Captain  Tinkham, 
only  one  of  whom,  Charles  C,  is  living 
to-day. 

Charles  C.  Tinkham  was  born  and  educated 
in  Middleboro,  and  for  thirty  years  has  been 
in  business  in  that  place  as  a  contractor.  He 
is  now  si.\ty-two  years  of  age.  His  wife,  who 
also  is  living,  is  a  daughter  of  Noah  Ashley, 
of  Lakeville,  Plymouth  County,  Mass.  They 
have  reared  two  children — Herbert  L.  and 
Amelia  C.  The  daughter  is  with  her  parents 
in  Middleboro. 

Herbert  L.  Tinkham  attended  the  common 
schools  of  his  native  place,  and  also  the  Eaton 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


153 


Commercial  School,  where  he  learned  book- 
keeping. His  first  position  after  leaving 
school  was  as  book-keeper  for  Mitchell,  Fales 
&  Co.,  a  shoe  firm  of  Campello,  with  whom  he 
remained  two  years.  In  18S9  he  was  engaged 
as  book-keeper  in  the  W.  L.  Douglas  factory, 
which  position  he  filled  for  three  years;  and 
in  1893  he  was  elected  to  his  present  position 
of  Treasurer  of  the  well-known  W.  L.  Douglas 
Shoe  Company.  The  business  has  increased 
rapidly  during  the  past  five  or  six  years.  The 
position  is  a  responsible  one,  requiring  gen- 
eral financial  ability,  with  sound  judgment 
and  thoroughness  in  matters  of  detail.  Mr. 
Tinkham  is  regarded  as  one  of  the  leading 
business  men  of  Brockton,  though  not  yet 
thirty  years  old.  In  1896  he  was  elected  a 
Director  of'  the  Brockton,  Bridgewater  & 
Taunton  Street  Railroad. 

He  was  married  April  24,  1894,  to  Alice 
A.,  eldest  daughter  of  W.  L.  Douglas.  Mrs. 
Tinkham  died  December  30,  1895,  aged 
twenty-six  years.  Mr.  Tinkham  is  a  member 
of  Paul  Revere  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M. ;  Sa- 
tucket  Royal  Arch  Chapter;  Harmony  Lodge, 
No.  27,  Knights  of  Pythias;  and  the  Commer- 
cial Club  of  this  city.  He  is  also  a  member 
of  tha  Universalist  church  of  Brockton. 


REDERICK  G.  BRACKKTT,  an  en- 
(j  terprising  wood  and  lumber  dealer  of 
Kingston,  Mass.,  was  born  in  Exeter, 
N.H.,  September  20,  1854,  son  of  George  W. 
and  Bathsheba  (Eldridge)  Brackett.  His 
grandfather,  William  Brackett,  was  a  native 
of  New  England.  George  VV.  Brackett,  who 
was  a  native  of  New  Hampshire,  for  many 
years  conducted  a  store  in  Colebrook,  that 
State.  He  subsequently  moved  from  that 
town  to  Everett,  Mass.,  where  he  continued  in 
mercantile   business   for   the  rest    of    his    life. 


He  died  in  1884.  His  wife,  Bathsheba,  was 
also  a  native  of  New  Hampshire. 

Frederick  G.  Brackett  began  his  education 
in  the  common  schools  of  Colebrook,  and  then 
attended  the  academy  at  Fryeburg,  Me. ,  from 
which  he  was  graduated  in  1S72.  At  an  early 
age  he  was  accustomed  to  assist  his  father  in 
the  store.  When  eighteen  years  old  he  went 
to  Newton,  Mass.,  where  he  was  employed  by 
the  Hon.  C.  P.  Hoogs,  with  whom  he  re- 
mained until  Mr.  Hoogs's  death  in  1877, 
when  he  came  to  Kingston,  and  purchased  a 
farm  here.  After  following  agricultural  pur- 
suits for  a  few  years,  he  engaged  in  his 
present  business,  conducting  a  saw-mill,  and 
dealing  in  lumber  and  wood,  and  he  now  has  a 
large  and  growing  trade. 

In  1872  Mr.  Brackett  was  united  in  mar- 
riage to  Cora  E.  Merrill,  a  native  of  Lovell, 
Me.,  and  a  daughter  of  Albert   Merrill. 

In  politics  Mr.  Brackett  acts  with  the  Re- 
publican party,  and  is  now  in  his  second  year 
of  service  as  a  Road  Commissioner.  He  is  an 
able  and  energetic  business  man,  and  a  pro- 
gressive citizen,  taking  an  active  interest  in 
all  public  improvements.  Since  settling  in 
Kingston,  he  has  gained  the  good  will  and 
esteem  of  the  townspeople,  and  is  very  popular 
in  social  circles.  He  is  a  member  of  Adams 
Lodge,  Independent  Order  of  Odd  Fellows  of 
this  town. 


5. 


URGESS  P.  TERRY,  a  well-known 
machinist  of  Plymouth,  Plymouth 
County,  Mass.,  was  born  in  Exeter, 
Washington  County,  R.I.,  August  i,  1816,  a 
son  of  Moses  and  Sarah  Terry.  He  was 
reared  on  the  home  farm;  and  at  the  age  of 
nineteen  years  he  began  to  learn  the  machin- 
ist's trade  in  Pawtucket,  R.I.  After  a  period 
of  five  years  he  removed  to  Newton  Upper 
Falls,  Mass.;  and  thence  in  1855    he  came   to 


154 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Plymouth,  where  he  resided  uninterruptedly 
until  1886.  l'"or  twenty-three  years  he  acted 
as  the  repairer  for  the  Old  Colony  Duck 
Mills,  located  at  Chiltonville;  and  for  a 
period  of  six  years  he  was  employed  in  a  like 
capacity  in  the  Russell  Mills  at  Plymouth. 
Since  1886  he  has  lived  at  Chiltonville,  and 
has  been  principally  occupied  with  the  care  of 
a  garden.  In  1839  Mr.  Terry  married  Miss 
Naomi  Doten,  a  native  of  Plymouth,  where 
she  was  born  to  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Prince  Doten 
on  January  14,  1821.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Terry  are 
the  parents  of  eight  children;  namely,  Lucy 
M.,  Sarah  R.,  N.  Augusta,  Lorenzo  B., 
Alhion  B.,  Viola  V.,  Arthur  L.,  and  Ella  D. 
Mr.  Terry's  political  principles  bring  him 
into  fellowship  with  the  Democratic  party. 
In  religious  faith  he  is  a  Universal ist.  Mr. 
Terry  has  achieved  a  goodly  degree  of  success 
in  his  industrial  career,  and  he  is  now  the 
possessor  of  a  considerable  amount  of  property 
in  Plymouth.  He  has  attained  to  a  venerable 
age,  and  it  is  hoped  that  the  passing  of  many 
more  milestones  of  life  is  yet  in  store  for 
him. 


•BEL  WASHBURN  KINGMAN,  M.D., 
was  for  many  years  the  leading  physi- 
cian of  Brockton;  and  his  death, 
which  occurred  in  18S3,  was  the  cause  of  uni- 
versal sorrow.  He  was  born  April  22,  1806, 
on  Pine  Street,  in  the  eastern  part  of  the  city, 
which  was  then  a  portion  of  old  Bridgewater. 
His  parents  were  the  Hon.  Abel  and  Lucy 
(Washburn)  Kingman.  The  Kingman  family, 
founded  by  Henry  Kingman,  who  settled  in 
Weymouth,  Mass.,  in  1636,  has  for  many 
years  occupied  a  prominent  position  in  this 
part  of  Plymouth  County.  The  Hon.  Abel 
Kingman,  wlio  was  the  owner  of  large  estates, 
was  a  man  of  ability,  Representative  to  the 
General    Court,    State    Senator,    and    a    leader 


among   his   contemporaries.      He  and   his  wife 
had  a  family  of  fifteen  children. 

Abel  Washburn,  who  was  the  seventh  child, 
attended  the  schools  of  his  native  town,  also 
the  Bridgewater  State  Normal  School,  and 
was  graduated  from  Amherst  College  at  the 
age  of  twenty-four.  As  soon  as  his  profes- 
sional training  was  finished,  he  began  to  prac- 
tise at  Dartmouth,  Mass.,  and  subsequently 
settled  permanently  in  North  Bridgewater, 
now  Brockton.  A  skilful  and  successful  phy- 
sician, he  was  kind-hearted  and  was  conscien- 
tious in  the  discharge  of  his  duties;  and  he 
won  the  love  and  respect  of  all  who  knew  him 
best.  For  some  time  he  was  by  many  years 
the  senior  physician  in  the  town.  About 
twelve  years  prior  to  his  death,  a  nervous 
trouble  with  which  he  was  afflicted  deprived 
him  of  sight,  and  he  was  obliged  to  retire 
from  practice  and  from  active  participation  in 
town  and  church  matters,  in  which  he  had 
always  been  interested.  In  politics,  Dr. 
Kingman  in  his  early  manhood  was  a  Demo- 
crat. He  was  in  office  only  once,  serving  as 
Postmaster  of  Brockton,  under  Presidents  Bu- 
chanan and  Pierce.  Being  a  man  filled  with 
patriotism,  during  the  war  he  became  a  Re- 
publican, and  was  an  ardent  admirer  of  Presi- 
dent Lincoln.  He  belonged  to  no  social 
organizations,  not  approving  of  secret  orders. 
He  died  May  4,  1883,  a  few  days  after  his 
seventy-seventh  birthday. 

Dr.  Kingman  was  twice  married.  His  first 
wife,  formerly  Miss  Clarissa  Alden,  was  a 
daughter  of  Williams  Alden,  who  was  a  lineal 
descendant  of  John  and  Priscilla  Alden,  and 
also  of  Richard  Williams,  one  of  the  founders 
of  Taunton,  Mass.,  and  a  cousin  of  Oliver 
Cromwell.  His  second  wife,  to  whom  he  was 
united  in  i860,  was  Olive  Tucker,  daughter  of 
Deacon  Daniel  Alden,  of  Randolph,  Mass. 
Her  father,  who  was  a  carpenter  by  trade,  and 


ABEL    W.    KINGMAN. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


157 


was  a  contractor  and  builder,  was  a  lineal  de- 
scendant of  John  Alden.  He  was  Senior  Dea- 
con in  the  Baptist  church  of  Randolph. 
Through  her  grandmother,  Mrs.  Kingman  was 
related  to  the  Cary  family.  The  Doctor  left 
three  sons,  who  attained  prominence  as  dry- 
goods  merchants  in  Boston  and  New  York. 
They  are:  A.  Willard,  residing  in  New  York; 
Thomas  S.,  who  has  retired  from  business,  is 
living  in  Orange,  N.J. ;  and  Barton  E.,  who 
is  in  business  in  New  York  City,  and  has  a 
residence  on  the  Hudson  at  Yonkers.  Three 
children  of  Dr.  Alden  died  in  infancy;  and 
one,  a  daughter,  Clara  Clifford,  married  Cap- 
tain Alexander  Whelden,  of  Dartmouth, 
Mass.,    and  died    1882. 


"CS^/Tnslow 

VSV        cember 


DREW,  who  died  on  De- 
7,  1S82,  at  his  home  in 
Plymouth,  Mass. ,  where  he  was  a 
highly  respected  resident,  was  born  in  this 
town,  December  17,  1S09,  son  of  William 
and  Priscilla  (Washburn)  Drew.  This  branch 
of  the  Drew  family,  which  is  of  English 
stock,  was  founded  by  John  Drew,  who  came 
to  Plymouth  about  forty  years  after  the  land- 
ing of  the  Pilgrims.  Lemuel  Drew,  the 
father  of  William  Drew,  was  a  native  and  life- 
long resident  of  Plymouth,  and  was  prominent 
in  the  old  church  here,  of  which  he  was  a  Dea- 
con for  many  years.  On  the  maternal  side, 
the  late  Mr.  Winslow  Drew  was  a  descendant 
of  Captain  Miles  Standish. 

William  Drew,  Mr.  Drew's  father,  was 
born  in  Plymouth,  and  became  a  prominent 
builder  of  his  day.  He  erected  many  substan- 
tial buildings  here,  including  the  residences 
of  Mrs.  William  Stoddard,  and  Mrs.  Sue 
Davis  on  Court  Street,  which  attest  his  thor- 
ough manner  in  completing  his  work.  He 
conducted    a   very   prosperous    business   under 


his  personal  supervision  up  to  the  time  of  his 
death,  which  took  place  when  he  was  between 
sixty  and  seventy  years  old.  He  married 
Priscilla  Washburn,  a  native  of  Kingston, 
Mass.,  and  she  became  the  mother  of  the  fol- 
lowing children:  Priscilla  Washburn;  Will- 
iam Thomas;  Winslow,  the  subject  of  this 
sketch;  Betsey;  Matilda;  Theodore;  Rufus 
Washburn;  Maria  Chilton;  and  George 
Prince.  Of  these  the  only  ones  now  living 
are:  Betsey,  who  is  the  widow  of  Thomas 
Allen,  and  resides  in  Boston;  and  Maria, 
who  is  the  widow  of  Loten  Jennings,  and 
resides  in  New  Orleans,    La. 

Winslow  Drew  was  educated  in  the  common 
schools,  and  after  finishing  his  studies  he 
learned  the  carpenter's  trade.  He  was  asso- 
ciated with  his  father  in  business  for  some 
years,  later  going  into  partnership  with  his 
brother,  William  T.  Drew,  with  whom  he  car- 
ried on  a  very  successful  business.  Among 
the  buildings  which  were  erected  under  his 
direction  is  the  residence  of  Marston  Watson, 
the  house  on  the  corner  of  Vernon  and  Court 
Streets,  which  is  now  occupied  by  Mr.  Ripley; 
the  residence  of  Mrs.  Warren  on  Chilton 
Street;  and  the  house  where  his  daughter  now 
resides.  His  last  days  of  activity  were  spent 
mostly  in  the  work  of  finishing;  and  he  died 
at  the  age  of  seventy-three  years,  lacking  ten 
days.  In  politics  he  was  originally  a  Whig, 
later  joining  the  Republican  party.  He 
joined  Plymouth  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M., 
about  the  year  1858,  and  he  advanced  in  Ma- 
sonry to  the  Royal  Arch  degree,  being  a  char- 
ter member  of  Samoset  Chapter.  In  his 
religious  views  he  was  a  Unitarian. 

On  March  2,  1833,  Mr.  Winslow  Drew  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Abby  Winslow  Till- 
son,  of  Plymouth,  who  survived  him  several 
years.  She  was  a  daughter  of  Hamblin  and 
Susan  (Bradford)  Tillson,  the  former  a  native 


•58 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


of  Carver,  Mass.,  and  the  latter  of  Plympton, 
Mass.,  and  on  her  mother's  side  a  direct  de- 
scendant in  the  seventh  generation  of  Gover- 
nor Bradford.  Hamblin  and  Susan  (Bradford) 
Tillson  were  the  parents  of  two  sons  and 
seven  daughters,  of  whom  Mrs.  Drew  was  the 
last  survivor.  The  others  were:  Henry, 
Susan  Bradford,  Ann  Hamblin,  Rebecca  Fos- 
ter, Mary  Williams,  Henry  Hamblin,  Maria, 
and  one  who  tliccl  in  infancy. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Winslow  Drew  reared  three 
children,  as  follows:  Augusta  Winslow,  who 
on  October  19,  1853,  married  William  F. 
Spinney,  of  Lynn,  Mass.,  and  died  November 
22,  1864,  aged  thirty-one  years;  Edward  Wins- 
low, a  carpenter  by  trade,  who  on  February 
17,  1870,  married  Betsey  C.  Holmes,  of  Cam- 
bridge, Mass.,  and  died  January  6,  1884,  aged 
forty-eight  years;  and  Emma  F.,  a  graduate 
of  the  Plymouth  High  School,  who  resides  at 
the  homestead  in  Plymouth,  where  she  was 
born.  Abby  Winslow,  widow  of  Winslow 
Drew,  died  December  9,  1896.  Although 
nearly  eighty-eight  years  of  age  she  retained 
perfect  control  of  her  faculties,  her  eyesight, 
hearing,  and  memory  being  exceptionally 
good,  even  to  the  last  hour  of  her  long  life. 
She  was  amiable  and  cheerful  in  disposition, 
a  devoted  wife  and  mother,  and  was  beloved 
by  all  who  knew  her. 


B 


AVH)  DELANO,  a  respected  resi- 
dent of  Kingston,  member  of  the 
Board  of  Selectmen,  was  born  in 
Duxbury,  November  30,  1827,  son  of  Hosea 
and  Hannah  (Brewster)  Delano.  Mr.  Del- 
ano's paternal  ancestors  were  of  French 
origin,  and  his  mother  was  a  descendant  of 
Elder  Brewster,  the  "Mayflower"  Pilgrim. 
Oliver  Delano,  Mr.  Delano's  grandfather, 
served  under  General  Washington,  in  the  Rev- 


olutionary War,  and  was  present  at  the  sur- 
render of  General  Burgoyne. 

Hosea  Delano  was  a  native  and  lifelong  res- 
ident of  Duxbury,  and  during  his  active  period 
he  followed  the  trade  of  a  carpenter.  He  was 
known  and  respected  as  a  worthy,  upright 
man,  and  a  useful  citizen.  He  was  a  Whig 
in  politics.  He  died  in  1844.  ^^^  his  chil- 
dren, the  following  survive:  Deborah,  wife 
of  Lewis  M.  l^ailey,  of  Duxbury;  David,  the 
subject  of  this  sketch;  P'rederick,  a  resident 
of  Marshfield;  and  Charles,  who  resides  in 
Kingston. 

David  Delano  was  reared  and  educated  in 
Duxbury.  At  the  age  of  twenty  he  began  to 
learn  the  carpenter's  trade.  Finishing  his 
apprenticeship  he  worked  as  a  journeyman  for 
nearly  forty  years,  or  until  1886,  and  for  many 
years  past  he  has  been  a  resident  of  Kingston. 
In  1885  he  was  elected  a  member  of  the  Board 
of  Selectmen,  on  which  he  has  since  served 
with  the  exception  of  a  period  of  three  years; 
and  he  has  been  Road  Commissioner  for  six 
years.      In  politics  he  is  a  Republican. 

Mr.  Delano  has  been  twice  married.  P'or 
his  first  wife  he  wedded  Sylvia  Chandler,  who 
became  the  mother  of  three  children,  two  of 
whom  are  living,  namely:  David  H.,  who  re- 
sides in  Kingston;  and  Lucy,  wife  of  Claude 
M.  Chandler,  of  this  town.  His  present  wife 
was  before  marriage  Martha  Delano,  of  Dux- 
bury. Of  this  union  there  were  born  five 
children,  of  whom  two  are  living:  M.  Parker, 
who  is  a  resident  of  Kingston  ;  and  Walter  E., 
of  lilmvvood,  Mass.  In  matters  relating  to 
the  general  welfare  and  improvement  of 
the  town,  Mr.  Delano  has  always  evinced  a 
deep  interest.  His  ability  and  sound  judg- 
ment in  the  transaction  of  public  business 
have  gained  for  him  the  sincere  respect  and 
esteem  of  his  fellow-townsmen.  He  is  a 
member  of  the  Second  Congregational  Society. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


159 


iHARLES  EVERETT  DOUGLAS, 
proprietor  of  an  extensive  bakery  in 
Plymouth,  was  born  in  this  town, 
June  28,  1855,  son  of  Nathan  and  Angeline 
(Thresher)  Douglas.  His  ancestors  for  sev- 
eral generations  have  resided  in  Plymouth 
County.  The  family  traces  its  origin  to  the 
Scotch  Douglases,  who  were  Lords  of  Doug- 
las, and  claimed  a  lineage  extending  back  to 
A.D.  770.  From  that  time,  down  to  the 
union  with  England,  representatives  of  the 
latter  family  figured  conspicuously  in  the  his- 
tory of  Scotland.  They  were  among  the  chief 
supporters  of  Robert  Bruce,  and  later  took 
part  in  the  various  wars  with  England,  and  they 
fought  in  the  famous  Battle  of  Flodden  Field. 
The  Douglases  were  eleven  times  united  by 
marriage  to  the  Royal  Family  of  Scotland, 
and  once  with  that  of  England.  Their  many 
deeds  of  chivalry  have  been  the  foundation  of 
various  prose  and  poetical  romances,  including 
the  celebrated  poems  of  Sir  Walter  Scott, 
entitled  "The  Lady  of  the  Lake,"  and  "Mar- 
mion." 

John  Douglas,  the  founder  of  the  Douglas 
family  in  America,  who  was  born  in  Scotland 
in  1695,  settled  in  Middleboro,  Mass.,  in 
1 719,  and  married  Eunice  Ratcliffe,  of  that 
town.  Joseph  Douglas,  a  descendant  of  John, 
born  in  North  Yarmouth,  followed  the  occupa- 
tion of  a  farmer,  and  eiitered  the  Society  of 
P'riends.  A  succeeding  John  Douglas,  prob- 
ably the  great-grandfather  of  Charles  E.,  was 
born  in  Middleboro,  and  served  in  the  Revolu- 
tionary War  as  an  Orderly  Sergeant.  He 
was  paid  off  in  Continental  currency,  the 
value  of  which  may  be  inferred  from  the  fact 
that  Sergeant  Douglas  was  obliged  to  pay 
sixty  dollars  of  it  for  a  gallon  of  molasses, 
and  a  hundred  dollars  for  a  pound  of  tea. 
Joshua  Douglas,  the  grandfather  of  Charles  E. , 
was  engaged  in  agricultural   pursuits  at   Half- 


way Pond  during  the  active  period  of  his  life, 
and  died  in  this  town.  Pie  reared  a  family  of 
eio-ht  children,  of  whom  Nathan  was  the  fifth 
born.  Having  grown  up  on  his  father's  farm, 
Nathan  Douglas  in  early  manhood  began  to 
work  in  a  saw-mill  at  Half-way  Pond,  where 
he  was  afterward  employed  for  many  years. 
In  the  latter  part  of  his  life  he  was  night 
watchman  at  the  mill.  He  enjoyed  the 
esteem  and  good  will  of  his  neighbors,  and  he 
died  in  Plymouth,  at  the  age  of  sixty-five 
years.  His  wife,  Angeline,  who  was  a  daugh- 
ter of  Jonathan  Thresher,  of  this  town,  bore 
him  four  children  —  Nathan  W.,  Charles  E., 
Henry  Lewis,  and  Elmer  Edwards. 

Charles  Everett  Douglas  grew  to  manhood 
in  Plymouth,  obtaining  his  education  in  the 
common  schools.  Owing  to  impaired  sight, 
he  was  obliged  to  relinquish  his  studies  at  an 
early  age.  When  a  young  man  he  entered  the 
general  store  of  George  Bramhall  at  Chilton- 
ville  as  a  clerk,  and  remained  there  for  two 
years.  In  1878  he  became  connected  with 
the  bakery  business,  driving  a  team  for  Mr. 
Phinney  for  some  time.  At  a  later  date  he 
eneaared  in  the  same  business  for  himself. 
Beginning  in  a  small  way,  he  gradually  ad- 
vanced until  his  enterprise  developed  into  its 
present  flourishing  condition.  He  now  has  an 
oven  covering  an  area  of  one  hundred  square 
feet,  employs  eight  hands,  runs  two  teams, 
and  delivers  bread  and  pastry  over  a  large 
circuit. 

On  November  7,  1878,  Mr.  Douglas  wedded 
Mercy  B.  Holbrook,  a  daughter  of  Gideon  and 
Victorine  (Simmons)  Holbrook,  both  of  whom 
are  natives  of  Plymouth.  After  following  the 
trade  of  a  cooper  in  this  town  for  many  years, 
Gideon  Holbrook  became  a  fish  packer,  and  he 
is  now  living  in  retirement  at  the  home  of  his 
son,  having  reached  the  age  of  seventy-seven. 
He  has  been  a  Deacon  of  the   Baptist   church 


i6o 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


for  nearly  fifty  years.  His  wife,  Victorine, 
whose  father  was  a  sea  captain,  is  descended 
from  one  of  the  "Mayflower"  Pilgrims.  She 
became  the  mother  of  seven  children.  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Douglas  have  one  son,  Charles 
Everett,  born  April  23,  1880.  Mr.  Douglas 
takes  an  active  interest  in  all  matters  relative 
to  the  general  welfare  of  the  town,  and  is  re- 
garded as  one  of  its  most  energetic  residents. 
He  is  connected  with  the  Plymouth  Mutual 
Benefit  Association,  and  is  a  member  of  Plym- 
outh Rock  Lodge,  No.  84,  A.  O.  Y.  W. 
Both  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Douglas  are  active  mem- 
bers of  the  Baptist  church. 


LIVER  COBB  is  a  well-known  busi- 
ness man  of  Marion.  He  was  born 
on  the  farm  where  he  now  lives  Feb- 
ruary 18,  1828.  His  parents,  the  Rev.  Oliver 
and  Hannah  (Burgess)  Cobb,  reared  four  chil- 
dren, two  sons  and  two  daughters.  At  the  age 
of  fifteen  Oliver  went  to  sea,  and  in  the  ensu- 
ing two  years  visited  many  of  the  Atlantic 
ports,  and  made  one  voyage  to  Europe.  At 
seventeen  he  went  to  Taunton,  where  he 
served  an  apprenticeship  to  the  carpenter's 
trade.  In  1849  he  joined  a  band  of  gold  seek- 
ers, who,  starting  from  New  York  City,  went 
by  way  of  the  Isthmus  to  California,  taking 
si.\  months  to  reach  their  destination.  Land- 
ing at  San  Diego,  he  remained  there  a  short 
time.  Then  he  proceeded  to  San  Francisco, 
where  he  worked  at  his  trade  for  three  months. 
Going  then  to  Mokelumne  River,  in  the  cen- 
tral part  of  the  State,  he  was  engaged  in  min- 
ing for  four  months.  Returning  to  San 
Francisco,  he  formed  a  copartnership  with  a 
supposed  friend,  and,  building  a  store,  was 
engaged  in  mercantile  pursuits  for  si.\  months. 
At  the  end  of  that  time  he  returned  to  the 
mines  for  a  four  months'  stay.     On  his  return 


he  found  that  his  partner  had  sold  the  store 
and  "skipped"  the  country,  taking  with  him 
all  the  available  funds.  Mr.  Cobb  resumed 
mining,  and  met  with  fair  success  during  the 
next  two  years.  He  then  came  East,  arriving 
in  Marion  in  May,   1853. 

After  his  marriage  Mr.  Cobb  again  went  to 
the  Pacific  Coast,  and  was  engaged  at  the 
mines  for  nearly  a  year  and  a  half.  On  his 
return  to  Marion  he  invested  his  hard-earned 
money  in  his  present  farm,  the  homestead  on 
which  he  was  born  and  reared.  In  1857  he 
made  a  third  trip  to  California,  where  he  spent 
six  months  in  disposing  of  property  which  he 
had  acquired  there.  He  then  went  to  Kansas, 
intending  to  make  that  his  future  home,  but 
came  to  the  conclusion  that  Massachusetts  was 
good  enough.  In  1862  he  enlisted  in  defence 
of  the  Union,  joining  as  a  private  Company  I, 
Thirty-thiid  Massachusetts  Volunteer  Infan- 
try, being  mustered  into  service  in  Lynnfield. 
He  subsequently  participated  in  the  battles  of 
Chancel lorsvi lie,  Beverly  Ford,  and  Gettys- 
burg. After  the  latter  engagement  Mr.  Cobb 
had  a  severe  attack  of  pneumonia,  which  ne- 
cessitated his  being  sent  to  Frederick  City 
Hospital,  where  he  remained  three  months. 
From  there  he  was  sent  to  Baltimore,  where 
he  was  honorably  discharged  in  1864.  Except 
when  prevented  by  ill  health,  he  has  since  been 
industriously  employed  in  agricultural  pur- 
suits, having  a  well-kept  farm  of  thirty  acres. 

In  1853  Mr.  Cobb  married  Lucy  Ellis,  by 
whom  he  is  now  the  father  of  three  children  — 
Oliver,  George,  and  Albert.  He  affiliates 
with  the  Republican  party,  and  for  seven  years 
served  as  a  member  of  the  School  Committee 
in  Marion.  He  is  an  active  member  of  the 
Congregational  Church,  in  which  he  has  served 
as  Deacon  for  eight  years;  and  he  is  a  member 
of  William  Logan  Post,  No.  i.  Grand  Army 
of  the  Republic,  of  New  Bedford. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


i6i 


TAYLOR  HARRINGTON,  propri- 
etor of  the  Oregon  House,  a  popular 
hotel  in  Hull,  much  patronized  by 
summer  guests,  was  born  October  14,  1849, 
under  the  roof  of  the  old  Pearl  Street  House, 
corner  of  Pearl  and  Milk  Streets,  Boston,  son 
of  Abel  and  Sophia  Lyman  (Scates)  Harring- 
ton. He  was  named  after  President  Zachary 
Taylor,  who  had  been  recently  inaugurated. 
His  twin  brother,  who  died  at  the  age  of  five 
years  and  si.\  months,  was  named  after  the 
American  Commander  in  the  Mexican  War, 
Winfield  Scott. 

The  Harringtons  are  of  English  stock  and 
have  been  residents  of  the  old  Bay  State  for 
over  two  hundred  and  fifty  years.  The  immi- 
grant progenitor  of  this  branch  of  the  family 
was  Robert  Harrington  born  in  1616,  who  was 
a  landed  proprietor  in  Watertown,  Mass.,  as 
early  as  1642,  was  made  a  freeman  in  1663, 
and  died  in  1707.  The  stone  that  marks  his 
grave  in  Mount  Auburn  Cemetery  is  still  in  a 
good  state  of  preservation.  Beside  it  is  that 
of  his  wife,  Susanna  George  Harrington,  who 
was  born  in  1632,  and  who  was  the  mother  of 
thirteen  children.  Thomas,  the  ninth  child, 
born  April  20,  1665,  was  made  a  freeman 
April  18,  i6go,  and  died  March  29,  171 2. 
On  April  i,  16S6,  he  married  Rebecca,  the 
widow  of  John  White,  and  a  daughter  of  John 
Bern  is.  Their  son  George,  born  August  31, 
1695,  married  in  171 5,  Hepzibah  P"iske,  who 
died  in  1736,  having  had  thirteen  children. 
The  ninth  child,  John,  was  the  ne.xt  in  the  line 
of  descent.  Born  December  14,  1719,  he 
married  November  13,1740,  Sarah  Barnard,  of 
Waltham,  Mass.,  who  had  eight  children. 
The  fifth  of  these  children,  Abraham,  born  in 
1750,  on  November  5,  1776,  married  Annie 
Russell,  of  Framingham,  Mass.,  who  bore  him 
eleven  children. 

Luther  Harrington,  a  son   of   Abraham,  and 


grandfather  of  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  was 
born  in  Weston,  Mass.,  in  1787,  and  spent  his 
life  as  a  farmer  in  that  town.  He  was  a  Dem- 
ocrat, took  a  prominent  part  in  public  affairs, 
and  held  the  office  of  Deputy  Sheriff  of  Mid- 
dlese.x  County  for  many  years.  He  married 
Achsah  Vilas,  of  Waltham,  who  had  by  him 
ten  children,  three  of  whom  are  living. 
These  are :  Luther  Harrington,  Jr.,  who  mar- 
ried Emily  Hagar,  of  Weston,  Mass.,  and  has 
two  children  — Eliza  and  Edith;  John  O.  A., 
who  married  Abigail  Jones,  of  Weston,  and 
has  four  children  —  Boutwell,  Mabel,  Luther, 
and  Sophia;  and  Charlotte  Fiske  Harrington, 
a  widow.  The  father  died  July  13,  1850,  the 
mother  on  September  15,  1855.  Abel  Har- 
rington, born  in  Weston,  August  ig,  1815, 
was  educated  in  the  public  schools  of  his 
native  town.  In  his  early  manhood,  for  about 
four  years,  he  was  employed  in  the  old  Pearl 
Street  House,  corner  of  Pearl  and  Milk 
Streets,  Boston.  From  there  he  went  to 
Newton,  Mass.,  where  he  was  engaged  in 
hotel-keeping  for  about  twenty  years.  His 
next  and  last  removal  was  to  Hull,  where  he 
was  the  proprietor  and  manager  of  the  Oregon 
House.  His  death  occurred  on  March  g, 
1 88 5.  He  was  a  Democrat  in  politics.  On 
July  7,  1842,  he  married  Sophia  Lyman, 
daughter  of  Benjamin  and  Lovey  (Lyman) 
Scates,  of  Milton,  N.H.  Three  of  their  seven 
children  are  living,  namely:  Zachary  Taylor, 
the  subject  of  this  sketch;  Edmund  Jackson, 
born  July  10,  1857;  and  Lena  S.,  born  Janu- 
ary 3,  1862.  The  mother,  Mrs.  Sophia  L. 
Harrington,  is  now  a  resident  of  Hull.  A 
Unitarian  in  religious  faith,  she  was  a  member 
of  the  church  in  Newton,  Mass. 

After  leaving  school,  Z.  Taylor  Harrington 
worked  for  his  father  until  the  breaking  out 
of  the  Southern  Rebellion,  when  he  found 
employment    in    the    Arsenal    at    Watertown. 


l62 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


After  spending  two  years  there,  he  worked  for 
one  year  in  the  United  States  Hotel  in  Bos- 
ton, and  for  one  year  in  his  father's  employ- 
ment at  Newton.  In  1868,  the  following 
year,  he  and  his  elder  brother  engaged  in  the 
hotel  business  in  Brighton,  and  thereafter  con- 
ducted the  Cattle  Fair  Hotel  for  five  years. 
Then,  in  1876,  he  removed  to  Hull,  and  took 
charge  of  the  Oregon  House,  which  he  has 
since  conducted.  He  has  practically  rebuilt 
the  hotel,  besides  making  many  improvements. 
Back  of  the  hotel  he  has  a  fine  residence, 
erected  in  1888,  which  commands  a  delightful 
ocean  view.  Mr.  Harrington  was  married 
April  30,  1872,  to  Miss  Jessie  Sanderson, 
daughter  of  Charles  W.  and  Helen  B. 
(Fletcher)  Sanderson,  of  Brighton,  Mass. 
They  have  six  children,  as  follows,  namely: 
Sidney  Scott  Harrington,  born  February  15, 
1 873)  who  on  August  12,  1896,  married  Flor- 
ence Leslie,  of  Roxbury,  Mass.;  Florence, 
born  July  31,  1874;  Fanny  Scates,  born 
October  i,  1875;  Marion  Leslie,  born  No- 
vember 4,  1877;  Jessie  L.,  born  October  13, 
1879;  and  Ruth  A.,  born  September  18, 
1889. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Harrington  hold  liberal  views 
on  the  subject  of  religion.  In  politics  Mr. 
Harrington  is  a  stanch  Republican.  He  has 
held  for  fifteen  years  the  position  of  Moderator 
at  the  town  meetings  of  Hull,  a  striking  mark 
of  the  confidence  of  his  fellow-citizens  in  his 
ability  and  fairness.  In  1889  he  represented 
the  town  in  the  State  legislature.  He  is  a 
member  of  Nonantum  Lodge,  No.  116,  Inde- 
pendent Order  of  Odd  Fellows,  of  Brighton, 
Mass.  It  is  worthy  of  note  that  the  first  man 
killed  in  the  Battle  of  Lexington,  April  19, 
1775,  was  Daniel  Harrington,  whose  name  is 
on  the  monument;  and  the  last  man  from 
Massachusetts  to  die  in  that  war  was  also  a 
Harrington. 


KRY  T.  ANGLIM,  an  enterprising 
.nd  successful  insurance  man  and 
real  estate  broker  of  Brockton, 
Mass.,  was  born  in  Braintree,  this  State,  June 
28,  i860,  a  son  of  Patrick  B.  and  Margaret 
(McNamara)  Anglim.  Patrick  B.  Anglim, 
who  was  a  shoe  cutter,  and  followed  his  trade 
most  of  his  life,  worked  many  years  in  Brock- 
ton, where  he  died  November  29,  1896,  aged 
sixty-seven  years.  He  had  a  family  of  eight 
children,  six  sons  and  two  daughters,  and  lost 
but  one,  the  eldest. 

Henry  T.  Anglim,  the  third  child,  was 
graduated  from  the  Braintree  High  School  in 
1877.  He  began  his  business  life  in  the  ofifice 
of  Frank  Uupee,  wool  broker,  on  Federal 
Street,  Boston,  where  he  remained  three 
months,  next  obtaining  a  position  as  ofifice  boy 
for  F"axon,  Elms  &  Co.,  115  High  Street, 
Boston,  the  well-known  importers  and  dealers 
in  shoe  manufacturers'  goods.  He  was  with 
this  firm  four  years,  rising  to  the  position  of 
salesman.  In  the  last  year  one  of  the  junior 
partners,  Mr.  A.  J.  Foster,  now  of  A.  J. 
Foster  &  Co.,  loi  Bedford  Street,  Boston, 
withdrew  to  establish  a  business  of  his  own  as 
a  dealer  in  leather  and  findings,  and  Mr. 
Anglim  went  with  him.  After  being  with 
Mr.  Foster  some  four  years,  drumming  the 
shoe  trade  in  Brockton  and  the  surrounding 
towns,  in  1884  he  became  book-keeper  for 
Charles  F.  Porter  &  Co.,  of  Brockton.  This 
firm  disposed  of  their  business  four  years 
later,  and  during  the  ensuing  year  Mr.  Ang- 
lim was  employed  as  floor  manager  in  the 
Boston  store,  Edgar  &  Reynolds,  proprietors, 
Brockton.  His  next  engagement  was  in  the 
employ  of  I.  K.  Snell,  and  he  was  subse- 
quently engaged  as  book-keeper  for  Stacy, 
Adams  &  Co.,  of  Boston,  and  as  salesman  for 
J.  E.  Peckman  &  Co.,  of  the  same  city. 

In  1890  he  started  in  the  insurance  business 


HENRY   T.    ANGLIM. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


i6s 


in  Brockton  as  special  agent  for  tiie  Provident 
Savings  Life  Assurance  Society  of  New  York, 
and  was  later  connected  with  the  office  of 
F.  W.  Sargent,  who  also  was  in  the  insurance 
business.  In  October,  1892,  the  insurance 
partnership  of  Sargent,  Anglim  &  Keith  was 
established,  but  ten  months  later  Messrs.  Sar- 
gent and  Keith  withdrew.  Since  that  time 
Mr.  Anglim  has  been  sole  proprietor  of  the 
business,  which  is  steadily  increasing  under 
his  alert  and  enterprising  directorship.  He 
carries  all  kinds  of  insurance,  making  a  spe- 
cialty of  fire  and  life  risks,  and  is  general 
agent  for  South-eastern  Massachusetts  for  the 
Provident  Savings  Life  Assurance  Society  of 
New  York. 

In  real  estate,  and  mortgages  also,  Mr.  Ang- 
lim has  an  extensive  business.  In  October, 
1893,  he  started  to  form  a  syndicate  for  the 
purchase  of  a  tract  of  forty-six  acres  lying 
south  of  Pleasant  Street,  now  known  as  Inter- 
vale Park;  and  in  January,  1894,  after  many 
discouragements,  the  syndicate  was  organized. 
In  October  of  the  same  3'ear  the  first  building- 
lot  was  sold,  and  the  first  house  started ;  and 
since  then,  out  of  a  total  of  one  hundred  and 
eighty-seven  lots,  one  hundred  and  sixty-seven 
have  been  sold,  and  sixty-seven  houses  begun, 
some  of  which  are  finished,  costing  from  two 
thousand  to  ten  thousand  dollars  above  the  un- 
derpinning— -a  remarkable  record  for  a  period 
of  only  two  years,  and  hard-time  years  at  that. 
The  company  has  expended  about  twenty  thou- 
sand dollars  on  streets  and  other  improve- 
ments. Mr.  Anglim  has  other  land  to  de- 
velop: a  tract  of  eighty  acres  at  Rangeley 
Park,  Brockton  Heights;  eighty  acres  at  the 
south  end,  formerly  the  P.  and  N.  Copeland 
farm;  and  several  smaller  tracts  in  different 
parts  of  the  city. 

He  is  a  member  of  the  Commercial  Club  of 
Brockton ;  has  been  Past  Grand  and   Treasurer 


of  Electric  Lodge,  Independent  Order  of  Odd 
Fellows;  belongs  to  Nemasket  Encampment; 
the  Royal  Arcanum;  Brockton  Council,  No. 
848;  Brockton  Colony  Pilgrim  Fathers,  No. 
138;  Garfield  Commandery,  United  Order  of 
Golden  Cross,  and  K.  A.  Essenic  Order.  He 
is  connected  with  the  Porter  Evangelical 
Church,  and  was  nine  years  head  usher,  and 
five  years  Secretary  and  Treasurer  of  the  Sun- 
day-school. 

(sTVUGUSTUS  M.  BEARSE,  Town  Clerk, 
fcjj  Treasurer,  and  Collector  of  Middle- 
^  '^  V..^  boro,  Mass.,  was  born  in  Chatham, 
Barnstable  County,  this  State,  October  8, 
1853,  a  son  of  Reuben  L.  and  Mercy  (Taylor) 
Bearse.  Reuben  L.  Bearse  was  in  business 
for  a  number  of  years  as  a  merchant  tailor,  and 
is  now  living  retired  in  Chelsea,  Mass.  He 
has  been  blessed  with  a  family  of  six  children 
—  Augustus  M.,  Abbie  E.,  Manchester  E., 
Erastus  T.,  Mercy  L.,  and  Annie  E. 

Augustus  M.  Bearse  grew  to  manhood  in 
Chatham,  imbibing  health  and  strength  from 
the  saline  breezes  of  the  old  Cape  town.  He 
was  graduated  from  the  Chatham  High  School, 
and  then  began  to  learn  the  tailor's  trade 
with  his  father.  The  work  suited  him,  and 
with  natural  taste  and  skill  he  soon  became 
popular  as  a  man's  outfitter.  In  course  of 
time  he  succeeded  his  father  in  business,  and 
about  1886  opened  an  establishment  in 
Middleboro. 

He  had  been  active  for  some  time  in  politics 
as  a  Republican,  and  in  1890  he  was  appointed 
Postmaster.  The  duties  of  this  position  in 
the  civil  service  required  all  his  attention. 
Accordingly,  he  left  the  world  of  trade,  and 
for  four  years  presided  at  the  post-office. 
Being  relieved  by  the  appointment  of  his  suc- 
cessor in  1894,  he  has  since  that  time  had 
much  financial  and  political  business  to  attend 


[66 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


to.  He  is  auditor  of  the  Co-operative  Bank 
of  Middleboro,  Secretary  of  the  Plymouth 
County  Republican  Committee,  and,  as  stated 
above,  is  Town  Clerk,  Treasurer,  and  Collec- 
tor. Mr.  Bearse  is  a  man  of  mature  judgment 
and  practical  ability,  and,  needless  to  say, 
enjoys  the  confidence  and  respect  of  his  towns- 
men. 

He  was  married  February  5,  1873,  to  Clara 
G.  Kent,  of  Chatham,  daughter  of  George  N. 
and  Clara  C.  (Kendrick)  Kent.  One  daugh- 
ter, Gertrude  A.,  who  blessed  this  union,  has 
passed  to  the  world  beyond.  Mr.  Bearse  is 
prominent  in  various  fraternal  organizations, 
as  well  as  in  political  circles,  belonging  to 
St.  Martin's  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.  ;  Middle- 
boro Lodge,  No.  143,  Independent  Order  of 
Odd  Fellows;  Colfa.x  Encampment,  Inde- 
pendent Order  of  Odd  Fellovvs;  and  the  Im- 
proved Order  of  Red  Men.  He  is  a  member 
of  the  Congregational  church. 


ALLACE  C.  FLAGG,  a  prominent 
man  of  Brockton,  was  born  in 
Braintree,  Vt. ,  June  26,  1851,  son 
of  Austin  and  Elvira  (Howard)  Flagg.  The 
Flaggs  are  one  of  the  old  families  of  Worces- 
ter, Mass.,  that  from  there  have  scattered 
throughout  New  England.  William  Flagg, 
the  grandfather  of  Wallace  C,  died  in  Old 
Orchard,  Me.,  at  the  age  of  thirty-five  years, 
leaving  four  children  to  the  care  of  his  widow. 
Three  of  these  were:  William,  Austin,  and 
Lucina.  Austin  Flagg  lost  his  eyesight  in 
assisting  to  put  out  a  conflagration.  He, 
however,  excelled  in  mental  computations. 
Some  seventy  years  ago  he  left  Worcester,  and 
was  one  of  the  early  settlers  in  Braintree,  Vt. 
For  a  number  of  years  he  was  engaged  in 
farming  and  lumbering,  owned  large  tracts  of 
timber  land,  and  operated  three  saw- mills.     A 


stanch  Republican,  he  was  one  of  the  active 
politicians  of  Braintree.  He  died  in  1874, 
aged  sixty-seven  years.  His  wife,  who  is  a 
daughter  of  Nathan  Howard,  of  Braintree,  Vt. , 
is  eighty  years  old,  and  resides  in  her  native 
town.  .She  did  not  ride  on  a  railroad  train 
until  she  was  over  sixty  years  of  age.  When 
she  was  over  seventy  years  old,  she  travelled 
alone  through  California  and  the  West.  She 
is  a  member  of  the  Congregational  church,  to 
which  her  husband  also  belonged.  They  had 
eleven  children,  four  of  whom,  three  sons  and 
a  daughter,  are  living.  Two  of  their  sons 
fought  in  the  war  of  the  Rebellion,  George 
W.  in  the  Second  Vermont  Regiment,  and 
Watson  O.  in  the  Ninth  Regiment  Vermont 
Infantry.  George,  who  is  yet  living,  served 
four  years,  and  held  the  rank  of  Captain  when 
he  was  discharged.  Watson  O.  was  less  than 
sixteen  years  of  age  when  he  enlisted.  He 
served  three  years,  and  held  the  rank  of  Ser- 
geant when  his  term  of  service  was  ended. 
George  W.  and  Persis  are  now  living  in  Ver- 
mont. Waldo  ].,  who  is  a  drover,  and  man 
ages  a  general  store,  is  in  Miller,  Custer 
County,  Neb.  Dayton  W.  is  engaged  in 
farming  in  the  same  county,  in  the  township 
of  Oconto. 

Wallace  C.  Flagg  received  a  limited  educa- 
tion, attending  school  from  three  to  six 
months  in  the  year.  He  earned  his  first 
wages  when  eight  years  of  age.  The  amount 
was  eight  dollars,  part  in  postage  stamps,  for 
which  he  "performed  a  month's  work  in  the 
hayfield,  under  the  hot  sun  of  July.  Hiring 
out  at  intervals  as  a  farm  hand,  he  remained 
with  his  parents  until  he  was  twenty  years  old. 
He  then  entered  on  a  somewhat  checkered 
career.  For  some  time  he  was  employed  in 
Boston  as  horse-car  conductor.  Following  that 
he  was  for  five  months  brakeman  on  the  pas- 
senger express  of  the   Boston   &  Albany  Rail- 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


167 


road  between  Boston  and  Springfield.  He 
next  entered  the  employ  of  the  Boston  Ice 
Company,  with  whom  he  remained  eleven  years. 
In  that  period  he  built  ice-houses,  cut,  packed, 
and  shipped  ice,  delivered  ice  to  customers, 
collected  bills,  and  at  times  acted  as  foreman. 
In  March,  1S82,  he  purchased  the  stock  in 
trade,  including  the  horses  and  wagons,  of  Mr. 
W.  F.  Cleveland,  of  Brockton,  who  had  been 
in  the  ice  business  twenty  years.  During  the 
first  three  months  he  met  with  the  most  deter- 
mined opposition;  but  he  eventually  conquered 
it,  and  carried  on  a  successful  business  until 
1895.  On  April  15  of  that  year  he  disposed 
of  his  retail  trade  and  his  teams,  and  since 
then  has  been  engaged  in  developing  the 
wholesale  business.  He  cuts  his  own  ice  from 
the  reservoir.  Factory  Pond,  and  four  or  five 
other  ponds.  In  connection  with  his  ice  busi- 
ness he  has  a  blacksmith  shop,  which  he  has 
owned  some  twelve  years.  Mr.  Flagg  has 
largely  invested  in  real  estate.  He  owns 
twelve  acres  of  land  on  East  Union  Street,  on 
the  east  side  of  the  railroad  track.  He  has 
made  arrangements  with  the  railroad  company 
to  lay  a  private  track,  as  he  intends  to  erect 
business  blocks  there.  He  owns  one  thousand 
and  four  feet  between  Lawrence  and  Union 
Streets  —  all  desirable  land,  unspoiled  by 
grade  crossings.  The  large  lumber  yard  of 
H.  S.  Richmond  on  Court  Street  belongs  to 
Mr.  Flagg,  also  the  stables  occupied  by  the 
City  Ice  Company  of  Brockton,  and  a  number 
of  tenement  houses.  He  was  one  of  the  first 
stockholders  and  directors  of  the  East  Side 
Street  Railroad  —  one  of  the  first  electric  rail- 
ways in  the  State  —  and  acted  as  Director 
some  five  years. 

Mr.  Flagg  was  married  in  October,  1880, 
to  Angle  A.,  daughter  of  Rufus  Newton  Flint, 
of  Braintree,  Vt.  Of  the  three  children  born 
to  him,  Lena,  a  little  maid   of  ten,    is   living. 


In  politics  he  is  a  Republican,  and  he  has 
been  elected  to  the  City  Council  from  Ward  2. 
Made  a  Mason  when  twenty-one  years  of  age, 
he  belongs  at  present  to  Phoeni.x  Lodge,  West 
Randolph,  Vt. ;  and  for  the  past  five  years  he 
has  been  a  member  of  the  Commercial  Club. 
He  attends  the  Universalist  church.  Mr. 
Flagg's  success  is  largely  due  to  his  close 
attention  to  business.  Since  his  marriage  his 
wife  has  been  an  able  and  intelligent  helper. 
They  did  all  the  book-keeping  together  eight 
years. 

NDREW  GALE,  a  well-known  builder 
and  building  mover  of  Brockton, 
born  in  1850  in  Moriah,  Franklin 
County,  N.  Y.,  is  a  son  of  Ezra  and  Salome 
(Pierce)  Gale.  The  family  originally  came 
from  New  Hampshire.  Eliphalet,  the  grand- 
father, who  was  a  farmer  in  Franklin,  N.  H., 
married  a  Miss  Cass,  who  bore  him  eleven 
children.  One  of  these,  Jerusha,  is  still  liv- 
ing, being  now  ninety-two  years  old.  Ezra, 
the.  youngest,  who  was  born  in  Franklin, 
moved  with  his  parents  to  New  York  State. 
He  was  a  farmer,  and  he  served  the  community 
as  a  Trustee  of  the  district  school.  He- was 
united  in  marriage  with  Salome,  daughter  of 
Pliram  Pierce,  of  Moriah.  By  this  union 
there  were  seven  children,  all  of  whom  are 
now  living.  They  are:  Andrew,  Roderick, 
Cyrus,  Albert,  Luetta,  Cordelia,  and  Watson. 
Andrew  Gale  was  educated  in  the  public 
schools  of  Moriah  and  at  Franklin  Academy. 
He  worked  on  his  father's  farm  for  some  time 
before  he  was  nineteen  years  old.  Then  he 
was  similarly  employed  on  other  farms  for 
four  years.  Afterward,  for  one  year,  he 
worked  as  lineman  for  the  Western  Union 
Telegraph  Company.  Since  then  he  has  been 
engaged  in  building  and  moving.  Coming  to 
Brockton   in    1874,    he  was  first  employed   by 


1 68 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


E.  H.  Kini;man.  In  1882  he  began  in  a 
small  way  to  work  for  himself,  and  soon  after 
found  that  he  was  fully  capable  of  conducting 
the  business.  At  the  present  time  he  employs 
from  six  to  twelve  men,  besides  six  horses, 
doing  work  in  Nantucket  and  other  places,  as 
well  as  Brockton.  He  is  also  profitably  en- 
gaged in  farming.  In  1884  he  married  Lucy 
W.,  daughter  of  C.  E.  Kingman,  of  Brockton. 
In  politics  he  is  a  Republican  He  acceptably 
served  the  town  in  the  capacity  of  Overseer  of 
the  Poor  for  two  years. 


JDWIN  W.  WHITING,  of  Rockland, 
^  Mass.,  founder  of  the  first  clothing 
store  in  the  town,  is  a  successful 
business  man  who  has  carved  his  fortune  with 
his  own  hands.  He  was  born  in  Hanover, 
Mass.,  December  6,  1833,  a  son  of  Piam  C. 
and  Sarah  (Brooks)  Whiting,  both  of  Hanover. 
Piam  C.  Whiting,  who  was  a  shoemaker, 
died  at  the  age  of  forty-five.  His  wife  lived 
to  be  seventy-three  years  old.  They  were  the 
parents  of  five  children,  as  follows:  one  de- 
ceased;  Edwin  W.,  the  subject  of  this  sketch; 
Angeline,  living  in  Rockland;  Piam  A.,  de- 
ceased; and  Maria,  residing  in  this  town. 

Edwin  W.  Whiting  received  a  common- 
school  education  in  his  native  town — a  lim- 
ited education,  for  he  was  but  eleven  years  old 
when  his  father  died.  As  soon  as  he  was  able, 
he  went  to  work  at  shoemaking,  the  leading 
indu.stry  of  this  part  of  the  State,  one  of  his 
employers  being  Joseph  Studley.  He  was 
employed  for  some  time  in  Mr.  Studley' s  fac- 
tory in  Hanover,  stitching  and  cutting,  and 
then  for  four  years  drove  a  dry-goods  wagon — 
two  years  for  Nahum  Moore  and  two  years  for 
J.  A.  &  C.  W.  Torrey.  In  September,  1862, 
he  started  in  business  in  a  small  way  with  a 
stock  of   clothing  and  gentlemen's  furnishing 


goods.  It  was  the  first  store  of  the  kind 
opened  here;  and  the  prophets  declared  that 
there  was  not  trade  enough  in  the  town  to  sup- 
port it,  and  that  the  venture  would  of  necessity 
be  a  disastrous  one.  After  being  in  business 
about  a  year,  Mr.  Whiting  formed  a  copartner- 
ship with  Mr.  R.  T.  Eaton,  continuing  for 
twenty  years.  Mr.  Eaton  then  retired,  and 
Mr.  Whiting  again  conducted  the  business 
alone.  Thus  the  enterprise  lived  and  thrived; 
and  the  store  founded  by  Mr.  Whiting  is  now 
the  largest  and  best  equipped  in  the  town. 

On  January  i,  1897,  Mr.  Whiting,  having 
accumulated  a  competence,  disposed  of  his 
business  to  Lucius  W.  Orcutt,  of  Boston,  and 
retired  from  active  cares.  He  is  a  Trustee  of 
the  Rockland  Savings  Bank. 

In  1850  he  was  united  in  marriage  with 
Jane  B. ,  daughter  of  Andrew  Studley;  and 
three  children  have  blessed  their  union,  two  of 
whom  are  living:  George  C,  in  business  in 
Rockland;  and  Grace  N.,  wife  of  E.  S.  Ter- 
rell, of  Spencer. 

Mr.  Whiting  is  a  strong  Republican,  and  is 
able  to  give  good  reasons  for  his  fidelity  to  his 
party.  He  is  a  chapter  Mason,  a  Knight 
Templar,  a  Knight  of  Pythias,  an  Odd  Fellow, 
and  a  Knight  of  Honor;  and  he  has  been  a 
member  of  the  Rockland  Commercial  Club 
since  its  organization,  and  assisted  materially 
in  its  good  work.  A  permanent  resident  of 
Rockland,  he  is  one  of  the  substantial  citizens 
of  the  place,  widely  known  and  highly  re- 
spected. 

<  •  • » > 

LDEN  S.  BRADFORD,  born  August 
4,  I  Si  5,  is,  on  his  father's  side,  the 
seventh  in  descent  from  William 
Bradford,  the  second  governor  of  Plymouth 
Colony,  in  a  branch  of  the  family  whose  mem- 
bers, from  the  governor  down,  have  lived  con- 
tinuously in  that  part  of  the  ancient   township 


EDWIN   W.    WHITING. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


171 


of  Plymouth  now  known  as  Kingston.  On  his 
mother's  side  he  is  the  sixth  in  descent  from 
John  Faunce,  who  came  in  the  ship  "Ann  "  in 
1623,  with  the  latest  company  of  colonists 
who  are  now  recognized  as  "the  Pilgrims." 
He  is  also,  of  record,  a  descendant  of  Elder 
William  Brewster,  and  of  twelve  others  of 
the  "Mayflower's"  company,  and  of  Elder 
Thomas  Cushman,  and  eleven  otliers  of  the 
later  companies. 

He  was  brought  up  a  farmer,  with  such  edu- 
cational opportunities  as  were  afforded  by  the 
common  schools  of  his  period,  supplemented, 
after  attaining  his  majority,  by  a  brief  course 
of  instruction  at  Pierce  Academy  in  Middle- 
boro.  For  a  number  of  terms  he  was  em- 
ployed in  teaching,  and  subsequently  through 
active  life  in  surveying,  conveyancing,  the  set- 
tlement of  estates  as  executor  and  administra- 
tor, the  adjustment  of  controversies  as  referee, 
and  in  the  discharge  of  other  delegated  duties, 
public  and  private. 

He  has  been  largely  intrusted  with  the 
management  of  town  affairs,  having  held  vari- 
ous town  offices  for  periods  aggregating  one 
hundred  and  twelve  official  years.  He  is  one 
of  four  descendants  of  Governor  Bradford  who 
collectively  have  held  the  office  of  Selectman 
in  Kingston  seventy-si.\  years,  and  one  of  four 
descendants  of  John  Faunce  who  collectively 
have  held  the  same  office  eighty-nine  years. 
He  has  been  chosen  Moderator  of  more  than 
fifty  town  meetings,  and  has  presided,  ex 
officio,  as  one  of  the  Selectmen,  at  nearly  an 
equal  number  of  meetings  for  the  election  of 
State,  district,  and  county  officers.  In  the 
Civil  War  he  was  an  enrolling  officer  for  the 
government,  and  a  recruiting  officer  for  his 
town,  which  at  the  close  of  the  contest  was 
credited  with  thirty-three  men  in  excess  of  all 
calls  by  the  President. 

For    a    series    of    years,    and    until    failing 


health  compelled  him  to  decline  further  ser- 
vice, he  was  a  Trustee  of  the  Plymouth  Five 
Cents  Savings  Bank,  a  Trustee  of  the  Stand- 
ish  Monument  Association,  and  Vice-Presi- 
dent and  Supervisor  of  the  Plymouth  County 
Agricultural  Society.  Many  of  his  reports  to 
that  society  on  agricultural  topics  have  been 
republished  by  the  Secretary  of  the  State 
Board  of  Agriculture.  For  a  number  of  terms 
he  was  Special  Commissioner  of  Plymouth 
County,  and  in  1863  he  represented  the  Fifth 
Plymouth  District  in  the  Massachusetts  legis- 
lature. His  commissions  as  Justice  of  the 
Peace  have  covered  a  period  of  more  than  forty 
years. 

Denominationally,  he  is  a  Unitarian;  politi- 
cally, a  Republican,  having  been  also  an 
original  Free  Soiler.  In  recent  years  he  has 
withdrawn  from  any  participation  in  public 
affairs  except  through  the  ballot  box.  Him- 
self and  three  sisters,  children  of  Spencer 
Bradford,  have  all  long  since  outlived  the 
allotted  threescore  years  and  ten.  He  has 
never  married. 


-ft^EV.  HENRY  EDWARD  GODDARD, 
\:\  A.M.,  M.D.,  a  New  Church  clergy- 
*^  V  ^  man  of  Brockton,  who  for  some 
time  had  charge  of  the  New  Jerusalem  Church, 
was  born  May  20,  1852,  son  of  the  Rev. 
Warren  and  Sarah  (Eldridge)  Goddard.  The 
Goddard  family  was  established  in  this  coun- 
try by  two  brothers.  Englishmen,  who  settled 
in  Brookline,  Mass.  From  one  of  these 
brothers  the  descent  is  traced  through  two 
Johns  —  the  great-grandfather  and  the  grand- 
father of  Henry  Edward — to  Warren,  his 
father.  At  the  time  of  his  death,  William 
Goddard,  a  brother  of  Warren,  was  the  oldest 
living  graduate  of  Harvard  College. 

Warren   Goddard   was   born    in    Portsmouth, 


172 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


N.H.,  September  12,  1800.  He  received  his 
early  education  in  that  place  and  in  Phillips 
(Exeter)  Academy,  and  subsequently  gradu- 
ated from  Harvard  in  18 18.  After  leaving 
Harvard  he  taught  school  for  a  while  in 
Princeton,  at  Sandwich  Academy,  and  in  other 
places.  While  so  doing  he  studied  law  in  his 
leisure  time.  At  a  later  date,  feeling  that  he 
was  best  adapted  for  the  ministry,  he  studied 
theology  with  Thaddeus  M.  Harris,  D.D.,  of 
Princeton.  While  pursuing  his  studies  there 
he  became  interested  in  the  New  Church  doc- 
trines through  Samson  Reed.  In  1839  he  was 
ordained  in  North  Bridgewater,  and  he 
preached  for  some  time  in  Abington,  although 
not  regularly  installed,  and  attended  the 
quarterly  meeting  on  the  Cape.  He  resigned 
his  church  in  1863.  He  served  for  some  time 
on  the  Brockton  School  Board,  and  was  much 
interested  in  establishing  a  high  school  in  this 
city.  His  death  occurred  October  29,  1889, 
aged  eighty-nine  years.  He  was  twice  mar- 
ried. His  first  marriage  was  contracted  Au- 
gust 6,  1829,  with  Mary  Crowell  Tobey,  of 
Sandwich,  Mass.,  who  died  in  June,  1847. 
Born  of  this  union  were  six  children,  of  whom 
three  are  living — Benjamin,  John,  and  James 
Frederick.  By  his  second  marriage  which 
took  place  January  i,  1849,  ^^  '^^^  united  to 
Sarah,  daughter  of  John  and  Betty  Eldridge, 
of  Yarmouthport,  Mass.  She  bore  him  four 
children,  namely:  Warren,  now  a  well-known 
lawyer  of  Brockton ;  Sarah  Eldridge,  who  re- 
sides in  the  old  home;  Henry  Edward,  the 
subject  of  this  sketch;  and  Asa  E.,  an  assist- 
ant teacher  in  the  Waltham  (Mass.)  High 
School. 

Henry  Edward  Goddard  graduated  from  the 
Brockton  High  School  as  valedictorian  in  1871. 
Subsequently  after  attending  Cornell  Univer- 
sity for  one  year,  he  entered  Brown  University, 
from  which  he  graduated   in    1875,  taking  one 


of  the  honorary  positions,  with  the  degree  of 
Bachelor  of  Arts.  He  next  studied  at  the 
New  Church  Theological  School,  then  at  Wal- 
tham, Mass.,  and  after  graduating  was  at  Cin- 
cinnati for  one  year,  assisting  his  brother,  the 
Rev.  John  Goddard,  who  had  charge  of  the 
New  Church  in  that  city.  In  June,  1876,  he 
was  invited  to  preach  at  the  New  Jerusalem 
Church  in  Brockton,  and  on  September  24  of 
that  year  he  was  ordained.  Regularly  in- 
stalled as  pastor  of  this  society,  he  attended 
to  the  spiritual  needs  of  his  flock  until  No- 
vember, 1895,  when  he  resigned  in  order  to 
take  a  course  of  medical  studies  at  Dartmouth 
College.  Here  he  received  the  degree  of 
Doctor  of  Medicine  in  November,  1896.  It 
has  been  said  that  when  a  man  devotes  his  life 
to  a  profession  he  gets  into  a  rut  which  be- 
comes deeper  and  narrower  as  he  grows  older. 
Mr.  Goddard  has  avoided  this,  recognizing  no 
limit  in  the  field  of  mental  research.  He  took 
up  the  study  of  medicine  to  broaden  his  mind. 
In  1893  he  travelled  through  Palestine, 
Greece,  Italy,  France,  and  other  countries  for 
study.  From  early  boyhood  he  has  been  an 
enthusiastic  student.  While  fitting  himself 
for  the  ministry,  he  took  courses  of  lectures 
in  various  lines. 

Mr.  Goddard  was  married  December  3r, 
1877,  to  Mary  E.  Outcalt,  of  Cincinnati. 
She  died  June  28,  1887,  leaving  two  children. 
These  are:  Samuel  W.,  born  February  5, 
1 88 1,  who  entered  the  Brockton  High  School 
in  September,  1896;  and  Ruth,  born  Septem- 
ber 2,  1884.  On  May  7,  1889,  the  father 
contracted  a  second  marriage  with  Miss  Hat- 
tie  Faxon,  of  Brockton,  a  sister  of  Mrs.  Dr. 
E.  A.  Chase  and  Dr.  Fred  S.  Fa.xon,  of 
Brockton.  Mr.  Goddard  has  been  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Brockton  School  Committee  for 
three  years,  and  had  charge  of  the  high 
school. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


173 


lAPTAIN  MARTIN  A.  HUMPHREY, 
of  Hingham,  now  living  in  retire- 
ment, was  born  here  on  October  16, 
1837,  son  of  Martin  and  Abigail  S.  (Whittier) 
Humphrey.  His  grandfather,  Jonathan  Hum- 
phrey, a  native  of  Cohasset,  Mass.,  was  a 
farmer,  and  owned  four  hundred  acres  of  land, 
comprising  cranberry  bogs,  meadow,  woodland, 
and  a  cleared  farm  of  good  land.  He  mar- 
ried, and  became  the  father  of  twelve  chil- 
dren. 

His  youngest  son',  Martin,  who  was  born  in 
Cohasset,  became  a  sailor,  and  served  in  the 
capacities  of  mate  and  captain  for  many  years, 
during  which  he  made  voyages  to  foreign 
ports.  In  politics  he  was  a  Republican,  and 
he  served  on  the  School  Committee  for  several 
years.  He  married  Abigail  Humphrey;  and 
they  had  three  children,  of  whom  Captain 
Martin  is  the  only  survivor.  At  the  age  of 
forty-five  he  was  lost  in  Boston  Kay  during  a 
storm.  His  wife  lived  to  be  threescore  years 
and  ten.  Both  were  highly  respected  mem- 
bers of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  church. 

Martin  A.  Humphrey  acquired  his  education 
in  Cohasset,  where  he  removed  with  his  father 
when  he  was  quite  young.  After  leaving 
school,  he  began  a  seafaring  life,  making  for- 
eign voyages  e.xclusively.  He  has  been  the 
commander  of  full-rigged  ships,  among  which 
were  "Camilla, "  "Alaska,"  "Golden  Fleece," 
"Columbus,"  and  the  "Paramita,"  and  has 
twice  circumnavigated  the  globe.  Captain 
Humphrey's  last  voyage  was  made  in  1884, 
from  San  Francisco  to  Liverpool,  in  the  ship 
"Paramita."  Since  that  time  he  has  resided 
on  the  old  homestead  in  Hingham.  In  poli- 
tics he  affiliates  with  the  Republican  party, 
and  in  religion  he  is  a  liberal.  On  New 
Year's  Day,  1865,  he  was  united  in  marriage 
with  Mary  V.  Thomas,  daughter  of  Joseph  and 
Morilla     (Bates)     Thomas.       They    have    two 


children  —  Frederick  M.  and  Mabel  D.  Hum- 
phrey. Captain  Humphrey  stands  high  in  the 
community. 


<  »  •  »  » 


XTrED  HERBERT  PACKARD  is  a 
Pl^  well-known  citizen  of  ]5rockton,  book- 
keeper and  salesman  for  Snell  &  Ather- 
ton,  manufacturers  of  shoe  tools,  and  for  many 
years  a  member  of  Martland's  l^and.  He  was 
born  in  West  Bridgewatcr,  P^ebruary  2,  1854, 
a  son  of  Japhet  II  and  Lucretia  P.  (Dunbar) 
Packard.  Japhet  B.  Packard,  whose  father 
was  Isaac  Packard,  was  born  in  that  part  of 
North  Bridgewater  now  known  as  Jerusalem, 
September  7,  1S19.  He  has  lived  in  West 
Bridgewater,  his  present  home,  for  many 
years,  and  has  worked  at  shoemaking.  He  is 
now  seventy-seven  years  old.  His  wife  is  a 
daughter  of  Silas  Dunbar,  of  West  Bridge- 
water.  They  reared  a  family  of  four  sons  and 
two  daughters,  of  whom  one  son  and  one 
daughter  have  passed  away. 

Fred  Herbert  Packard  acquired  his  educa- 
tion in  the  public  schools  of  West  Bridge- 
water.  At  the  age  of  twenty  he  went  to  work 
in  a  Brockton  shoe  shop;  and  on  P'ebruary  18, 
1880,  he  entered  the  employ  of  Snell  &  Ather- 
ton,  for  whom  he  has  now  been  book-keeper 
and  salesman  some  ten  years.  While  attend- 
ing to  his  duties  as  an  employee  of  this  firm, 
he  has  conducted  a  successful  real  estate  busi- 
ness of  his  own.  In  i888-8g  he  opened  up 
two  plots  of  land  on  Herrod  and  Martland 
Avenues,  and  seventy  house  lots  were  disposed 
of;  and  he  owns  plots  on  Howard  and  Montello 
-Streets  and  valuable  tracts  in  different  parts  of 
the  city.  Mr.  Packard  played  first  clarinet 
with  Martland's  Band  for  twelve  years,  and 
during  four  years  of  that  time  he  was  Secretary 
and  Treasurer  of  the  organization. 

He    was    married    in     1882     to    Idella    A., 


174 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


daughter  of  Veramis  Sncll  of  the  firm  of  Snell 
&  Atherton,  and  has  one  son  —  Warren  Bel- 
cher, nine  years  old.  Mr.  Packard  was 
elected  to  the  City  Council  in  1892  on  the 
Republican  ticket,  and  was  also  elected  as 
Alderman  in  1896-97.  He  is  one  of  the  Trus- 
tees of  the  People's  Savings  Bank.  He  has 
taken  several  degrees  in  Masonry,  belonging 
to  St.  George  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.  ;  Sa- 
tucket  Chapter,  Royal  Arch  Masons;  Bay 
State  Commandery,  Knights  Templars;  and 
the  Mystic  Shrine;  and  he  belongs  to  Massa- 
soit  Lodge,  No.  69,  Independent  Order  of 
Odd  Fellows,  and  to  the  Brockton  Commercial 
Club.  He  attends  worship  at  the  Waldo 
(Congregational)  Chapel  of  Montello. 


m 


si  SHAW,  one  of  the  oldest 
ens  of  Carver,  Mass.,  a  repre- 
sentative of  one  of  the  long-settled 
families  of  Plymouth  County,  dating  back 
almost  to  the  time  of  the  arrival  of  the  Pil- 
grim Fathers,  was  born  in  this  town,  Decem- 
ber 14,  181 3,  son  of  Nathaniel  and  Lucy 
(Fuller)  Shaw.  He  is  of  the  fourth  genera- 
tion of  his  race  born  in  Carver,  the  first  hav- 
ing been  represented  by  his  great-grandfather, 
Nathaniel  Shaw. 

Mr.  Wilson  Shaw,  who  has  taken  the  pains 
to  acquaint  himself  with  the  record  of  the  fam- 
ily, thus  traces  his  descent  from  the  immi- 
grant progenitor :  Jonathan  Shaw  came  from 
England,  and  settled  in  Plymouth,  Mass., 
where  he  and  his  son.  Deacon  John  Shaw, 
died  at  about  the  same  time,  and  their  remains 
were  laid  to  rest  in  one  grave.  Jonathan 
Shaw,  son  of  Deacon  Shaw,  was  born  in 
1663.  His  son,  Lieutenant  Jonathan  Shaw, 
born  in  1689,  was  one  of  the  builders  of 
Pope's  Point  F"urnace  in  1734.  He  served  as 
an   ofificer   in    the    F"rench    War;   and    Captain 


Nathaniel  Shaw,  born  in  171 8,  son  of  said 
Lieutenant,  served  as  an  officer  in  the  Revolu- 
tionary War,  using  the  sword  that  had  been 
his  father's.  Some  time  afterward  Lieutenant 
Joseph  Shaw,  son  of  Captain  Nathaniel,  car- 
ried the  same  old  sword  while  on  duty,  and 
had  the  misfortune  to  break  it  when  leaping  a 
fence. 

The  children  of  Captain  Nathaniel  Shaw 
and  his  wife  Hannah  —  twelve  in  number  — 
were:  Mary;  Elizabeth;  Nathaniel,  Jr.;  Jo- 
seph, born  in  1749;  Hannah;  Ruth;  Jona- 
than; Deliverance;  James;  Zilpha;  and  two 
that  died  in  infancy. 

Lieutenant  Joseph  Shaw  and  his  wife  Lydia 
also  had  twelve  children,  seven  sons  and  five 
daughters,  namely:  Joseph,  Jr.,  Qliver,  Isaac, 
Cephas,  and  Elkanah,  all  moulders;  Nathaniel 
and  George,  foremen;  Lydia;  Ruth;  Wait- 
still;   Betsey;  and  Hannah. 

Nathaniel  Shaw,  son  of  Lieutenant  Joseph 
and  father  of  Wilson  Shaw,  was  born  on  the 
farm  in  Carver  which  was  his  son's  birthplace; 
and  he  there  devoted  much  of  his  life  to  the 
pursuit  of  agriculture.  He  was  killed  by  the 
falling  of  a  tree.  Seven  children  were  born 
into  his  home,  namely:  Nathaniel;  Gilbert; 
Lydia;  George;  Wilson,  the  subject  of  this 
sketch ;  Joseph ;  and  Lucy.  Three  of  these 
are  living  —  Lydia,  Wilson,  and  Joseph. 

Wilson  Shaw  was  born  and  reared  on  the 
homestead,  and  received  a  good  practical  educa- 
tion. When  nineteen  years  of  age,  he  went 
to  work  at  the  old  Pope's  Point  Furnace  in 
Carver,  where  he  learned  the  moulder's  trade; 
and  this  trade  he  followed  for  the  greater  part 
of  forty  years,  finding  employment  in  different 
places.  He  resided  in  Norton,  Mass.,  for  a 
few  years,  and  then  removed  to  Woodstock, 
Vt.,  where  he  bought  a  farm,  and  lived  about 
fifteen  years.  At  the  end  of  that  period,  re- 
turning to  his  native  town,  he  here  purchased 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


175 


a  farm,  and  engaged  in  the  pursuit  of  agricult- 
ure until  1S83,  wlien,  being  seventy  years  of 
age,  he  sold  his  farm;  and  since  that  time  he 
has  enjoyed  the  leisure  befitting  his  years. 

Mr.  Shaw  married  a  lady  bearing  the  same 
surname,  Miss  Pamelia  C.  Shaw.  He  has  no 
children.  In  political  matters  he  favors  the 
Republican  side.  Mr.  Shaw's  long  life  of 
eighty-three  years  has  been  a  useful  and  hon- 
orable one,  and  he  justly  enjoys  the  respect 
and  confidence  of  all  who  know  him. 


T^APTAIN  JOSHUA  JAMES,  keeper 
I  V^^      of  the  United   States  Life-saving  Sta- 

^J°  ^  tion  at  Point  Allerton,  Mass.,  was 
born  in  Hall,  Plymouth  County,  November 
22,  1827,  son  of  William  and  Esther  (Dill) 
James.  His  father  was  a  native  of  Holland 
and  a  soldier  in  the  army,  which  he  left  when 
a  young  man  to  become  a  sailor.  He  subse- 
quently came  to  America,  and,  settling  in 
Hull,  was  a  sailor  and  fisherman  the  rest  of 
his  life.  His  wife,  whose  maiden  name  was 
Esther  Dill,  belonged  to  an  old  family  here. 
Twelve  children  were  born  to  them,  and  four 
sons  are  now  living.  In  1837  the  mother  with 
others  of  the  family  was  drowned  in  Hull  Gut, 
the  sloop  in  which  they  had  embarked  having 
capsized.  The  father  was  on  the  boat,  but  was 
unable  to  save  them.  He  lived  to  be  eighty- 
six  years  of  age. 

Joshua  James,  after  acquiring  his  education 
in  the  schools  of  his  native  town,  engaged  in 
coasting  and  fishing  with  his  father  until  he 
was  twenty-five  years  of  age,  thereafter  contin- 
uing the  business  for  himself.  He  has  long 
been  active  in  the  work  of  the  Massachusetts 
Humane  Society,  going  in  their  boats  since  he 
was  fifteen  years  of  age,  and  has  saved  scores 
of  lives  from  the  sea.  In  1889  he  was 
appointed  to  his  present  position  of  keeper  of 


the  Life-saving  Station  at  Point  Allerton. 
He  has  been  honored  with  various  testimo- 
nials, including  a  bronze  medal  from  the 
Massachusetts  Humane  Society  for  rescuing 
the  crew  of  the  French  brig  "L'Essay"  at 
Nantasket  Ikach  on  April  i,  1850;  a  certifi- 
cate for  rescuing  the  officers  and  crew  of  ship 
"Delaware"  off  the  Toddy  Rocks  in  Boston 
Harbor,  March  27,  1857;  a  silver  medal  in  1S86 
from  the  Massachusetts  Humane  Society  for 
rescuing  the  crew  of  the  brig  "Anita  Owen," 
ten  in  number,  and  for  his  brave  and  faithful 
service  of  more  than  forty  years  in  the  life- 
boats of  that  society;  a  gold  medal  from  the 
same  society  for  his  humane  exertion  in  rescu- 
ing the  lives  of  twenty-nine  persons  from  five 
wrecks  on  November  25  and  26,  1888;  also  a 
gold  medal  from  United  States  Signal  Service 
for  bravery  at  the  wreck  of  the  schooner  "Ger- 
trude Abbott  "  lost  at  that  time. 

Even  now,  in  his  seventieth  year,  his  physi- 
cal strength,  his  resolute  daring  and  heroic 
promptitude  in  emergency,  are  not  abated. 
The  rescue  of  the  crew  of  the  British  schooner 
"Ulrica"  at  Nantasket  Beach  by  Captain 
James  and  his  hardy  surfmen  during  the  vio- 
lent storm  of  December  16,  1896,  was  deserv- 
edly chronicled  in  the  papers  as  "an  achieve- 
ment of  exceptional  skill  and  bravery."  The 
wreck  occurred  opposite  Kenberma.  A  spe- 
cial railway  train  brought  the  life-savers  from 
the  station  three  miles  away.  The  Humane 
Society's  life-boat  was  launched;  and  three  un- 
successful attempts  were  made  to  reach  the 
broken  vessel,  hopelessly  stranded,  buffeted 
by  the  raging  billows.  The  third  time  the 
boat  was  tossed  like  a  feather  twenty  feet  into 
the  air,  and  Captain  James  was  hurled  into 
the  roaring,  foaming  water.  Reaching  shore 
again,  wet  and  chilled,  but  undaunted,  he  di- 
rected the  firing  of  the  Hunt  gun  that  had  just 
been  brought  to  the  scene  of  action,  and  which 


176 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


on  the  first  trial  sent  the  life-line  high  up  in 
the  rigging  of  the  "Ulrica,"  where  it  could 
not  be  reached  by  the  half-frozen  sailors.  A 
second  shot  was  fired,  and  a  third.  A  hawser 
was  made  fast  to  the  vessel  :  the  life-boat  by 
its  means  was  pulled  out,  and  the  shipwrecked 
crew,  seven  in  number,  were  saved. 

Captain  James,  when  thirty-two  years  of 
age,  was  united  in  marriage  with  Louise  F. 
Luchie,  of  Hull.  They  have  had  ten  chil- 
dren, si.\  f)f  whom  are  now  living,  namely: 
Louise  Z. ,  who  married  Eben  T.  Pope,  of  this 
town,  and  has  two  children  —  Hildegarde  U. 
and  Dolly  T.  ;  Osceola  F".  James,  who  is  cap- 
tain of  the  Life-saving  Boat  of  the  Humane 
Society  at  Nantasket  Beach;  Edith  G.,  who 
married  Joseph  T.  Galiano,  of  Hull,  and  they 
have  one  child,  Eva;  Bertha  C.  ;  Roselle  F.  ; 
and  Genevieve  E.  James.  The  father  of  Mrs. 
James  was  John  Luchie,  who  came  from  Aus- 
tria, and  settled  in  Hull  in  the  early  part  of 
1830.  He  was  a  sailor  until  1840,  when  he 
was  employed  as  agent  of  the  F.  Tudor  Ice 
Company  in  Boston.  He  was  a  very  successful 
business  man,  and  was  highly  esteemed.  He 
died  at  the  age  of  seventy-five  years.  His 
wife,  formerly  Eliza  T.  Lovell,  now  at  the  age 
of  seventy-eight,  resides  with  her  daughter 
Louise,  Mrs.  James,  in  Hull. 


IRA  ALLEN  LEACH,  late  an  able 
lawyer  of  Campello,  was  born  in  North 
Bridgewater  (now  Brockton),  June  7, 
1850,  son  of  Allen  and  Huldah  G.  (Morey) 
Leach.  His  paternal  grandfather  was  Oliver 
Leach;  and  Peleg  and  Lucius  Leach,  shoe 
manufacturers  of  Brockton,  were  his  uncles. 
Allen  Leach,  his  father,  was  a  farmer.  He 
resided  in  Whitman  during  the  war,  and  there 
manufactured  shoes. 

Ira  Allen   Leach  was   graduated    from    the 


high  school  and  the  Bridgewater  State  Normal 
School.  Being  mentally  equipped,  he  began 
a  commercial  career,  at  first  becoming  a  trav- 
elling salesman  for  his  father,  selling  shoes  in 
the  West.  For  a  time  after  that  he  engaged 
in  the  manufacture  of  shoes ;  but,  owing  to 
disastrous  losses  by  the  Boston  fire,  he  was 
obliged  to  give  it  up.  Nothing  daunted  by 
this  experience,  he  then  worked  in  the  shop 
of  his  uncle  Marcus  Leach,  at  the  same  time 
reaching  out  after  something  higher  by  read- 
ing law  at  home  evenings.  He  also  studied 
with  W.  W.  &  F.  M.  Wilkins,  prominent 
lawyers  of  North  Bridgewater.  He  passed  a 
a  most  meritorious  examination  for  admit- 
tance to  the  bar,  and  began  the  practice  of 
law  in  Campello,  where  he  remained  until 
his  death,  which  occurred  on  January  10, 
1S93. 

In  politics  he  was  an  undeviating  Republi- 
can, and  was  actively  interested  in  political 
measures.  Fraternally,  he  affiliated  in  mem- 
bership with  St.  George's  Lodge  A.  F.  & 
A.  M.,  of  Campello,  which  he  served  as  Audi- 
tor; the  Massasoit  Lodge,  Independent  Order 
of  Odd  Fellows,  of  Brockton;  the  Ancient 
Order  of  United  Workmen;  and  the  United 
Order  of  Pilgrim  Fathers,  in  which  he  had  the 
highest  office. 

On  May  12,  1871,  Mr.  Leach  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Abbie  A.  Clayton,  a  daughter 
of  George  W.  Clayton,  of  Farmington,  Me. 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Leach  became  the  parents  of  sev- 
eral children,  namely:  Allen,  who  died  at  the 
age  of  seven;  Cora  B.,  who  was  graduated 
from  the  Brockton  High  School,  and  is  now  a 
stenographer;  Ira  Allen,  who  manages  the 
place;  Carrie  E.,  Grace  M.,  Helen  F.,  and 
Oliver  —  five  of  whom  reside  here  with  their 
widowed  mother.  The  parents  both  attended 
the  South  Congregational  Church,  of  which 
Mrs.  Leach  is  a  member. 


/. 


r 


^Bi  ■H^p-    y  % 


IRA    A.    LEACH. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


179 


^1"; 


[INGTON  I.  JAMES,  the  coiir- 
5US  superintendent  of  Melville 
Gardens  at  Downer's  Landing, 
Mass.,  was  born  in  Hull,  Plymouth  County, 
on  May  i,  1851,  son  of  Samuel  and  Mary  P. 
(Gushing)  James,  of  Duxbury,  Mass. 

His  grandfather,  William  James,  a  native 
of  Holland,  was  a  soldier  who  left  the  army  to 
become  a  sailor.  In  early  manhood  he  came 
to  America,  and,  settling  in  Hull,  thereafter 
followed  the  occupations  of  sailor  and  fisher- 
man. He  married  Esther  Dill,  who  belonged 
to  one  of  the  old  families  of  this  town;  and 
they  had  twelve  children,  six  of  whom  — 
namely,  four  sons  and  two  daughters  — •  are 
still  living.  Mrs.  Esther  Dill  James  met  with 
an  untimely  end,  being  drowned  with  others  of 
her  family  in  1837  in  Hull  Gut.  The  sloop  in 
which  they  had  set  sail  capsized,  and  the  rocks 
and  eddies  made  rescue  impossible.  William 
James  lived  to  be  eighty-six  years  old. 

Samuel  James,  son  of  William,  was  a  native 
of  Hull,  and  has  been  a  mariner  on  the  coast 
all  his  life,  making  his  home  here.  While  he 
was  connected  with  the  Massachusetts  Humane 
Society,  which  was  incorporated  in  1791,  at 
the  risk  of  his  life  he  rescued  from  drowning 
twelve  persons,  the  only  survivors  of  the  ship 
"Maritana, "  wrecked  near  Boston  Light, 
November  3,  1861,  on  her  way  from  Liver- 
pool, England.  He  received  a  certificate  from 
the  Humane  Society  in  appreciation  of  his 
skill  and  courage.  Other  medals  and  purses 
that  have  been  offered  him  his  modesty  has 
led  him  to  decline.  He  now  makes  a  busi- 
ness of  keeping  pleasure  yachts,  which  he 
leases  to  the  summer  visitors.  Though 
seventy-three  years  old,  he  is  still  hale  and 
hearty.  In  politics  he  is  a  Republican.  Mr. 
Samuel  James  married  Mary  P.  Gushing;  and 
they  became  the  parents  of  nine  children, 
eight    of    whom    grew   to    maturity ;    namely. 


Washington  I.,  Samuel,  Laura  R.,  Fannie  E., 
Lillie  R.,  Abbie  A.,  Charles  M.,  and  Esther 
S.  James.  Laura  R.  James  married  for  her 
second  husband  Warren  Towle,  of  Bridgeport, 
Conn.  By  her  former  marriage  to  James  W. 
Pope,  of  Hull,  she  had  one  child,  Clarence 
Pope.  Lillie  R.  is  the  wife  of  Clarence  E. 
Leonard,  of  Wakefield,  Mass.  She  has  no 
children.  Abbie  A.  is  the  widow  of  William 
Cullihan,  of  Hull,  and  has  one  child,  a  son 
named  Paul.  Esther  S.  James  married  Joseph 
Keen,  of  Middleboro,  and  died  leaving  two 
children  —  Esther  S.  and  Harry  Keon.  Mr. 
Samuel  James  and  his  wife  are  highly  re- 
spected members  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
church.  Mrs.  James  has  now  attained  the  age 
of  threescore  years  and  ten,  and  still  enjoys 
good  health. 

Washington  I.  James,  after  acquiring  his 
education  in  Hull,  was  engaged  in  coasting 
with  his  father  between  Maine  and  New  York. 
In  1870  he  settled  in  Hingham  at  Downer's 
Landing,  and  officiated  as  assistant  superin- 
tendent of  Melville  Gardens  until  the  death  of 
James  D.  Scudder,  when  he  succeeded  to  the 
superintendency.  For  the  past  nine  years  he 
has  served  as  Constable.  In  politics  he  is  in- 
dependent. He  also  has  been  instrumental  in 
saving  a  number  of  lives.  In  1872,  when  the 
schooner  "  Helena"  ran  ashore  on  North  East 
Bar,  Point  Allerton,  he  assisted  in  the  rescue 
of  five  persons,  receiving  a  prize  for  his 
bravery.  Personally,  Mr.  James  is  highly 
esteemed,  having  made  many  new  friends  since 
his  connection  with  Melville  Gardens. 

On  November  28,  1878,  he  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Catherine  L.  Foley,  daughter 
of  Cornelius  Foley,  of  Hingham,  Mass.  They 
have  three  children  —  May  Gertrude,  Frances 
Lilian,  and  Helen  Catherine.  The  father  and 
mother  are  both  members  of  the  Catholic 
church  in  Himrham. 


i8o 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


bfREDERICK  A.  WARD,  a  general 
\\  agriculturist  and  cranberry-grower,  was 
born  January  4,  1855,  in  South  Middle- 
boro,  this  county,  son  of  Austin  and  Ann 
Janette  (Sherman)  Ward.  His  paternal 
grandfather  was  Eliab  Ward,  a  native  of 
Carver,  where  he  was  engaged  in  farming  dur- 
ing the  greater  part  of  his  entire  lifetime. 
Austin  Ward  had  his  birth,  July  3,  1826,  in 
Carver,  where  he  grew  to  manhood,  and  fol- 
lowed the  business  of  butcher.  In  1861  he 
enlisted  in  Company  E  of  the  Eighteenth 
Regiment  of  Massachusetts  Volunteers,  and 
served  at  the  front  for  one  year  and  three 
months.  He  was  then  discharged  on  account 
of  disability.  Some  time  after  he  re-enlisted 
in  Company  C  of  the  Fifty-eighth  Regiment 
of  Massachusetts  Volunteers.  After  a  few 
months'  service  he  was  mustered  out,  June  8, 
1S65.  On  June  15,  1853,  he  married  Miss 
Ann  Janette  Sherman,  a  daughter  of  Joseph 
R.  Sherman,  of  Carver,  where  she  was  born 
September  3,  1833.  They  had  three  children, 
namely:  Frederick  A.,  the  subject  of  this 
.sketch;  Emma  J.,  who  is  now  the  wife  of 
Samuel  J.  Sporrow,  a  carpenter,  of  Middle- 
boro;  and  Betsy  W.,  now  the  wife  of  Wilston 
B.  Chandler,  of  Middleboro,  who  is  a  conduc- 
tor on  the  New  York,  New  Haven  &  Hartford 
Railroad.  The  father  died  in  1878,  in  his 
fifty-third  year.  The  mother,  who  survives 
him,  makes  her  home  in  Middleboro. 

When  about  a  year  old,  Frederick  A.  Ward 
removed  with  his  parents  from  South  Middle- 
boro to  North  Carver,  where  he  passed  the  rest 
of  his  boyhood,  receiving  his  education  in  the 
district  schools.  He  began  to  earn  his  living 
at  the  age  of  sixteen.  In  his  twentieth  year 
he  went  to  Plymouth  to  learn  the  moulder's 
trade,  and  there  subsequently  followed  that 
calling  for  five  years.  He  then  worked  in 
Providence,    R.I.,    and  Wakefield,    Mass.,   for 


six  months  each,  after  which  he  returned  to 
Carver,  and  engaged  in  a  general  mercantile 
business.  Discontinuing  that  after  two  years, 
he  then  conducted  a  stage  and  express  route 
from  Carver  to  Silver  Lake  in  Plympton,  tak- 
ing the  cars  thence  to  Boston,  and  making  the 
round  trip  every  day  for  nearly  six  years. 
One  year  later  he  purchased  about  forty  acres. 
To  this  he  has  since  made  considerable  addi- 
tions. He  carries  on  general  husbandry,  and 
gives  special  attention  to  the  cultivation  of 
cranberries. 

On  July  16,  1 88 1,  Mr.  Ward  wedded  Miss 
Clara  E.  Perkins,  who  was  born  March  26, 
1857,  to  Mr.  and  Mrs.  William  Perkins,  of 
Plympton.  Mr.  Ward  and  his  wife  have  now 
one  child,  a  son,  Jay  A.,  who  was  born  No- 
vember 28,  1S83.  Mr.  Ward  participates 
actively  in  the  civic  and  social  affairs  of  the 
community.  He  has  served  his  fellow-towns- 
men since  1889  as  a  member  of  the  Board  of 
Selectmen,  officiating  as  the  Chairman  since 
the  summer  of  1892.  In  politics  he  acts  in- 
dependently of  party,  giving  his  support  to 
whatever  candidates  and  principles  he  may 
think  the  circumstances  of  the  time  demand. 


P.  KEITH,  Vice-President  of 
the  extensive  corporation  of  the  Pres- 
ton B.  Keith  Shoe  Company,  and 
clerk  of  the  South  Congregational  Church  of 
Campello,  in  Brockton  township,  was  born  in 
Campello,  March  2,  1S51.  His  parents  were 
Charles  Perkins  and  Mary  (Williams)  Keith. 
His  paternal  grandfather,  Charles  Keith,  a 
farmer  and  shoemaker,  was  also  a  prominent 
Congregational ist,  a  member  of  the  South 
Church  of  Brockton,  one  of  the  founders  of  the 
Campello  church,  and  a  teacher  in  the  Sun- 
day-school. He  married  Mehitable  Perkins, 
and  reared  a  family  of  five  children. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


i8i 


Charles  Perkins  Keith  was  a  lifelong  resi- 
dent of  Brockton,  formerly  North  Bridgewater, 
and  was  engaged  in  the  leading  industry  of  the 
place — -manufacturing  shoes — until  1872. 
He,  too,  was  connected  with  the  South  Con- 
gregational Church,  and  was  liberal  in  its 
support.  He  died  July  12,  1893,  aged 
seventy-three  years.  His  wife,  who  was  a 
daughter  of  Josiah  Williams,  of  West  Bridge- 
water,  died  in  1884,  aged  sixty-two  years. 
She  left  three  children,  namely:  Sarah  W., 
wife  of  Fred  W.  Park,  of  Canipello;  Preston 
B. ,  shoe  manufacturer  of  Campello;  and 
Rufus  P.,  the  special  subject  of  this  biographi- 
cal sketch. 

Rufus  P.  Keith  acquired  his  education  in 
his  native  town,  finishing  with  a  three  years" 
course  in  the  high  school.  He  went  to  work 
at  the  age  of  eighteen  in  his  father's  factory, 
remaining  until  1872,  when  he  assumed  charge 
of  his  brother's  work-rooms.  The  business 
conducted  by  the  Keith  brothers  is  a  flourish- 
ing one,  having  increased  twelvefold  since 
they  took  charge  of  it.  In  the  beginning  they 
employed  twenty-five  or  thirty  men,  and  they 
now  have  three  hundred  hands  at  work. 

Mr.  Keith  was  married  in  October,  1880,  to 
a  daughter  of  Jonathan  Keith,  a  distant  rela- 
tion. She  died  in  1893,  aged  thirty-six  years, 
leaving  one  child,  Clara  May;  and  in  April, 
1S96,  Mr.  Keith  was  united  with  Mrs.  Sarah 
C.  Reed  Blades,  daughter  of  the  Hon.  Will- 
iam L.  Reed,  and  widow  of  the  Rev.  John  T. 
Blades,  a  former  pastor  of  the  Campello  South 
Congregational  Church. 

Mr.  Keith,  who  is  a  Republican,  has  filled 
the  office  of  Deputy  Warden  of  Ward  3.  He 
has  been  Treasurer  of  St.  George  Lodge, 
A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  for  a  number  of  years,  and  was 
Master  some  two  years;  and  he  belongs  to 
Satucket  Royal  Arch  Chapter.  A  member  of 
the  South  Congregational  Church  since  a  boy 


in  his  teens,  he  has  been  Clerk  of  the  church  a 
number  of  years,  and  a  member  of  the  Parish 
Committee  seven  or  eight  years. 


IDWIN  PUTNAM  GLEASON,  M.D., 
who  has  recently  settled  in  Brockton, 
Mass.,  is  a  well-qualified  physician 
and  surgeon,  a  graduate  of  the  Harvard  Medi- 
cal School.  He  was  born  in  Washington, 
D.C. ,  May  3,  1866,  and  is  a  son  of  the  Rev. 
John  F.  and  Olive  M.  (Jefferds)  Gleason. 
Dr.  Gleason,  on  his  father's  side,  claims 
descent  from  General  Israel  Putnam  of  Revo- 
lutionary fame,  and  on  his  mother's  side  from 
John  Alden,  who  came  to  I^lymouth  in  the 
"Mayflower,"  and  from  Thomas  Dudley,  one 
of  the  early  governors  of  Massachusetts  Col- 
ony. His  father,  the  Rev.  John  F.  Gleason, 
was  born  in  Bedford,  Mass.,  and  now  lives  in 
Amherst.  For  thirty  years  a  preacher,  he  be- 
lieved in  battling  for  the  right  in  deed  as  well 
as  word ;  for  during  the  war  he  served  four 
years  and  a  half  in  the  Twenty-second  Regi- 
ment, Massachusetts  Volunteer  Infantry.  His 
wife  is  a  native  of  Middleton,  Mass. 

Edwin  Putnam  Gleason  passed  the  first  six 
years  of  his  life  in  the  national  capital.  His 
parents  then  removing  to  Williamsburg, 
Mass.,  he  attended  school  there  four  years; 
and  he  subsequently  lived  for  nine  or  ten 
years  in  Norfolk,  Conn.,  attending  Norfolk 
Academy,  Williston  Seminary,  Easthampton, 
Mass.,  and  Amherst  College.  At  the  Har- 
vard Medical  School  he  took  the  regular 
course  in  the  class  of  1890;  and  immediately 
after  receiving  his  degree  he  opened  an  office 
in  Cambridge,  Mass.,  where  he  remained  about 
a  year  and  a  half.  He  was  subsequently 
appointed  to  the  medical  staff  of  the  Brooklyn 
Sanitarium,  previous  to  which  he  passed  the 
exacting  examinations  of  the   New  York  Uni- 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


versity  Regents,  this  making  him  a  legal  prac- 
titioner in  that  State.  After  a  brief  practice 
in  Rockland,  Mass.,  he  in  1896  located  at 
U06,  Main  Street,  Campello,  Brockton, 
where  he  now  has  a  general  practice,  steadily 
increasing.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Massa- 
chusetts Medical  Society.  A  Republican 
since  his  majority,  he  has  taken  an  active 
interest  in  politics.  Dr.  Gleason  was  married 
in  1895  to  Miss  Sadie  L.  Harlow,  of  Whit- 
man, Mass.  He  is  a  Mason,  belonging  to 
Charles  A.  Welch  Lodge,  of  Maynard,  Mass. 
In  religious  belief  he  is  a  Congregationalist, 
being  a  member  of  that  church  and  of  the 
Young  People's  Society  of  Christian  En- 
deavor. 


REDERICK  W.  ROBBINS,  formerly 
a  well-known  merchant  of  Plymouth 
and  a  veteran  of  the  Civil  War,  died  at 
his  home  in  this  town,  January  20,  1884.  He 
was  born  in  Plymouth,  August  24,  1826,  son 
of  Deacon  Josiah  and  Rebecca  (Jackson)  Rob- 
bins,  and  was  a  representative  of  an  old  Colo- 
nial family,  whose  founder  was  Nicholas  Rob- 
bins,  of  Duxbury,  1638. 

As  the  proprietor  of  Robbins's  Rope  Walk, 
Josiah  Robbins  was  for  many  years  a  consi^ic- 
uous  figure  among  the  business  men  of  Plym- 
outh;  and  he  was  one  of  the  most  prominent 
supporters  of  the  Orthodox  church,  of  which  he 
was  Deacon  for  a  long  period.  He  was  four 
times  married,  and  he  reared  six  children,  five 
of  whom  were  by  his  third  wife,  Rebecca 
Jackson,  who  was  a  native  of  Plymouth  ;  and 
of  these  Frederick  W.,  the  subject  of  this 
sketch,  was  the  third-born. 

Frederick  W.  Robbins  completed  his  educa- 
tional course  at  a  Marlboro  boarding-school, 
and  for  a  short  time  afterward  was  employed 
in  a  retail  grocery  store  in  Boston.  Returning 
to  Plymouth,  he  entered   the  general  store  car- 


ried on  by  his  father  in  connection  with  the 
Rope  Walk,  and  which,  after  coming  into  his 
possession,  was  managed  by  himself  and  a 
brother  for  some  time.  He  later  engaged  in 
the  wholesale  grocery  business,  which  he  con- 
ducted for  about  one  year,  or  until  the  break- 
ing out  of  the  Civil  War;  and  in  August, 
1 861,  he  enlisted  in  the  company  commanded 
by  Captain  Callingwood,  which  formed  a  part 
of  the  Llighteenth  Regiment,  Massachusetts 
Volunteers.  Being  near-sighted,  he  was  pre- 
vented from  entering  the  ranks  as  a  regular 
soldier,  but  was  eligible  to  the  post  of  Com- 
missary of  his  company,  in  which  capacity  he 
served  with  ability  for  three  years,  accompany- 
ing the  regiment  through  its  various  campaigns 
and  battles.  He  thus  contracted  fever  and 
ague,  from  which  he  never  fully  recovered. 

After  his  discharge  from  the  army  in  1864 
he  returned  home,  and  was  obliged  to  pass 
a  year  in  convalescing.  He  then  went  to 
New  Berne,  N. C,  where  in  company  with  his 
brother  he  engaged  in  the  grocery  business, 
later  becoming  interested  in  a  cotton  planta- 
tion and  the  operating  of  cotton  gins.  P'rom 
North  Carolina  he  went  to  Texas,  where  his 
stay  was  of  short  duration;  and,  returning  to 
Plymouth,  he  passed  his  last  days  among  his 
kindred  and  friends,  dying  at  the  age  of  fifty- 
seven  years.  He  was  an  exceedingly  upright, 
conscientious  business  man,  whose  many  ster- 
ling qualities  endeared  him  to  all  with  whom 
he  came  in  contact.  He  possessed  a  natural 
desire  for  progress  and  the  development  of 
business  enterprises.  P'or  a  number  of  years 
he  was  an  active  member  of  the  Grand  Army  of 
the  Republic,  being  a  comrade  of  the  post  in 
New  Berne,  N.  C. 

On  August  21,  1850,  Mr.  Robbins  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Mary  Wade,  who  sur- 
vives him.  .She  was  born  in  I^oston,  daughter 
of  John  and  Mary  (Dolbear)  Wade,  the  former 


JARVIS     BURRELL. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


^8S 


of  whom  was  a  native  of  Weymouth,  and  a 
boat-builder  by  trade,  who  was  connected  with 
the  United  States  Navy  Yard  at  Charlestown, 
Mass.,  for  eighteen  years.  He  married  for  his 
first  wife  Mary  Francis,  and  for  his  second 
Mary  Dolbear,  of  J^oston ;  and  liis  family 
consisted  of  eight  children,  seven  sons  and  one 
daughter,  Mrs.  Robbins  being  the  third  of 
four  children  born  of  his  second  union.  The 
Wade  family  were  Unitarians,  and  attended 
the  church  in  Charlestown  which  was  formerly 
presided  over  by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Walker,  and 
later  by  the  Rev.  George  E.   l-lllis. 

Mrs.  Robbins  in  her  girlhood  attended  the 
public  schools  of  Charlestcnvn,  Mass.,  later 
entering  a  private  school  ;  and  her  studies  were 
completed  at  the  Charlestown  Female  Semi- 
nar). Her  married  life  was  exceedingly 
happy,  her  love  and  devotion  to  her  husband 
having  been  returned  with  the  deepest  and 
most  sincere  affection.  They  became  the  par- 
ents of  seven  children,  five  of  whom  died 
young.  The  survivors  are :  Abbie  J.,  wife  of 
George  M.  Gifford,  a  tailor  of  Plymouth  ;  and 
George  J.,  a  carpenter  of  Whitman. 

Mrs.  Robbins  is  prominently  identified  with 
the  Ladies'  Relief  Corps  connected  with  Call- 
ing wood  Post,  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic, 
of  Plymouth,  having  been  a  member  of  several 
visiting  committees,  and  being  much  inter- 
ested in  the  corps  and  its  work. 


(s^ARVIS  BURRELL,  the  present  Town 
Treasurer  of  East  Bridgewater,  Plym- 
outh County,  Mass.,  and  a  prominent 
business  man,  is  a  native  of  West  Bridge- 
water. 

He  was  born  June  15,  1828,  his  parents 
being  Jarvis  D.  and  Nancy  H.  (Howard)  Bur- 
rell.  His  maternal  great-grandfather,  Leavitt 
Thayer,  was  a   Revolutionary  soldier  and  pen- 


sioner. (.See  muster  roll,  Captain  Abner 
Crane's  Company,   1779,  State  Archives.) 

Jarvis  D.  Burrell,  whose  birth  occurred  in 
1798,  was  for  many  years  a  merchant  in  Ran- 
dolph, Mass.  He  was  also  prominently  iden- 
tified with  the  militia,  of  which  he  became  a 
major,  and  was  familiarly  known  as  Major 
Burrell.  In  politics  he  was  a  Free  Soiler. 
He  lived  to  be  eighty-eight  years  old.  Five 
of  his  children  survived  him,  namely:  Jarvis; 
Sarah  T. ,  the  widow  of  the  late  Josiah  Bacon, 
of  Boston,  Mass.  ;  Nancy  J.,  who  died  Sep- 
tember 17,  1894;  Emily  L.,  now  living  in 
West  Bridgewater;  and  David  T. ,  of  Brock- 
ton, Mass. 

After  acquiring  a  practical  common-school 
education,  Jarvis  l^urrell,  in  his  eighteenth 
year,  began  learning  the  blacksmith's  trade 
in  West  Bridgewater;  and  he  followed  that 
occupation  for  over  three  years.  Subse- 
quently, in  1850,  he  came  to  East  Bridge- 
water,  and  entered  the  employ  of  E.  Carver  & 
Co.,  cotton  gin  manufacturers,  whose  business 
is  now  carried  on  under  the  name  of  the 
Carver  Cotton  Gin  Company.  He  worked  as 
a  machinist  up  to  1856,  when  he  began  travel- 
ling through  the  South  as  salesman  and  agent, 
following  this  until  1861,  when  the  breaking 
out  of  the  war  put  an  end  to  the  business  for  a 
time.  He  afterward  entered  their  shop  as 
a  draughtsman  and  exijerimenter,  and  several 
years  later,  being  made  foreuian  of  their  iron 
department,  held  that  position  some  time.  So 
that  altogether  he  was  in  the  employ  of  the 
Carver  Cotton  Gin  Company  over  forty-five 
years. 

Mr.  Burrell  made  valuable  improvements  on 
the  machine  for  cutting  moulding  for 'marble 
slabs  for  shelves  and  marble  tops  on  furniture. 
It  was  placed  on  exhibition  at  the  Mechanics' 
Fair  in  Boston,  and  proved  a  great  success,  the 
marble    manufacturers    testifying    that    it    did 


i86 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


the  work  of  from  twelve  to  fifteen  men  without 
an  increase  in  the  cost  of  the  tools.  The 
Labor  Committee  waited  on  Mr.  Burrell,  in- 
forming him  that  he  had  better  take  his  ma- 
chines away,  as  they  were  robbing  men  of  work. 
He  replied  that  he  should  still  continue  the 
machines;  and  with  characteristic  pluck  he 
adhered  to  this  resolution,  and  finally  suc- 
ceeded in  convincing  the  committee  that  the 
men  had  no  less  work  than  before,  though 
much  more  was  accomplished  in  the  same 
time.  Mr.  Burrell  also  made  improvements 
on  steam  gauges,  taking  out  a  patent  which 
was  sold  to  the  steam  gauge  manufacturers. 
For  several  years  now  he  has  carried  on  a 
printing  business,  getting  out  cards  of  all 
kinds,  circulars,  pamphlets,  and  catalogues. 
His  inventive  ability  has  shown  itself  in  this 
department  of  business  also;  and  Curtis  & 
Mitchell,  of  Boston,  deceased,  when  living, 
had  control  of  his  improvements  in  this  line, 
and  sold  thousands  of  the  presses  that  embody 
his  improvements. 

Mr.  ]3urrell  married  Sarah  A.  Snell,  of 
West  Bridgewater,  and  by  her  has  had  four 
children,  namely:  Ina  L.  (deceased),  wife  of 
Fred  C.  Nutter,  who  left  one  child,  Maude  C, 
who  was  nineteen  years  of  age  June  27,  1896; 
Alice  M.,  wife  of  F.  O.  Keith;  Lura  J.,  wife 
of  A.  G.  Waterman;  and  George  A.,  who 
married  Louise  M.  Keith. 

Mr.  Burrell  is  a  Republican  in  politics. 
Under  a  former  school  law  he  was  Secretary 
and  Treasurer  of  the  School  Board.  In  1S93 
he  was  elected  Town  Treasurer,  and  he  has 
been  re-elected  annually  up  to  the  present 
time.  He  is  a  member  of  the  East  Bridge- 
water  Improvement  and  Social  Club.  Frater- 
nally, he  is  a  charter  member  of  Satucket 
Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  East  Bridgewater, 
having  originally  been  a  member  of  Fellow- 
ship Lodge,  A.   F.  &  A.   M.,  of  Bridgewater, 


from  which  he  withdrew  to  join  the  former. 
He  is  also  a  charter  member  and  Treasurer  of 
Harmony  Chapter,  Royal  Arch  Masons,  at 
Bridgewater,  and  is  a  member  of  the  Old  Col- 
ony Commandery,  Knights  Templars,  at  Ab- 
ington.  Few  enjoy  in  a  higher  degree  the 
respect  and  confidence  of  the  community  than 
does  Mr.  Burrell. 


OHN  C.  GARDNER,  a  well-known 
native  resident  of  Hingham,  is  a  de- 
scendant of  one  of  the  town's  early 
settlers.  He  was  born  on  September  13, 
1839,  son  of  Enoch  W.  and  Orra  A.  (Amadon) 
Gardner.  He  is  a  representative  of  a  family 
said  to  be  of  Scotch  origin,  which  has  resided 
in  Hingham  for  seven  generations;  and  his 
lineage  can  be  traced  through  Enoch  W. , 
Samuel,  third,  Samuel,  second,  Samuel,  first, 
and  Francis,  to  John  Garnet,  that  being  an 
early  form  of  the  family  name. 

John  Garnet  was  the  founder  of  this  branch 
of  the  family  in  America.  His  son  Francis, 
who  was  born  in  Hingham,  March  31,  1653, 
resided  in  this  town,  and  was  a  soldier  in 
Captain  Johnson's  company  at  the  great  Nar- 
ragansett  fight  in  December,  1675.  He  mar- 
ried Joanna,  daughter  of  Samuel  May,  of  Rox- 
bury,  January  5,  1681  ;  and,  of  their  two  chil- 
dren, Samuel,  first,  the  next  in  line,  was  the 
eldest.  Samuel  Garnet  was  born  in  Hingham, 
August  14,  1684.  He  was  married  first  on 
February  4,  171 3,  to  Ruth  Tower;  and  second, 
December  12,  1728,  to  Ann  Clark.  Samuel 
Garnet  was  the  first  of  seven  children.  He 
was  born  in  this  town,  November  17,  1715; 
and  it  was  during  his  generation  that  the  fam- 
ily name  was  changed  to  Gardner,  which, 
according  to  the  records,  has  existed  since 
1740.  In  1738  he  married  Abigail  Simmons, 
of  Scituate;  and  they  had  a  family  of  five  chil- 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


187 


dren,    of  whom   Samuel,   third,    was  the   third- 
born. 

Samuel  Gardner,  third,  grandfather  of  John 
C,  was  reared  to  farm  life  in  Hingham;  and 
he  also  learned  the  cooper's  trade,  which  he 
followed  in  connection  with  tilling  the  soil. 
He  was  the  owner  of  considerable  real  estate, 
and  was  energetic  and  prosperous.  He  lived 
to  attain  the  age  of  eighty-seven  years,  and 
died  December  24,  1831.  He  was  a  Whig  in 
politics,  and  served  as  Constable  for  many 
years.  He  attended  the  Unitarian  church. 
He  was  twice  married,  first  to  Alathen  Oak- 
man,  of  Marshfield,  January  6,  1774,  and  sec- 
ond to  Chloe,  daughter  of  Captain  Enoch 
Whiton,  of  Hingham,  August  23,  17S9;  and 
of  the  si.\  children  by  this  marriage  Enoch  W. 
was  the  eldest.  Mrs.  Samuel  Gardner  died  in 
1833,  at  the  age  of  seventy-five  years. 

Enoch  W.  Gardner,  John  C.  Gardner's 
father,  was  born  in  Hingham,  May  11,  1790. 
When  a  young  man,  he  learned  the  trade  of  a 
mason,  which  he  followed  through  the  active 
period  of  his  life,  his  earlier  years  being  spent 
in  Boston.  He  was  an  industrious  man,  and 
a  worthy,  upright  citizen,  who  labored  dili- 
gently for  the  purpose  of  providing  his  family 
with  a  comfortable  home.  He  died  March  31, 
1864.  He  was  a  Whig  in  politics,  and  he 
attended  the  Universalist  church.  His  wife, 
Orra  A.  Amadon,  became  the  mother  of  three 
children,  of  whom  the  only  survivor  is  John 
C,  the  subject  of  this  sketch.  Mrs.  Orra  A. 
Gardner  died  January  7,   1876. 

John  C.  Gardner  attended  the  public  schools 
of  Hingham,  and  after  completing  his  studies 
he  began  to  learn  the  mason's  trade  with  his 
father.  He  worked  as  a  journeyman  for  a 
year,  and  then  went  to  Boston,  where  he  ac- 
quired the  trade  of  a  paper-hanger.  He  was 
employed  in  Boston  for  some  sixteen  years,  at 
the  expiration    of   which   time  he   returned  to 


his  native  town,  and  has  since  resided  at  the 
homestead.  He  is  still  actively  engaged  in 
the  paper-hanging  business,  and  has  won  a 
high  reputation  as  a  skilful  and  reliable 
workman. 

On  December  21,  1868,  Mr.  Gardner 
wedded  Mrs.  Henrietta  G.  (Webb)  Eldridge, 
a  daughter  of  Hezekiah  T.  and  Emily  (Clark) 
Webb.  Of  the  two  children  born  to  Mrs. 
Gardner  the  survivor  is  Mary  G.,  who  was 
born  December  12,  1869,  and  is  the  wife  of 
Arthur  Curtis, of    Norwell,  Mass. 

In  politics  Mr.  Gardner  is  a  Republican. 
He  has  served  with  ability  as  a  member  of  the 
School  Committee;  was  elected  a  Selectman 
in  1895,  was  re-elected  in  1896;  and  has  also 
served  as  an  Assessor  and  Overseer  of  the 
Poor.  He  is  connected  with  Old  Colony 
Lodge,  A.  E.  &  A.  M.,  and  with  Old  Colony 
Lodge,  No.  108,  Independent  Order  of  Odd 
Fellows,  of  Hingham. 


Y^OT  S.  LUCAS,  a  respected  resident  of 
IJT  Carver,  who  has  been  a  successful 
"^^  -^  teacher,  merchant,  and  farmer,  was 
born  August  29,  1831,  on  the  farm  he  now 
occupies,  son  of  Abijah  and  Hannah  (Shurt- 
leff)  Lucas.  Abijah  Lucas,  like  many  men  of 
his  day  in  New  England,  combined  the  call- 
ings of  shoemaking  and  farming.  He  entered 
upon  the  farm  when  a  young  man,  and  died 
there  May  2,  1849,  aged  fifty-nine  years.  His 
estimable  wife  attained  the  age  of  eighty-two, 
dying  March  4,  1876.  They  were  the  parents 
of  five  children,  namely:  Mary,  who  died  in 
infancy;  Horatio,  who  has  also  passed  away; 
Mary,  the  second  child  bearing  that  name; 
Abbie,  likewise  deceased;  and  Lot  S. ,  the 
subject  of  this  sketch. 

Lot    S.    Lucas   was    reared    on     the    farm. 
After  receiving   his   education    in   the  district 


i88 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


school  and  at  Middleboro  Academy,  he  began 
to  teach,  being  then  sixteen  years  of  age.  In 
this  profession  he  was  very  successful,  re- 
ducing to  discipline  even  the  "big  boys" 
who  make  life  a  burden  to  a  weak  teacher. 
Having  taught  for  fifteen  years  in  Plymouth 
County,  he  moved  in  1857  to  New  Bedford; 
and  in  that  city  he  conducted  a  wholesale  fruit 
store  for  ten  years,  catering  to  a  large  trade. 
He  then  came  to  his  present  home,  where  he 
is  now  engaged  in  cranberry  culture,  the  great 
industry  of  Plymouth  County.  By  sagacious 
management  he  generally  succeeds  in  obtain- 
ing superior  crops. 

Mr.  Lucas  has  been  twice  married.  His 
first  marriage  was  contracted  with  Laura  E. 
Atwood,  daughter  of  Levi  Atwood,  of  Middle- 
boro. On  the  second  occasion  he  married 
Maria  L.  Cornell,  daughter  of  Abishia  and 
Susan  C.  Harding,  of  Middleboro.  She  died 
January  14,  1892,  aged  forty-six  years,  leaving 
one  daughter  —  Alice  B.  Cornell,  born  May  3, 
1874,  at  Dartmouth,  Mass.,  and  is  living  with 
her  father.  Believing  in  the  elevating  power 
of  religion,  he  has  long  been  a  member  of  the 
Baptist  church  ;  and  he  is  widely  known  and 
esteemed. 

(JOSEPH  FRAME,  M.D.,  of  Rockland, 
is  of  Scotch  parentage,  the  son  of 
Alexander  and  Susanna  (Annand) 
Frame,  and  was  born  at  Shubenacadie,  N.S. , 
October  23,  1866. 

He  received  his  early  education  in  the  pub- 
lic schools  and  Provincial  Normal  School. 
Having  decided  to  study  medicine,  he  came 
to  Massachusetts  in  1888,  and  spent  the  two 
succeeding  years  at  the  McLean  Flospital  in 
Somerville.  He  entered  the  Harvard  Medical 
School,  and,  after  taking  the  prescribed  course, 
was  graduated  in  1894.  Succeeding  in  a  com- 
petitive examination,   he  was  appointed  First 


Surgical  House  Officer  at  the  Boston  City 
Hospital  for  a  period  of  eighteen  months. 
Soon  after  the  completion  of  his  term  in  the 
hospital  he  became  associated  in  practice  with 
Dr.  C.   S.  Millet  in  Rockland. 

Dr.  Frame  is  a  member  of  the  Boston  City 
Hospital  Medical  Society  and  the  Mas.sachu- 
setts  Medical  Society.  He  belongs  to  the 
order  of  Knights  of  Pythias  and  the  United 
Order  of  the  Golden  Cross. 


HARLES  EDWARD  WEST,  a  well- 
known  merchant  of  Hingham,  was 
born  in  Wakefield,  N.  H.,  January 
27,  1853,  son  of  Edward  and  Sophronia  (Farn- 
ham)  West.  His  father,  who  was  a  native  of 
Bridgeport,  Conn.,  and  followed  farming  in 
his  early  life,  removed  in  1S47,  when  a  young 
man,  to  Wakefield,  N.H.  In  politics  Edward 
West  was  a  Republican.  He  married  So- 
phronia, a  daughter  of  Paul  Farnham,  of  that 
town;  and  they  had  two  children  —  Lizzie  J. 
and  Charles  PLdward.  Lizzie  J.  married 
Frank  M.  Thompson,  of  PZffingham,  N.H. 
At  the  beginning  of  the  Civil  War  the  father 
enlisted  in  Company  A,  P'ortieth  Regiment, 
Massachusetts  Volunteer  Infantry,  as  private. 
He  went  to  the  front  from  Lawrence,  Mass., 
afterward  winning  promotion  to  the  rank  of 
Sergeant.  Having  been  wounded  in  the  skir- 
mish at  Drury's  Bluff,  Va.,  he  died  subse- 
quently in  Castle  Thunder  Prison  at  Rich- 
mond.     His  wife's  death  occurred  in  1880. 

After  acquiring  his  education  in  the  schools 
of  his  native  town,  Charles  Edward  West  re- 
mained at  home  until  he  was  eighteen  years 
of  age.  He  then  went  to  Boston,  and  learned 
the  trade  of  carpenter,  which  enterprise  he  fol- 
lowed for  four  years.  In  1874  he  established 
at  West's  Corner  in  Hingham  a  general  mer- 
chandise store,  which   he   has  since  conducted 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


rSg 


alone,  except  for  one  year,  during  which  he 
had  a  partner.  The  business  has  been  very 
successful.  Two  years  ago  he  started  a 
branch  store  at  Point  Allerton,  Mass.,  which 
has  likewise  been  a  financial  success.  In  pol- 
itics Mr.  West  affiliates  with  the  Republican 
party.  He  has  membership  in  Old  Colony 
Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Hingham;  in  Old 
Colony  Lodge,  No.  io8,  Independent  Order  of 
Odd  Fellows,  of  Hingham,  and  Trimount  En- 
campment, Independent  Order  of  Odd  Fel- 
lows, of  Boston ;  in  the  Royal  Arcanum, 
Warren  Council,  No.  103,  of  Boston;  in  Loyal 
Additional  Benefit,  No.  81,  of  Boston  Coun- 
cil; in  the  Sons  of  Veterans,  Charles  S.  Mead 
Camp,  No.  72 ;  and  in  Nantaskct  Lodge  of 
Good    Templars. 

On  November  25,  1875,  Mr.  West  and  Hat- 
tie  L.  Beal  joined  hands  and  hearts  at  the  mar- 
riage altar.  She  was  a  daughter  of  Zaccheus 
L.  Beal,  a  native  of  Cohasset,  Mass.  By  this 
union  there  are  two  boys:  Harold  R.,  born 
August,  1876;  and  Alfred  F.,  born  in  July, 
1881.  Mr.  West  is  liberal  in  his  religious 
belief.  Mrs.  West  is  a  member  of  the  Con- 
gregational church. 


I^AMUEL  KEITH,  the  President  of 
the  East  Bridgewater  Savings  Bank, 
is  a  member  of  an  old  and  promi- 
nent family  of  Plymouth  County.  Descended 
from  the  Rev.  James  Keith,  one  of  the  first 
ministers  of  Eastern  Massachusetts,  he  was 
born  May  12,  1830,  in  East  Bridgewater,  son 
of  Zebina  and  Rebecca  (Witherill)  Keith. 
Zebina,  a  son  of  Calvin  Keith,  was  also  born 
in  East  Bridgewater.  He  was  for  a  number 
of  years  engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  tacks 
in  this  town,  took  much  interest  in  local  pol- 
itics, voting  with  the  Democrats,  and  died 
July  3,   1880.      His   wife,  who  was  a  native  of 


Pembroke,  Mass.,  passed  away  in  1842.  Of 
their  family  three  sons  are  living  —  Zebina, 
Samuel,  and  Henry  —  all  residents  of  East 
Bridgewater. 

Samuel  Keith  was  educated  in  his  native 
town,  attending  public  and  private  schools. 
He  went  to  work  at  the  age  of  eighteen  in  his 
father's  tack  factory,  of  which  he  became  the 
superintendent  after  learning  the  business. 
In  1855,  on  the  retirement  of  his  father,  he 
and  his  brother  Zebina  took  charge  of  the 
place,  and  conducted  it  under  the  firm  name  of 
Z.  Keith,  Jr.,  &  Co.  In  1873,  when  the  fac- 
tory was  destroyed  by  fire,  he  retired  from  the 
firm.  He  has  been  connected  with  the  East 
Bridgewater  Savings  Bank  since  its  establish- 
ment; and,  before  entering  on  his  present  re- 
lations with  it,  he  served  it  successively  as  a 
member  of  the  Investment  Committee,  and  for 
a  number  of  years  as  Vice-President.  He  has 
been  the  President  since  1889.  The  bank 
is  an  old  and  reliable  one,  and  Mr.  Keith 
has  the  esteem  and  confidence  of  the  com- 
munity. 

In  November,  1857,  Mr.  Keith  was  united 
in  marriage  with  Miss  Augusta  Swallow, 
daughter  of  Harrison  Swallow,  of  Buckfield, 
Me.  She  died  March  15,  1880,  leaving  three 
children.  These  are:  Samuel  A.,  who  is  a 
clerk  in  the  Carver  Cotton  Gin  Works  at  East 
Bridgewater;  Fred,  who  also  resides  here; 
and  Amy,  the  widow  of  Fred  G.  Bonney,  late 
of  East  Bridgewater.  Mr.  Keith,  like  his 
father,  is  a  firm  supporter  of  Democratic  prin- 
ciples, while  he  is  respected  by  the  members 
of  both  the  political  parties  in  his  native 
town.  He  has  served  for  eighteen  years  as 
Superintendent  of  Highways  of  East  Bridge- 
water.  None  of  the  business  men  whose 
fathers  and  grandfathers  have  helped  to  build 
up  East  Bridgewater  is  held  in  more  general 
esteem. 


IQO 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


GRACE  B.  MAGLATHLIN,  a  prom- 
inent manufacturer  at  Silver  Lake, 
in  the  town  of  Kingston,  Mass., 
was  born  August  15,  1852,  son  of  Peter  W. 
and  Marcia  (Bradford)  Maglathlin.  This 
well-known  Plymouth  County  family  was 
founded  by  John  Maglathlin,  a  Scotchman,  who 
settled  in  Kingston  in  the  eighteenth  century. 
He  died  in  this  town  in  1772,  and  his  mortal 
remains  were  buried  in  the  old  cemetery. 
From  him  the  descent  continues  in  a  direct 
line  through  Joseph  and  his  son,  Peter  W., 
first,  to  Peter  W.',  second,  Mr.  H.  B.  Maglath- 
lin's  father.  The  grandfather  was  a  mariner, 
and  died  at  sea. 

Peter  VV.  Maglathlin,  second,  who  was  a 
lifelong  resident  of  Kingston,  worked  at  the 
trade  of  a  ship  calker  in  connection  with  farm- 
ing. He  followed  the  majority  of  the  Whig 
element  into  the  Republican  party  at  its  for- 
mation. An  intelligent  and  highly  respected 
citizen,  he  served  for  some  time  on  the  School 
Committee.  He  died  in  the  seventies.  He 
was  twice  married.  Of  his  children  the  sur- 
vivors are:  Harvey  W.,  Philemon  W. ,  Onslow 
W.,  Edwin  L.,  and  Horace  B. ,  the  subject  of 
this  sketch — all  of  whom  reside  in  Kings- 
ton; Angle,  wife  of  Elliott  Blanchard,  of 
Turner,  Me.;  and  Helen  A.,  wife  of  Barker 
Baker,  of  North  Hanson,  Mass.  Mrs.  Marcia 
Bradford  Maglathlin  was  a  native  of  Maine. 

Horace  B.  Maglathlin  was  educated  in  the 
public  schools  of  Kingston,  and  at  the  age  of 
eighteen  he  began  to  serve  an  apprenticeship 
with  P.  C.  Reed,  a  tack  manufacturer  at  Silver 
Lake.  After  serving  three  years,  he  worked 
for  a  time  as  a  journeyman,  and  in  1878 
engaged  in  business  on  his  own  account  in 
Bridgewater.  A  year  later  his  factory  was 
accidentally  destroyed  by  fire,  caused  by 
another  occupant  of  the  building;  and  in  1879 
he  erected  his  present  plant  at  Silver  Lake, 


and  resumed  business.  His  factory  is  fully 
equipped  with  improved  machinery  for  pro- 
ducing all  kinds  of  tacks  and  nails,  and  when 
running  on  full  time  employs  eighteen    hands. 

In  1S74  Mr.  Maglathlin  was  united  in  mar- 
riage with  Eleanor  T.  Ford,  daughter  of  Levi 
Ford,  of  Kingston,  who  was  formerly  a  resi- 
dent of  Du.xbury.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Maglathlin 
have  two  children;  namely,  Fred  B.  and 
Lucy  D. 

As  an  able  and  foresighted  business  man, 
Mr.  Maglathlin  has  been  very  successful 
financially  and  his  investments  have  proved 
exceedingly  profitable.  He  owns  seventy-five 
acres  of  valuable  land  in  Kingston,  one  hun- 
dred and  sixty-one  acres  in  the  town  of  Hali- 
fax, and  in  company  with  John  Foster,  of 
South  Hanson,  owns  a  large  tract  of  land 
located  on  Marshfield  Beach.  This  property 
is  known  as  Webster  Park,  and  fifteen  summer 
cottages  have  been  erected  there.  He  is  also 
the  owner  of  a  productive  cranberry  bog  of  six 
acres  at  Silver  Lake. 

In  politics  Mr.  Maglathlin  is  a  Republican, 
and  for  three  years  was  a  member  of  the 
School  Board  of  Kingston.  He  is  a  member 
of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  church,  which  he 
serves  in  an  official  capacity,  and  as  a  public- 
spirited  citizen  he  is  a  liberal  contributor  to 
the  church  and  other  deserving  objects. 


/^TeORGE  LOVELL  RICHARDSON, 
V  pT  Chairman  of  the  Board  of  Selectmen 
of  Abington,  Mass.,  has  achieved 
success  as  an  educator  and  as  a  man  of  busi- 
ness. He  was  born  in  East  Medway  (now 
Millis),  Mass.,  March  9,  1838,  a  son  of 
Joseph  L.  and  Sylvia  Pond  (Partridge)  Rich- 
ardson. 

His  father,  Joseph  L.  Richardson,  who  was 
born   in   East   Medway,  Mass.,  July   11,  1815, 


HORACE    B.    MAGLATHLIN. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


193 


was  a  farmer.  He  died  February  13,  1885. 
His  wife,  Sylvia,  was  born  in  Franklin,  De- 
cember 22,  1S16,  and  is  now  living  in  Milton, 
Mass.  They  had  three  children  —  George  L., 
Joseph  H.,  and  Ellen  Maria.  The  latter  died 
about  seventeen  years  ago.  Joseph  H.  Rich- 
ardson is  with  S.  S.  Pierce  &  Co.,  Boston, 
and  is  living  with  his  wife  in  the  same  city. 

George  Lovcll  Richardson  grew  to  maturity 
on  his  father's  farm.  He  received  a  liberal 
education,  attending  the  Medway  High  School 
and  Monson  Academy,  taking  one  year's 
course  of  study  at  Amherst  College  and  three 
years  at  Dartmouth  College,  where  he  was 
graduated  in  1862.  He  taught  some  twenty- 
five  years,  from  1863  to  1888,  in  the  high 
school  at  Sherborn  and  the  Centre  High  School 
at  Abington,  and  then  engaged  in  the  wood 
business,  which  has  occupied  his  attention 
since  1888.  He  is  a  man  of  good  judgment  in 
financial  matters,  and  has  been  for  some  time 
a  Trustee  and  a  member  of  the  Board  of  In- 
vestment of  the  Abington  Savings  Bank.  In 
the  quarter  of  a  century  devoted  to  educational 
work  Mr.  Richardson,  continually  widening 
his  circle  of  acquaintance  as  new  classes  came 
under  his  direction,  drew  to  himself  many 
friends,  and  won  the  confidence  and  respect  of 
all  with  whom  he  had  dealings;  and  his  career 
as  a  business  man  has  in  no  wise  lessened  the 
favorable  impression  of  his  character  and  abil- 
ities made  at  that  time. 

He  has  been  twice  married.  In  1864,  in 
Medway,  he  was  united  with  Amelia  B.  Boyd, 
who  died  July  19,  1S79,  leaving  two  children: 
Joseph  L. ,  now  a  resident  of  Needham,  Mass. ; 
and  Fred  B.,  in  Brookline.  In  December, 
1880,  Mr.  Richardson  married  Alice  A.  Giles, 
daughter  of  Jesse  H.  Giles,  of  Abington.  He 
has  no  children  by  the  second  union. 

Mr.  Richardson  has  been  Chairman  of  the 
Abington   Board    of    Selectmen   for  the    past 


seven  years.  He  is  a  member  of  John  Cutler 
Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.;  Pilgrim  Royal  Arch 
Chapter;  Abington  Council;  and  Old  Colony 
Commandery,  Knights  Templars,  and  formerly 
took  an  active  part  in  the  chapter. 


REN  THOMAS  WHITING,  a  farmer 
and  shoemaker  of  Hanover,  and  one  of 
those  who  fought  for  the  Union  in  the 
Civil  War,  was  born  August  28,  1834,  in  the 
house  where  he  now  lives,  son  of  Oren  and 
Mary  (Jones)  Whiting.  He  began  working  at 
the  shoemaker's  bench  when  a  child  of  six 
years,  and  thereafter  followed  that  occupation 
steadily  until  the  commencement  of  the  Civil 
War.  In  response  to  one  of  the  early  calls 
for  men,  he  enlisted  for  nine  months  in  Com- 
pany A  of  the  Third  Massachusetts  Infantry, 
and  was  mustered  into  service  at  Lakeville  as 
a  private.  He  participated  in  the  battles  of 
Kingston,  Whitehall,  and  Goldsboro.  At  the 
end  of  his  first  term  of  enlistment  he  was  hon- 
orably discharged,  and  returned  home.  In 
1864  he  enlisted  again,  this  time  in  Company 
E,  First  Battalion  of  Massachusetts  Heavy 
Artillery,  with  which  he  did  guard  duty  over 
rebel  prisoners  at  P'ort  Warren  until  1865. 
He  was  then  discharged  with  the  rank  of  Cor- 
poral, to  which  he  had  been  promoted.  After 
his  return  home  he  resumed  his  trade,  and 
thereafter  followed  it  until  1888.  Mr.  Whit- 
ing has  resided  on  his  present  homestead  since 
1865.  The  property  contains  about  seventy- 
five  acres.  Here  he  is  engaged  in  general 
farming  and  dairying,  and  also  sells  wood  by 
retail.  He  is  an  adherent  of  the  Republican 
party,  and  a  member  of  Post  No.  83,  Grand 
Army  of  the  Republic  of  Hanover.  In  1851 
Mr.  Whiting  was  joined  in  marriage  with 
Miss  Lucy  J.  Hatch,  who  has  borne  him  si.\ 
children,    of    whom    three    sons    are    living; 


194 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


namely,  Elvvin  T.,  Arthur  L.,  and  Erwin  E. 
Two  sons  and  their  only  daughter  have  passed 
away.  These  were  Albert,  Wilder,  and 
Minnie  J.    Whiting. 


ILLIAM  R.  GROCE,  the  efficient 
superintendent  of  the  Rockland 
Water  Works,  was  born  June  24, 
1843,  in  the  town  of  Abington,  now  Rockland, 
the  second  son  and  the  fourth  child  of  Nathan- 
iel S.  and  Lucy  Ann  (Ripley)  Groce. 
Nathaniel  S.  Groce,  who  was  a  native  of  Han- 
over, passed  the  first  years  of  his  life  there, 
and  then  moved  to  Rockland.  A  worthy  citi- 
zen, by  trade  a  shoemaker,  he  toiled  industri- 
ously to  the  close  of  his  life,  and  died  at  the 
age  of  sixty-one  years.  He  married  Lucy 
Ann  Ripley,  and  by  her  became  the  father  of 
eight  children,  seven  of  whom  are  now  living. 
Four  of  these  reside  in  Rockland,  one  is  in 
Washington,  D.C.,  and  another  is  a  teacher 
in  the  city  of  Boston.  His  wife  died  in  1894, 
at  the  age  of  eighty  years. 

William  R.  Groce  was  brought  up  in  his 
native  town,  receiving  but  a  moderate  educa- 
tion because  of  his  father's  limited  means. 
Since  then  he  has  added  largely  to  his  stock 
of  knowledge  by  reading,  and  by  making  the 
most  of  his  powers  of  observation  and  practical 
contact  with  the  world  at  large.  At  the  age 
of  ten  he  began  to  earn  his  own  living,  and  by 
his  thirteenth  year  he  had  ceased  to  attend 
school.  Until  September,  1862,  he  worked 
for  the  most  part  on  the  home  farm  or  at  shoe- 
making.  Desiring  then  to  serve  in  the  Civil 
War,  he  enlisted  in  the  Forty-third  Massachu- 
setts Infantry,  Company  G,  for  nine  months, 
and  went  to  the  front.  Later  he  re-enlisted  in 
the  Sixtieth  Regiment,  Company  A,  Massa- 
chusetts Infantry.  He  saw  much  hard  fight- 
ing, suffered  a  good  deal  from  the  fatigues  and 


privations  of  camp  life,  returned  home  in  a 
poor  physical  condition,  and  resumed  his  old 
trade  of  shoemaking.  In  April,  1887,  he  be- 
came the  superintendent  of  the  Rockland 
Water  Works,  which  supplies  water  to  the 
towns  of  Rockland  and  Abington.  The  water 
was  first  turned  on  in  January,  1887,  when  the 
builders  had  charge,  Mr.  Groce  being  the  first 
superintendent.  He  has  since  retained  his 
position,  and  proved  himself  thoroughly  com]ie- 
tent,  giving  general  satisfaction  to  the  public. 
Mr.  Groce  married  Miss  Nannie  E.  Wads- 
worth,  a  daughter  of  Louis  S.  and  Nancy  B. 
Wadsworth,  of  Plymouth.  By  her  he  became 
the  father  of  three  children  —  Gertrude  W., 
Clara  Ripley,  and  Nathaniel  S.  The  latter 
was  so  named  after  his  grandfather.  In  poli- 
tics Mr.  Groce  is  known  as  one  of  the  "wheel 
horses"  in  the  Republican  party  in  this  town. 
He  has  been  on  the  Republican  Committee  of 
the  town  of  Rockland  since  its  organization, 
and  has  served  as  its  Chairman  for  the  past 
four  years.  His  judgment  is  much  relied 
upon,  and  his  advice  is  much  sought,  both  on 
general  as  well  as  political  questions.  He  is 
a  member  of  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic, 
■belonging  to  Hartsuff  Fo.st,  No.  74,  of  Rock- 
land. He  is  also  a  member  of  the  Royal 
Arcanum  and  of  the  Rockland  Commercial 
Club,  which  has  done  so  much  of  late  years 
for  the  business  interests  of  the  town. 


EV.  NEHEMIAH  LINCOLN,  pastor 
)f  the  Congregational  church  of  North 
Carver,  was  born  in  North  l^ridge- 
water,  July  21,  1824.  His  father.  Captain 
Nehemiah  Lincoln,  who  was  a  native  of  the 
same  town,  and  served  in  the  War  of  1812, 
was  married  twice.  His  first  wife,  in 
maidenhood  Martha  Packard,  bore  him  no 
children.        Left    by    her    death    a    childless 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


19s 


widower,  he  formed  a  second  marriage  with 
Miss  Mehitable  Edson,  by  whom  he  became 
the  father  of  four  children.  These  were :  Ne- 
hemiah,  Daniel,  David,  and  Amelia.  The 
latter  is  a  teacher  in  one  of  the  New  Bedford 
schools. 

Nehemiah  Lincoln,  who  was  reared  on  his 
father's  farm,  at  the  age  of  fourteen  began  to 
learn  the  shoemaker's  trade,  and  afterward 
followed  it  for  about  ten  years.  Now  deciding 
to  educate  himself  for  the  gospel  ministry, 
feeling  drawn  thereto  by  an  inspiration  he 
dared  not  resist,  he  abandoned  his  trade,  and 
entered  Andover  Academy.  Shortly  after  his 
ej'es  began  to  fail  him,  and  he  found  it  neces- 
sary to  discontinue  his  studies.  Taking  his 
affliction  patiently,  he  engaged  in  teaching, 
which  he  followed  for  two  or  three  years  in 
Raynham,  Abington,  East  Bridgewater,  and 
North  Bridgewater,  and  afterward  in  New  ]3ed- 
ford  for  twenty  years.  At  the  end  of  that 
time  the  desire  of  his  youth,  which  he  had  all 
along  cherished,  was  accomplished.  He  was 
admitted  to  the  ministry  of  the  Congregational 
church.  Soon  after  his  installation  he  went 
to  North  Bridgeton,  where  he  had  charge  of 
two  churches  for  over  sixteen  years.  In  De- 
cember of  1887  he  came  to  North  Carver,  of 
whose  society  he  has  since  been  the  pastor. 

In  1847  the  Rev.  N.  Lincoln  was  married 
to  Miss  Cornelia  Hay  ward.  The  union  was 
blessed  by  five  children  —  Ella,  Lucia,  Clara, 
Hattie,  and  Edward.  Hattie  is  no  longer  liv- 
ing. Edward,  who  is  a  dentist,  practises  his 
profession  in  Fitchburg,  Mass.  Entering  the 
ministry  late  in  life,  Mr.  Lincoln  has  given 
to  it  all  the  best  energies  of  his  maturer  judg- 
ment and  e.xperience.  In  the  quarter  of  a  cen- 
tury that  has  since  elapsed  he  has  been  em- 
ployed in  well-directed  and  fruitful  efforts  to 
make  those  among  whom  his  lot  has  been  cast 
lead  wiser,  better,  and  happier  lives. 


■t^TORACE    BARTLETT,    a    resident    of 
f^l       West    Bridgewater,    and    one    of    the 

J-i®  V, ,  defenders  of  the  Union   in  the  time 

of  its  greatest  need,  was  born  here,  April 
18,  1837,  son  of  Job  and  Mary  (Jackson) 
Bartlett.  David  Bartlett,  the  grandfather  of 
Horace,  was  a  son  of  Samuel,  the  founder  of 
the  Bartlett  family  in  Bridgewater.  Samuel's 
father  was  Wright  Bartlett,  who  probably 
lived  in  the  earlier  part  of  the  last  century. 

The  grandfather,  David  Bartlett,  who  was 
born  in  1778,  served  in  the  War  of  1812,  dur- 
ing which  he  was  stationed  for  a  time  at  Plym- 
outh, Mass.,  and  was  afterward  granted  a 
pension  by  the  government.  He  died  in  his 
ninetieth  year.  Job  Bartlett  was  a  native  and 
a  lifelong  resident  of  West  Bridgewater.  He 
served  as  Selectman  for  a  number  of  years, 
and  died  in  1867.  His  wife,  Mary,  who  was 
born  on  territory  now  within  the  limits  of 
Brockton,  bore  him  four  children,  three  of 
whom  are  living,  namely:  Mary,  the  widow 
of  Lewis  Lincoln,  of  Norton,  Mass.  ;  Samuel  ; 
and  Horace.  Henry  died  in  August,  18(14. 
Formerly  a  Whig,  in  later  years  Job  Bartlett 
supported  the  Republican  party. 

The  youth  of  Horace  Bartlett  was  spent  on 
the  farm  which  is  now  his  home.  He  at- 
tended the  common  school  for  a  time,  but  his 
education  has  been  chiefly  acquired  in  the 
school  of  practical  experience.  When  eigh- 
teen years  old,  he  began  learning  the  trade  of 
an  iron  moulder,  which  he  afterward  followed 
in  Bridgewater  and  West  Bridgewater  for  a 
dozen  years  altogether.  After  the  death  of  his 
father  he  returned  to  the  homestead  farm,  and 
has  since  been  engaged  in  agricultural  pur- 
suits. He  has  about  fifty-five  acres  of  land, 
where  the  principal  product  is  milk,  which 
he  sells  at  wholesale.  In  January,  1S64,  Mr. 
Bartlett  enlisted  in  Company  D,  Fifty-eighth 
Massachusetts  Volunteer  Infantry,  with  which 


rg6 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


he  served  in  the  army  of  the  Potomac,  taking 
part  in  the  battle  of  the  Wilderness  and  other 
important  engagements,  including  the  terrible 
struggle  around  Petersburg,  where  he  was 
under  fire  most  of  the  time.  He  was  honor- 
ably discharged  in  July,  1865,  since  which  he 
has  been  engaged  as  described  above. 

On  January  27,  1S69,  Mr.  Bartlett  married 
Abigail  Howard,  a  daughter  of  Charles  How- 
ard, of  West  Bridgewater,  Mass.  Three  of 
their  four  children  are  living;  namely,  Henry, 
Helen,  and  Jane.  Annie  died  February  6, 
1 87 1,  age  eight  months  and  twenty-seven  days. 
Mr.  Bartlett  is  identified  with  the  Masonic 
order,  being  a  member  of  Fellowship  Lodge, 
Bridgewater;  Satucket  Chapter,  Royal  Arch 
Masons,  Brockton  ;  and  Bay  State  Commandery, 
Knights  Templars,  of  Brockton.  He  is  also  a 
member  of  the  Knights  of  Pythias  of  West 
Bridgewater,  of  the  Knights  of  Honor  of 
Bridgewater,  and  of  the  West  Bridgewater 
Grange.  He  served  his  town  as  Highway  Sur- 
veyor for  a  number  of  years,  and  he  has  always 
taken  pride  in  furthering  its  welfare.  He  and 
his  family  are  highly  esteemed  in  social 
circles. 

"ENRY  ALLEN  BRETT,  a  salesman 
of  the  clothing  firm  of  Howard  & 
Caldwell,  of  ]3rockton,  is  one  of 
the  most  popular  men  in  the  city.  He  was 
born  in  North  Bridgewater,  April  4,  1830, 
son  of  Zenas  and  Sybil  (French)  Brett.  The 
Brett  family  has  been  long  established  in  this 
county.  Henry  Allen's  great-grandfather, 
Samuel  Brett,  a  native  of  North  Bridgewater, 
was  there  engaged  for  a  number  of  years  in 
agriculture.  William  Brett,  the  grandfather, 
who  was  also  born  in  North  Bridgewater,  spent 
his  active  life  in  farming,  and  owned  a  very 
large  farm.  A  member  of  the  First  Congre- 
gational Church,  he  was  a  religious  man,  lived 


up  to  the  teachings  of  his  church,  and  died  at 
the  age  of  eighty-two.  He  was  twice  married. 
His  first  wife — Mara  Allen,  of  East  Bridge- 
water,  before  marriage — bore  him  four  sons 
and  three  daughters.  His  second  wife,  whose 
maiden  name  was  Betsey  Phillips,  gave  birth 
to  four  children. 

Zenas  Brett,  who  was  the  first-born  of  his 
parents'  children,  received  a  common-school 
education.  On  attaining  man's  estate  he  en- 
gaged in  farming  and  also  in  trade,  keeping  a 
general  store  for  a  number  of  years  in  the  part 
of  Brockton  now  known  as  Montello.  Al- 
though much  engrossed  by  his  own  affairs,  his 
patriotism  caused  him  to  serve  in  the  War  of 
1812.  He  was  a  prominent  member  of  the 
First  Congregational  Church,  and  in  his 
youth  was  accustomed  to  read  the  service  at 
the  meetings.  His  death  occurred  in  his 
eighty-fourth  year.  He,  too,  was  twice  mar- 
ried. His  first  wife,  Sybil  (French)  Brett, 
who  was  a  daughter  of  William  French,  of 
Stoughton,  died  in  1834,  aged  forty-eight 
years.  William  French  was  a  prominent  mer- 
chant from  the  age  of  seventeen.  She  bore 
him  three  girls  and  three  boys;  namely,  Sarah, 
William  French,  Mary  Allen,  Zenas  Franklin, 
Sybil  Alma,  and  Henry  Allen.  His  second 
wife,  Elmira,  a  daughter  of  John  Packard,  of 
North  Bridgewater,  is  now  in  her  ninety-first 
year.  She  became  the  mother  of  five  children 
—  Mary  Ellen,  Charles  Edward,  Cordelia  El- 
mira, Sarah  Adelaide,  and  George  Elmer.  Of 
the  eleven  children  four  are  living  —  Sybil, 
Henry  A.,  Mary  E.,  and  Sarah  A. 

Henry  Allen  Brett  studied  in  the  schools  of 
North  Bridgewater,  in  I^oomis  Academy,  the 
Adelphian  Academy,  and  the  Blanchard  Acad- 
emy of  Pembroke,  N.IL,  from  which  he  grad- 
uated. He  entered  the  world  of  trade  at  the 
age  of  fourteen,  obtaining  employment  with 
Brett  &  Kingman,  of  which   firm  his  brother 


GUSTAVUS    ATWOOD. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


199 


was  the  senior  partner.  Here  he  remained 
until  he  was  twenty  years  old,  when  he  went 
to  Lewiston,  Me.,  and  opened  a  general  store. 
This  he  managed  for  two  years;  and  then  for 
the  succeeding  eight  years  he  conducted  a  store 
in  Wareham,  Mass.,  carrying  a  full  line  of 
general  merchandise.  On  February  14,  i860, 
the  occasion  of  his  leaving  Wareham,  a  most 
unique  souvenir  was  tendered  him  by  his 
friends.  It  was  a  hammered  silver  pitcher 
made  of  five  and  ten  cent  pieces,  melted  and 
cast,  the  coins  being  contributed  by  his  many 
acquaintances.  February  15,  i860,  he  opened 
a  store  in  Brockton,  with  general  merchandise, 
dry  goods,  millinery,  and  hardware,  having  a 
tailoring  and  dressmaking  establishment  at- 
tached. This  he  managed  until  he  closed  up 
his  business  in  1880.  He  was  then  in  the 
em.ploy  of  the  Witherbee-Hill  Clothing  Com- 
pany on  Clark  Street,  Chicago,  one  year,  and 
with  Sidney  Packard's  Clothing  House  of 
Springfield  one  year.  Returning  to  his  home, 
he  spent  a  short  while  in  Middleboro  and 
Sandwich.  On  April  20,  18S4,  he  entered 
the  clothing  house  of  Howard  &  Caldwell,  of 
Brockton,  his  present  employers.  Here  he  is 
a  general  favorite.  On  the  fiftieth  anniver- 
sary of  his  entrance  into  business  his  fellow 
clerks  tendered  him  a  banquet,  and  presented 
hiin  with  a  handsome  easy-chair. 

Mr.  Brett  was  married  in  1851  to  Hannah 
Foster  Gibbs,  of  Bridgewater,  who  died  July 
9,  1889,  aged  fifty-five  years.  She  was  the 
mother  of  five  children,  namely:  William 
Frank,  a  business  man,  formerly  of  Danbury, 
Conn.,  now  of  Boston;  Isabel  Alma,  the  wife 
of  S.  F.  Tolman,  a  well-known  printer  of 
Brockton;  Harry  Meade,  who  lived  but  two 
years;  Edith,  who  lived  but  one  year;  and 
Allen  Foster,  travelling  salesman  for  Packard 
&  Field,  shoe  manufacturers  of  Brockton.  Mr. 
Brett  contracted  a  second  marriage  January  7, 


1892,  with  Miss  Irene  Bradford,  daughter  of 
Simeon  and  Irene  (Pratt)  Bradford,  of  Middle- 
boro. He  has  long  been  identified  with  the 
Republican  party.  He  is  well  advanced  in 
Masonry,  belonging  to  Social  Harmony  Lodge 
of  Wareham ;  Satucket  Chapter,  Royal  Arch 
Masons;  Bay  State  Commandery,  Knights 
Templars,  of  Brockton ;  a  charter  member  of 
the  Brockton  Council  of  Royal  and  Select 
Masters;  and  a  member  of  the  Boston  Council. 


/^STuSTAVUS  ATWOOD,  a  well-known 
V  P  I  and  popular  resident  of  Carver,  was 
born  upon  his  present  farm  in  this 
town,  November  18,  1843,  son  of  Sumner  and 
Clio  (Humphrey)  Atwood.  Mr.  Atwood's 
parents  were  natives  of  Carver,  his  father  hav- 
ing been  engaged  in  farming  here  for  many 
years.  They  reared  a  family  of  seven  chil- 
dren, as  follows:  Harriett,  Charles  S.,  Gus- 
tavus,  Susan  M.,  Frederick  S. ,  Emma  J.,  and 
Mary  H.  The  father  died  October  i,  1890, 
aged  eighty-four  years,  two  months,  and 
twenty-eight  days.  The  mother  died  January 
18,  1892,  at  the  age  of  seventy-five  years,  two 
months,  and  twenty-five  days. 

Gustavus  Atwood  received  a  common-school 
education.  He  was  brought  up  to  farm  life, 
and  at  an  early  age  displayed  habits  of  indus- 
try and  frugality.  He  resided  with  and  cared 
for  his  parents  until  their  decease ;  and  some 
time  after  his  marriage,  wiien  about  thirty- 
years  old,  he  received  from  them  a  deed  of 
one-half  of  the  estate,  after  their  death  coming 
into  possession  of  the  other  half.  He  now 
owns  about  ninety  acres  of  good  land,  fifty  of 
which  are  included  in  the  homestead,  the 
balance  outlying.  He  carries  on  general 
farming,  chiefly  with  a  view  to  home  con- 
sumption, and  also  operates  a  saw  and  grist 
mill,  which  give  employment  to  several  men. 


200 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


The  saw-mill  he  operates  chiefly  in  the  winter; 
and  a  large  portion  of  his  time  during  that 
season  of  the  year,  since  coming  of  age,  has 
been  employed  in  cutting  and  sawing  long 
lumber  and  shingles.  In  summer  he  works  at 
general  jobbing — painting,  papering,  carpen- 
tering, and  mason  work;  and  he  has  a  wide 
reputation  both  for  skill  as  a  handicraftsman 
and  for  personal  integrity.  He  has  served  as 
administrator  in  settling  several  estates,  and 
also  as  e.xecutor  and  guardian.  He  is  Trustee 
of  the  E.  T.  Pratt  I'und,  amounting  to  three 
thousand  dollars,  held  for  the  public  schools 
of  Carver.  He  also  writes  conveyances,  and 
is  a  Justice  of  the  Peace,  having  been  first 
appointed  to  this  office  in  1883  by  l^enjamin 
F.  Butler,  and  reappointed  in  1890  by 
J.  Q.  A.  Brackett.  In  1878  he  served  by 
appointment  as  a  member  of  the  School  Com- 
mittee of  Carver  for  several  months  to  fill  a 
vacancy  caused  by  the  death  of  a  member.  In 
1879  '""^  ^^'is  elected  to  the  ofifice  of  Selectman, 
Assessor,  and  Overseer  of  the  Poor,  and  was 
re-elected  twice,  serving  the  town  three  years 
in  succession.  In  the  spring  of  1884  he  was 
chosen  as  a  member  of  the  School  Committee, 
and  has  served  every  year  since,  being  re- 
elected in  the  spring  of  1896  for  a  term  of 
three  years,  which,  when  completed,  will  make 
a  total  of  fifteen  years'  service  on  the  School 
Board.  In  1896  Mr.  Atvvood  was  elected  to 
the  General  Court  of  Massachusetts  from  the 
Si.xth  Plymouth  District  on  the  Republican 
ticket,  and  without  opposition,  the  latter  cir- 
cumstance indicating  the  confidence  placed  in 
his  ability  and  integrity  by  his  fellow-citizens, 
regardless  of  party. 

On  February  20,  1870,  Mr.  Atvvood  mar- 
ried Mercy  J.  McFarlin,  a  daughter  of  John 
and  Rebecca  (Hlackman)  McFarlin.  He  has 
had  four  children,  as  follows:  Gustavus  Gil- 
bert,   Charles    Herbert,    Albert    Sumner,    and 


Nathaniel  Francis.  Gustavus  G.,  who  was 
born  March  li,  1871,  received  a  good  educa- 
tion, being  graduated  from  Maine  State  Col- 
lege. He  chose  civil  engineering  as  his  pro- 
fession, and  now  holds  a  good  position  with 
Mr.  Holbrook,  a  contractor  of  Newton,  Mass. 
Jidy  3,  1896,  he  married  Mary  Lavinia  Os- 
borne, daughter  of  Joseph  C.  and  Eliza  Jane 
(Witherel)  Osborne.  Charles  H.,  born  Feb- 
ruary 24,  1873,  resides  at  home,  and  has  gen- 
eral charge  of  affairs  during  his  father's  ab- 
sence. Albert  S. ,  born  .September  30,  1875, 
died  September  16,  1876.  Nathaniel  F., 
born  June  26,   1878,  is  at  present  a  student. 

Mr.  Atwood  is  a  man  who  has  wisely  im- 
proved his  opportunities.  His  business  affairs 
are  in  a  flourishing  condition,  and  he  is  re- 
spected both  for  his  public  service  and  as 
being  an  important  factor  in  the  general  busi- 
ness interests  of  the  town.  He  has  long  taken 
an  active  part  in  temperance  work,  and  is  con- 
nected by  membership  with  VVinthrop  Lodge, 
No.  247,  Independent  Order  of  Good  Tem- 
plars. He  and  his  family  stand  high  socially 
and  have  many  friends.  A  portrait  of  Mr. 
Atwood  accompanies  this  sketch. 


KEMUEL  M.  KEITH,  the  Postmaster 
at  Bridgewater  for  the  past  ten  years, 
^^^  is  a  native  and  one  of  the  best- 
known  residents  of  this  place.  He  was  born 
December  12,  1S45,  son  of  Elbridge  and  Caro- 
line (Keith)  Keith.  The  Keith  family, 
which  is  of  Scotch  origin,  has  given  many 
generations  to  New  England,  some  of  its  rep- 
resentatives being  among  the  early  Colonists. 
Caleb  Keith,  the  grandfather  of  Lemuel  M., 
served  as  a  soldier  in  the  War  of  181 2,  and 
was  stationed  at  Plymouth,  Mass.  Elbridge 
Keith  was  born  in  Bridgewater,  Mass.  A 
well-educated  man,  he  taught  school  for  a  num- 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


bcr  of  years.  Afterward  he  was  engaged  in 
business  in  Bridgewater.  He  was  prominent 
in  the  town,  served  as  Selectman  for  thirteen 
years,  and  was  three  years  in  the  Massachu- 
setts State  legislature.  He  died  in  1865. 
His  wife,  who  was  a  native  of  Hasten,  Mass., 
at  this  writing  still  survives  him.  Of  their 
children,  Hasadiah  H.,  Lemuel  M.,  Samuel 
S.,  Rhoda  F. ,  and  Mary  J.  are  living.  Mary 
J.  is  the  wife  of  Adney  P.  Alden,  of  Norwood, 
Mass. 

Lemuel  M.  Keith  is  a  graduate  of  Bridge- 
water  Academy.  After  his  father's  death  he 
managed  the  business  left  by  the  deceased  for 
ten  years.  Retiring  then,  he  was  out  of  busi- 
ness for  some  time,  when  in  April,  1886,  he 
received  his  appointment  as  Postmaster  under 
President  Cleveland.  In  this  capacity  he  has 
performed  his  duties  in  such  a  satisfactory 
manner  that  he  has  been  retained  through  all 
the  changes  of  administration  since.  Mr. 
Keith  is  a  Democrat  with  independent  procliv- 
ities. He  was  married  in  1S71  to  Miss  Esther 
M.  Keith.  A  public-spirited  citizen,  he  is 
always  ready  to  aid  projects  for  the  betterment 
of  the  town  and  the  good  of  society  in  general. 


-OHN  M.  WHITING,  a  well-known 
contracting  mason  of  East  I^ridge- 
water,  was  born  in  this  town,  October 
27,  1842.  He  is  a  son  of  John  A.  and  Celesta 
(Howard)  Whiting,  the  former  of  whom  was  a 
native  of  East  Bridgewater,  and  the  latter  of 
West  Bridgewater.  Marlborough  Whiting, 
the  father  of  John  A.,  was  a  Revolutionary 
soldier.  James  Whiting,  the  founder  of  the 
family,  came  from  England  in  the  year  1644, 
and  settled  in  Hingham,  this  county.  Martin 
Whiting,  a  brother  of  John  A.,  held  the  office 
of  Selectman  in  East  Bridgewater  for  some 
thirty  years,  and  was  at  one  time  the  Ta.x  Col- 


lector for  the  town.  John  A.  Whiting,  who 
was  born  in  East  Bridgewater  in  the  first  year 
of  the  present  century,  and  was  a  lifelong  res- 
ident of  the  town,  followed  the  trade  of  mason 
for  over  sixty  years.  He  died  in  18SS,  in  his 
eighty-eighth  year.  Three  of  the  children 
born  to  him  and  his  wife.  Celesta,  grew  to 
maturity;  namely,  Sidney,  Abbie,  and 
John   M. 

John  M.  Whiting,  the  youngest  of  his 
parents'  children,  was  educated  in  the  common 
schools  and  at  Allen's  Academy.  At  the  age 
of  seventeen  years  he  began  learning  the 
mason's  trade  with  S.  L.  Washburn,  of  Brock- 
ton, by  whom  he  was  afterward  employed  for 
about  four  years.  Since  then  he  has  carried 
on  a  contracting  business  on  his  own  account. 
E.xcepting  two  years  spent  in  Pittsfield, 
Mass.,  he  has  continuously  resided  in  liast 
Bridgewater  and  vicinity,  where  he  has  won 
the  respect  and  friendship  of  the  business 
community.  On  December  22,  1869,  Mr. 
Whiting  married  Helen  Munyon,  of  North- 
ampton, Mass.,  who  was  a  member  of  the 
Episcopal  church,  and  died  March  11,  1894. 
He  is  identified  with  the  Universalist  church 
at  Abington;  and  he  has  membership  in 
Satucket  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  East 
l^ridgewater,  and  Harmony  Chapter,  Royal 
Arch  Masons,  of  Bridgewater.  In  politics  he 
is  a  Republican. 


ALBERT  TILLSON,  a  retired  foun- 
dry man  of  Carver,  was  born  at  the 
Tillson  homestead  in  South  Carver 
July  3,  1846,  son  of  Zenas  and  Louise  (King) 
Tillson.  Mr.  Tillson's  great-grandfather, 
Ichabod  Tillson,  was  the  first  ancestor  of  the 
family  to  locate  in  Carver.  John  Tillson,  son 
of  Ichabod,  was  a  native  and  lifelong  resident 
of  this   town,  and   followed   agricultural   pur- 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


suits  here  during  the  active  period  of  his  life. 
His  son,  Zenas,  Mr.  Z.  A.  Tilison's  father, 
resided  in  South  Carver  during  his  entire 
life,  and  was  a  foundry  man  by  occupation. 

Z.  Albert  Tillson  was  reared  and  educated 
in  Carver.  At  the  age  of  fourteen  years  he 
began  life  for  himself  as  an  apprentice  at 
Ellis's  foundry  in  this  town.  He  followed 
foundry  work  for  thirty  years,  twenty-seven  of 
which  were  passed  in  the  employ  of  the  above- 
named  concern.  In  1890  he  relinquished  the 
pursuit  of  his  trade  to  engage  in  farming. 
He  now  owns  a  good  fertile  farm;  and  since 
18S7  he  has  given  considerable  attention  to 
the  raising  of  small  fruits,  including  cranber- 
ries, having  a  tract  of  twelve  acres  devoted  to 
the  product  named.  His  substantial  build- 
ings were  erected  in  1875.  He  displays  both 
thrift  and  energy  in  the  management  of  his 
property,  and  is  one  of  the  prosperous  citizens 
of  the  town. 

On  January  9,  1865,  Mr.  Tillson  wedded 
Ellen  A.  Hathaway,  and  by  her  has  had  six 
children,  of  whom  two  died  in  infancy.  The 
survivors  are:  Wilfred  A.,  who  resides  in 
Carver,  and  has  been  a  member  of  the  Board 
of  Selectmen  for  three  years;  Mabel  P.; 
Alice  C.  ;  and  Blanche  K.  Mr.  Tillson  is 
connected  with  the  Independent  Order  of 
Good  Templars.  His  political  opinions  bring 
him  into  sympathy  with  the  Populist  party. 


IDGAR  CROSSMAN  RAYMOND,  a 
well-known  undertaker  of  Plymouth, 
was  born  in  this  town,  July  20, 
1825,  son  of  George  and  Priscilla  (Shaw) 
Raymond.  Mr.  Raymond's  father,  a  native 
of  Boston  and  a  baker  by  trade,  was  employed 
in  furnishing  bread  to  the  soldiers  during  the 
War  of  1S12.  Later  he  settled  in  Plymouth, 
and    here    conducted    a    baking    business    for 


many  years.  The  site  of  his  bakery  is  now 
occupied  by  Holmes  &  Hall.  He  died  in  this 
town  in  1871,  aged  eighty-si.x  years,  leaving 
the  reputation  of  a  reliable,  energetic  business 
man  and  a  worthy  citizen.  His  wife,  who 
was  a  native  of  Middleboro,  Mass.,  became  the 
mother  of  eleven  children,  all  of  whom  except 
one  reached  maturity.  Of  these  Edgar  C, 
the  subject  of  this  sketch,  who  was  the  young- 
est, is  the  only  survivor. 

Edgar  Grossman  Raymond  acquired  his  edu- 
cation in  the  common  schools.  At  the  age  of 
ten  years  he  began  work  in  Robbins's  Rope 
Walk,  where  he  remained  until  he  was  fifteen. 
He  then  went  to  Greenbush,  N.  Y.,  and  there 
worked  with  his  brother,  Harvey  S. ,  at  shoe- 
making  for  three  or  four  years.  He  then  re- 
turned home,  and  was  employed  for  a  time  as 
clerk  of  a  hotel  in  this  town.  In  1876  he 
spent  a  season  in  cod-fishing  on  the  Grand 
Banks.  After  returning  from  this  trip,  he 
applied  himself  to  learn  the  cabinet-maker's 
trade  with  his  brother  Charles  and  John  Wil- 
son, who  gave  him  his  first  instructions  in  the 
manufacture  of  caskets.  He  remained  with 
his  brother  until  the  latter's  death,  in  1880. 
In  the  following  year  he  formed  a  partnership 
with  his  nephew,  and  with  him,  under  the 
firm  name  of  Edgar  C.  Raymond  &  Co.,  was 
engaged  in  the  undertaking  business  for  four 
years.  Joseph  A.  Smith  then  bought  the 
junior  partner's  interest  in  the  concern,  which 
was  continued  under  the  same  name  until 
June,  1895.  Mr.  Smith  then  sold  his  interest 
to  W.  W.  Beaman,  when  the  firm  name  was 
altered  to  Raymond  &  Beaman.  Mr.  Ray- 
mond was  for  several  years  the  superintendent 
of  Vine  Hill  Cemetery,  holding  that  position 
until  obliged  to  give  his  whole  attention  to 
his  undertaking  business.  He  has  acquired  a 
wide  reputation  in  this  locality  for  caskets  of 
the    finest   workmanship.      In  addition    to   the 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


203 


local  trade  he  receives  from  the  adjacent 
towns  many  orders,  which  his  ample  facilities 
enable  him  to  meet  with  promptness  and  satis- 
faction. 

In  1854  Mr.  Raymond  wedded  Mary  Grace 
Hughes,  a  native  of  North  Wales,  who  has 
borne  him  two  children,  a  son  and  a  daughter. 
The  daughter  is  now  the  wife  of  Edwin  Louis 
Edes,  a  son  of  Oliver  Edes,  the  rivet  manu- 
facturer of  Plymouth,  and  the  inventor  of  the 
first  rivet  machine  used  in  this  country.  Mr. 
Raymond's  son,  who  was  formerly  in  the  shoe 
manufacturing  business  in  Whitman,  Mass., 
is  now  organizing  lodges  of  a  fraternal  and 
beneficial  order.  He  married  Adeline  Pru- 
dence Fluken,  a  daughter  of  F.  F.  Fluken,  of 
Whitman.  Mr.  Raymond  is  connected  with 
Mayflfjwer  Lodge,  Independent  Order  of  Odd 
P'ellows,  of  Plymouth.  Both  he  and  Mrs. 
Raymond  enjoy  cordial  social  relations  here. 


LBERT  F.  SMALL,  an  enterprising 
real  estate  dealer  of  Brockton,  was 
born  in  Brewster,  Barnstable 
County,  November  30,  1845.  His  parents 
were  Cornelius  and  Mercy  Small,  the  mother's 
maiden  name  being  unchanged  by  marriage. 
Nathan  Small,  his  paternal  grandfather,  was 
one  of  a  company  who,  armed  but  with  pitch- 
forks, went  to  oppose  a  party  of  British  who 
had  landed  on  the  shores  of  Cape  Cod.  He 
married,  and  became  the  father  of  seven  chil- 
dren, three  girls  and  four  boys.  Cornelius, 
the  eldest  child,  was  a  native  of  the  same 
town,  where  he  was  a  well-known  farmer  and 
builder.  He  erected  the  Brewster  town 
hall.  His  wife,  who  was  a  daughter  of  Zeb- 
edee  Small,  also  of  Brewster,  had  ten  chil- 
dren; namely,  Cornelius,  Joshua,  Frederick, 
James,  Isaac,  F"rancis,  Albert  ¥.,  Edgar, 
Mercy  Emma,  and  Adelaide  Peirce.     Of  these 


Frederick,  Edgar,  and  Albert  are  the  only 
survivors.  Frederick  is  with  Sampson,  Mur- 
dock  &  Co.,  of  Boston;  and  Edgar  carries  on 
a  marble  business  in  Brockton.  The  father 
died  in  September,  1894,  at  the  age  of  eighty- 
five  years.  The  mother  was  seventy-six  years 
at  her  death.  They  were  highly  respected 
members  of  the  Qniversalist  church,  in  which 
he  ofificiated  as  se.xton. 

Albert  F.  Small  was  educated  in  the  public 
and  private  schools  of  his  native  town.  At 
the  age  of  eighteen  he  learned  the  trade  of 
carpenter  and  builder  from  his  father,  with 
whom  he  remained  during  his  minority.  He 
then  came  to  Brockton  to  work  for  N.  S. 
Holmes.  Thereafter  he  went  into  the  same 
business  for  himself,  and  conducted  it  until 
1890.  He  now  deals  exclusively  in  real 
estate  in  this  city.  Mr.  Small  was  one  of  the 
promoters  and  organizers  of  the  Brockton  East 
Side  Electric  Railroad,  which  was  the  first  in 
the  New  England  States.  This  road,  which 
he  planned  in  1887,  was  in  operation  by  No- 
vember of  the  following  year.  For  the  first 
two  years  he  officiated  as  President  and  Man- 
ager, and  he  was  Director  for  three  years. 
Mr.  Small  owns  several  shoe  factories,  which 
he  leases.  At  one  time  he  also  kept  a  store 
where  Clapp  Brothers  now  conduct  a  grocery. 
The  estate  at  that  corner  is  still  his  property. 
P"or  two  years  he  has  been  one  of  the  Direc- 
tors of  the  Glover  Sanitary  Sewerage  Com- 
pany, whose  office  is  at  40  Ames  Building, 
Boston. 

On  January  30,  1875,  he  entered  matrimony 
with  Mary  T.,  daughter  of  David  V.  Straffin, 
of  this  city.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Small  have  three 
interesting  children  —  Mabel  F. ,  Etta  E.,  and 
Albert  F.  Mabel  attends  the  Brockton  High 
School.  Albert  F.,  Jr.,  is  now  eight  years 
old.  In  politics  Mr.  Small  has  been  a  loyal 
Republican  since  he  cast  his  first  vote,  which 


204 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


was  given  in  favor  of  that  party's,  candidates. 
He  .is  a  member  of  ILxcelsior  Council,  Legion 
of  Honor,  No.  i6;  and  of  Brockton  Lodge, 
No.  Ii8,  Knights  of  Honor.  Both  he  and 
Mrs.  Small  are  members  of  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  church.  For  three  years  Mr.  Small 
has  officiated  as  Trustee  of  the  church. 


HARLES     R.     PACKARD,     the    effi- 


cient Postmaster  and  Town  Clerk  of 
West  Bridgewater,  was  born  in 
Ro.xbury,  Mass.,  May  8,  1843,  ^  ^o"  of 
Charles  and  Nancy  T.  (Page)  Packard,  the 
former  of  whom  was  a  native  of  Easton,  Mass., 
and  the  latter  of  Woodstock,  Conn.  Samuel 
Packard,  the  immigrant  ancestor  of  this  old 
Plymouth  County  family,  came  to  America 
from  Windham,  England.  He  settled  in 
Hingham,  Mass.,  in  1638,  and  later  removed 
to  West  Bridgewater.  Captain  Nathan  Pack- 
ard, one  of  his  descendants,  great-grandfather 
of  Charles  R.  Packard,  was  an  officer  in  the 
Revolutionary  War. 

Charles  Packard  was  a  machinist  by  trade, 
and  for  many  years  held  the  position  of  man- 
ager in  the  Bay  State  Iron  Works  at  South 
Boston.  Late  in  life  he  retired  to  West 
Bridgewater,  dying  here  December  26,  1875. 
His  wife  was  a  daughter  of  James  B.  Page,  a 
soldier  of  the  War  of  1812.  She  was  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  church. 

Charles  R.  Packard  is  now  the  only  survivor 
of  the  eight  children  born  to  his  parents.  His 
early  years  were  spent  fur  the  most  part  in 
South  Boston,  where  he  attended  the  public 
schools;  and  later  he  was  a  pupil  in  the  Eng- 
lish High  School  in  Boston.  For  many  years 
he  was  employed  as  clerk  and  book-keeper 
with  various  firms  in  different  lines  of  busi- 
ness. On  August  8,  1862,  he  enlisted  in  Com- 
pany  B,    Thirteenth  Massachusetts    Volunteer 


Infantry,  with  which  he  joined  the  army  of  the 
Potomac,  and  took  part  in  the  following  en- 
gagements: second  battle  of  Bull  Run,  Chan- 
tilly,  South  Mountain,  Antietam,  Fredericks- 
burg, Chancellorsville,  and  Gettysburg.  At 
Gettysburg  he  was  captured  by  the  rebels,  and 
for  about  si.x  weeks  was  held  a  prisoner.  He 
was  then  paroled,  and  remained  in  the  parole 
camp  at  Annapolis,  Md.,  until  the  following 
autumn,  when  he  was  duly  e.xchanged,  and  re- 
joined his  old  regiment,  with  which  he  par- 
ticipated in  the  Mine  Run  campaign.  In  the 
following  spring,  shortly  after  the  expiration 
of  his  first  term,  he  re-enlisted  in  Company  K 
of  the  Sixth  Regiment,  United  States  Veteran 
Volunteers,  being  in  the  First  Corps  under 
General  Hancock.  From  that  time  until  his 
discharge,  April  8,  1866,  he  was  on  detail 
duty  at  General  Hancock's  headquarters  in 
Washington  and  Baltimore.  Returning  to 
Boston,  he  worked  as  clerk  and  book-keeper  the 
next  six  years,  and  in  1872  came  to  West 
Bridgewater,  where  he  has  made  his  home  ever 
since. 

In  March,  1884,  Mr.  Packard  was  appointed 
Postmaster  of  West  Bridgewater;  and  he  con- 
tinues to  hold  the  office.  He  was  elected 
Town  Clerk  in  1889,  and  since  that  time  has 
been  re-elected  annually.  For  eleven  years 
he  has  been  a  Trustee  of  Howard  Seminary, 
and  for  many  years  a  Trustee  of  the  Public 
Library  of  West  Bridgewater.  He  is  promi- 
nently identified  with  the  Masonic  order, 
being  a  member  of  St.  George  Lodge,  A.  F.  & 
A.  M.,  at  Campello;  Satucket  Royal  Arch 
Chapter  at  Brockton  ;  the  Bay  State  Comman- 
dery,  Knights  Templars,  at  Brockton;  and 
Aleppo  Temple  of  the  Mystic  Shrine  of  Bos- 
ton. He  is  a  charter  member  and  was  the 
first  Commander  of  John  C.  Fremont  Post,  No. 
202,  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  at  West 
Bridgewater;  a  membei' of  Howard  Lodge,  No. 


CHARLES    R.    PACKARD. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


207 


116,  Knights  of   Pythias;  and   of   Grange   No. 
156,  Patrons  of  Husbandry,  of  this  town. 


M 


/WID  COBli,  one  of  the  oldest  resi- 
dents of  Hinghani,  who  is  now 
engaged  in  business,  was  born  here, 
August  13,  1817,  son  of  Elisha  Bicl<ford  and 
Michal  (Hyde)  Cobb.  He  is  a  descendant  of 
Henry  and  Sarah  (Hinckley)  Cobb,  who  were 
at  Plymouth  in  1632,  and,  removing  from 
thence  to  Scituate  in  1633,  finally  settled  in 
Barnstable  in  1639. 

Thomas  and  Richard  Cobb  came  from  ling- 
land  to  Boston  in  1685,  subsequently  settling 
in  Hingham  in  1692.  Tracing  the  line  down, 
we  come  to  Elisha  Bickford,  the  father  of  the 
subject  of  this  sketch.  He  was  a  son  of 
David  and  Lucy  (Bickford)  Cobb,  born  at 
Barnstable,  Mass.,  February  14,  1776.  He 
was  a  master  mariner,  and  lived  to  be  seventy- 
nine  years  old,  dying  on  November  16,  1855. 
He  was  twice  married,  the  first  time,  Novem- 
ber 13,  1799,  to  Lydia  Loring,  daughter  of 
Elijah  and  Lydia  (Low)  Loring.  She  died 
December  13,  1802,  at  the  age  of  twenty-four. 
On  December  2,  1804,  he  married  his  second 
wife,  Michal,  daughter  of  Noah  and  Rachel 
Hyde.  She  was  born  in  Newton,  Mass.,  on 
May  2,  1778,  and  died  in  Hingham,  Septem- 
ber 8,  1866,  having  attained  the  advanced  age 
of  eighty-eight  years.  They  were  the  parents 
of  several  children :  Elisha,  deceased;  Joseph, 
deceased;  Naaman,  now  eighty -four  years  old, 
a  resident  of  Weymouth;  Michal,  deceased; 
Mary,  who  also  has  passed  away ;  and  David, 
of  whom  more  is  now  to  be  said. 

David  Cobb  had  but  little  opportunity  in 
his  boyhood  to  acquire  an  education,  as  he 
began  work  at  the  age  of  nine  years.  When 
he  was  seventeen,  he  was  apprenticed  to  a 
painter  in  this  town;  and  he  served  his   time, 


and  thereafter  worked  at  his  trade.  At  the 
age  of  twenty-two  he  began  business  for  him- 
self on  the  corner  near  his  present  store, 
which  he  bought  later,  and  which  he  has  man- 
aged ever  since.  During  his  residence  here 
time  has  wrought  great  changes  in  the  busi- 
ness outlook  of  Hingham,  as  he  remembers 
when  eighty  vessels  used  to  cast  their  anchors 
in  this  port. 

In  politics  Mr.  Cobb  was  at  first  a  Whig, 
but  he  now  affiliates  with  the  Republican 
party.  He  has  also  been  actively  identified 
with  the  temperance  movement,  being  one  of 
thirteen  who  in  1835  organized  the  Sons  of 
Temperance,  which  had  a  career  of  usefulness, 
and  then  disbanded.  He  now  belongs  to  the 
Reform  Club,  which  has  temperance  for  its 
object. 

Mr.  Cobb  married  Mercy  B.  Fearing,  who 
is  now  living  at  the  age  of  seventy-si.x.  They 
have  four  children —  David,  Jr.,  Henry  H., 
Mercy  V.,  and  George  W.  David,  Jr.,  is  in 
company  with  his  father,  under  the  style  of 
David  Cobb  &  Son;  Henry  H.  and  George 
W.  also  live  here;  and  Mercy  F.  is  a  resi- 
dent of  New  Bedford,  Mass.  Personally,  Mr. 
Cobb,  who  is  well  known,  is  an  energetic- 
gentleman,  hale  and  hearty,  though  he  has 
passed  his  seventy-ninth  birthday.  He  owns 
a  tricycle  with  the  latest  improvements,  on 
which  he  can  ride  eight  miles  an  hour  with 
ease;  and  he  no  doubt  derives  much  benefit 
from  this  healthful  and  agreeable  e.xercise. 


JEFrANK  E.  CONSTANS,  M.D.,  of 
l\g  Brockton,  Mass.,  a  prominent  physi- 
cian of  the  homoeopathic  school,  was 
born  in  Blue  Earth  City,  Minn.,  August  2, 
1866.  He  is  a  son  of  Henry  P.  and  Barbara 
Constans,  both  natives  of  the  old  French  prov- 
ince of  Alsace,  and  descendants  of   Huguenot 


208 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


and  noble  ancestors.  His  father's  grand- 
mother was  Countess  von  Grunbach,  of  Des- 
bach,  in  Alsace.  Henry  P.  Constans,  who 
studied  chemistry  in  his  native  land,  came  to 
America  when  he  was  eighteen  years  of  age 
and  located  in  St.  Paul,  Minn.  Here  for  two 
years  he  was  in  the  commission  business,  deal- 
ing in  lime,  grain,  hay,  cement,  etc.  In 
1856,  with  Lieutenant  Governor  J.  B.  Wake- 
field, he  founded  Blue  Earth  City,  laying  out 
and  organizing  the  town.  Now,  at  the  age  of 
sixty-four,  he  conducts  the  new  Constans 
House,  the  finest  hotel  in  Southern  Minnesota. 
He  has  been  actively  prominent  in  the  affairs 
of  Blue  Earth  City  for  many  years,  and  has 
held  a  number  of  public  offices.  Mr.  Constans 
is  a  Deacon  of  the  Presbyterian  church,  and  a 
prominent  Mason.  He  reared  four  sons,  of 
whom  Dr.  Constans  is  the  youngest. 

Frank  M  Constans  graduated  from  the  high 
school  of  Blue  Earth  City  in  1882,  and  from 
Carleton  College,  at  Northfield,  Minn.,  in 
1886.  He  then  took  up  the  study  of  medicine 
at  Hahnemann  Medical  College,  Philadelphia, 
Pa.,  from  which  he  received  his  diploma  in 
1889.  Then  he  took  the  competitive  exami- 
nation for  Ward's  Island  Hospital,  the  largest 
homoeopathic  hospital  in  the  world,  where  he 
had  a  year's  practical  experience  as  House 
Physician.  In  August,  1890,  he  opened  an 
office  in  Brockton,  where,  from  the  beginning, 
his  practice  has  steadily  increased.  Dr.  Con- 
stans'is  on  the  Visiting  Staff  and  Medical 
Board  of  the  Brockton  City  Hospital,  an  insti- 
tution in  whose  establishment  he  was  actively 
interested.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Plymouth 
County  Homoeopathic  Medical  Society,  of  the 
State  HomcEopathic  Society,  and  of  the  Metro- 
politan Hospital  Association  of  New  York. 
He  recently  received  a  diploma  and  degree 
from  the  National  College  of  Electro  Thera- 
peutics. 


In  March,  1893,  Dr.  Constans  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Emily  P"oster  Packard,  a  daugh- 
ter of  Dr.  J.  E.  Packard,  of  Brockton.  The 
Packards  are  one  of  the  old  families  of  this 
city.  Dr.  Constans  takes  no  active  interest 
in  politics.  He  is  a  member  of  Harmony 
Lodge,  No.  27,  Knights  of  Pythias,  being 
assistant  surgeon  in  the  Third  Regiment, 
Uniformed  Rank;  a  member  of  the  ILlks;  the 
Phi  Kappa,  a  college  fraternity;  surgeon  to 
the  Ancient  Essenic  Order;  and  a  member  of 
the  Commercial  Club. 


-S^OSEPH  EBER  BEALS  is  a  descendant 
of  John  Beal,  who  settled  in  Hingham 
in  1638.  He  is  active  as  one  of  the 
trustees  of  the  Middleboro  Public  Library,  and 
has  been  a  disinterested  worker  in  behalf  of 
that  institution  during  the  past  two  decades, 
being  one  of  the  foremost  men  of  culture  in 
this  town.  A  son  of  Eber  and  Lucy  (Vaughn) 
Beals,  both  natives  of  Middleboro,  he  was  born 
in  this  town,  March  18,  1834.  Eber  Beals, 
who  was  a  blacksmith,  worked  at  his  trade  in 
Middleboro  for  sixty-seven  years,  and  died 
here  soon  after  his  eighty-fourth  birthday. 
His  wife  died  in  August,   1872. 

Joseph  E.  Beals,  the  only  child  of  his  par- 
ents, attended  the  common  schools  of  his 
native  town  and  fitted  for  college  at  the  old 
Peirce  Academy.  He  learned  the  jirinter's 
trade,  and  after  leaving  school  worked  alter- 
nately at  printing  and  teaching,  taking  charge 
of  a  school  in  the  winter  and  working  at  the 
case  in  the  summer.  In  1862  he  engaged  with 
the  Bay  State  Straw  Works,  with  which  he  was 
connected  some  thirty  years  as  clerk,  perform- 
ing the  duties  of  accountant,  paymaster,  and 
cashier.  Mr.  Beals  has  been  Secretary  and 
Treasurer  of  the  Middleboro  Co-operative 
Bank  since  its  organization  in  1889. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


209 


In  political  preference  he  is  a  Republican. 
He  has  long  been  active  in  town  matters,  en- 
joying the  confidence  and  respect  of  both  par- 
ties. He  has  been  elected  to  the  Board  of 
Selectmen,  on  which  he  served  from  1890  to 
1893,  and  to  the  Board  of  Water  Commis- 
sioners, with  which  he  has  been  connected 
since  1885,  serving  as  Clerk  of  that  body  and 
Superintendent,  which  position  he  now  occu- 
pies, taking  full  charge  of  all  matters  con- 
nected with  the  water  service.  With  the 
Middleboro  Public  Library,  an  important  and 
well-managed  enterprise,  he  has  been  actively 
interested  since  its  organization  in  1S74, 
twenty-three  years  ago  performing  many  of  the 
duties  of  a  librarian  ;  and  much  of  its  success 
is  due  to  his  unfailing  energy  and  good  judg- 
ment. Mr.  Beals  belongs  to  a  number  of 
associations  of  different  kinds,  including  the 
Middleboro  Commercial  Club,  of  which  he  was 
President  in  1894-96;  the  New  England 
Water  Works  Association,  of  which  he  has 
served  as  Vice-President ;  the  New  England 
Historic-Genealogical  Society;  the  Town 
Committee  on  Local  History,  of  which  he  is 
Chairman ;  the  Royal  Society  of  Good  Fel- 
lows; and  the  Sons  of  Temperance.  In  relig- 
ious belief  he  is  a  Universalist. 

Mr.  Beals  was  married  on  March  18,  1863, 
to  Miss  Mary  E.  Leonard,  of  Bridgewater, 
who  died  on  February  20,  1871,  leaving  one 
son,  Walter  Leonard.  This  son  was  graduated 
at  Tufts  College  in  1890,  and  was  employed 
for  four  years  as  a  civil  engineer.  He  is  now 
connected  with  the  illustrating  department  of 
the  Youth's  Coinpanion  in  Boston.  He  mar- 
ried Miss  Ella  M.  Lucas,  daughter  of  Robert 
Lucas,  of  Manchester,  Mas.s. ,  and  has  one 
child  —  Austen  Lucas,  born  September  8, 
1895.  Mr.  Beals  was  married  the  second  time 
on  April  12,  1876,  to  Miss  Harriet  C.  Barden, 
a  daughter  of  Joseph  S.  Barden,  of  Middleboro. 


tLBERT    T. 
ant   of    Wi 
^^    _  iHith    anc 


SHURTLIFF,  a  descend- 
ill  iam  Shurtleff,  of  Plym- 
d  Marshfield,  who  married 
in  1655  Elizabeth,  daughter  of  Thomas  Let- 
tice,  and  who  was  killed  by  lightning  at 
Marshfield  in  June,  1666,  is  an  influential 
citizen  of  his  native  town.  Carver,  Plymouth 
County,  Mass.,  where  he  is  engaged  in  the 
cranberry  culture.  He  was  born  January  30, 
1837,  son  of  Albert  and  Luc\'  (Thomas)  Shurt- 
liff,  the  latter  a  native  of  Middleboro,  Mass. 
His  parents  had  five  children,  two  of  whom 
died  in  infancy.  The  three  who  lived  to 
maturity  were:  Lucy  A.,  Eunice  T.,  and 
Albert  T.,-  of  this  writing,  who  is  the  only 
one  of  his  family  now  surviving. 

Until  si.xteen  years  of  age,  Albert  T.  Shurt- 
liff  spent  his  life  on  a  farm,  but  at  that  period 
he  decided  to  break  the  monotony  of  an  exist- 
ence so  uneventful  as  a  farmer's  must  be,  and 
secured  a  position  on  board  a  fishing  schooner. 
P^ol lowing  the  sea  for  four  years,  he  then  re- 
solved to  become  master  of  some  trade  that 
would  enable  him  to  earn  a  support  steadil)', 
and  regardless  of  winds  and  tides,  for  he  had 
found  seafaring  life  subject  to  many  condi- 
tions. Accordingly,  he  resigned  his  place  on 
the  ship's  crew,  and  repaired  to  Providence, 
R.I.,  where  he  intended  learning  the  jewel- 
ler's handicraft. 

He  was  working  at  this  when  the  war  broke 
out,  and  with  patriotic  ardor  he  enlisted  April 
17,  1 86 1,  as  a  private  in  Company  D,  P^irst 
Regiment  of  the  Rhode  Island  Detached 
Militia.  He  was  mustered  in  at  Washington, 
D.C.,  and  on  the  21st  of  July,  1861,  was  at 
the  first  battle  of  Bull  Run,  where  he  received 
his  first  wound,  a  minie  ball  striking  him  on 
the  right  arm  between  the  elbow  and  the 
shoulder.  On  the  retreat  that  followed  he  fell 
into  the  hands  of  the  Rebels,  and  after  the 
expiration    of    ten    days   was    taken   to   Libby 


2IO 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


Prison,  where  he  was  held  until  October  7, 
1861,  when  with  fifty-seven  other  Union  pris- 
oners he  was  paroled,  and  delivered  to  the 
Union  side  at  Newport  News.  His  arm  had 
been  amputated  on  the  third  day  after  he 
received  his  wound.  On  his  release  he  was 
sent  to  the  hospital  at  Baltimore,  and  thence 
to  Washington,  where  he  received  his  dis- 
charge on  the  30th  of  October,  1861.  He 
then  returned  to  Carver,  and  lived  for  two 
years  in  quiet.  In  1863  he  received  an  ap- 
pointment as  a  doorkeeper  and  watchman  in 
the  War  Department  at  Washington.  In  this 
position  he  remained  until  1866,  when  he 
was  appointed  to  a  clerkship  in  the  Pay- 
master General's  office,  where  he  stayed  twelve 
years.  After  these  fifteen  years  of  work  for 
the  government  in  Washington,  he  returned  to 
Carver  on  account  of  his  health,  and  two  years 
■later  purchased  the  farm  where  he  now  re- 
sides. Here  he  raises  cranberries,  which  are 
shipped  to  all  parts  of  the  country.  On 
August  8,  1 87 1,  he  was  married  to  Maria 
Young  Davis,  daughter  of  James  and  Sophia 
(Smith)  Davis,  of  Washington,  D.C.  Five 
children,  two  boys  and  three  girls,  were  the 
fruit  of  this  union.  The  eldest,  Mary  P^liza- 
beth,  born  June  28,  1872,  married  Alfred 
Allen  Walker,  of  Washington,  D.C;  the  sec- 
ond, Walter  Davis,  born  May  31,  1875,  is 
now  a  medical  student  at  Howard  University, 
Washington,  D.C;  the  third,  Lucy  Thomas, 
born  January  9,  1877,  lives  at  the  parental 
home;  the  fourth,  Anna  Kimball,  was  born 
January  6,  1882,;  and  the  fifth,  Carlton,  was 
born  May  8,  1888.  The  two  latter  are  natives 
of  Carver,  the  other  three  of  Washing- 
ton, D.C. 

For  fourteen  years,  from  1879  to  1893,  Mr. 
Shurtliff  was  Town  Clerk  of  Carver,  and  for 
eight  years  he  was  Selectman,  Assessor,  and 
Overseer  of  the  Poor.     He  has   been  a  Justice 


of  the  Peace  for  the  last  seventeen  years,  or 
since  1879,  and  at  present  he  is  Chairman  of 
the  Board  of  Trustees  of  the  Carver  Public- 
Library.  He  is  a  member  of  Conwood  Post, 
No.  ']6,  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  of 
Plymouth.  In  politics  Mr.  Shurtliff  is  a  Pro- 
hibitionist. 


1f^ 


ALTER  L.  CLARK,  who  is  suc- 
cessfully engaged  in  the  dry-goods 
business  at  202  Main  Street,  Brock- 
ton, is  a  native  of  Lawrence,  Mass.  He  was 
born  April  21,  1872,  son  of  Enoch  and  Helen 
M.  (Sears)  Clark.  The  founder  of  the  family 
came  to  this  country  with  the  Pilgrim  Fathers 
in  the  "Mayflower."  The  great-grandfather 
of  Walter  L.  Clark  was  the  first  settler  of 
Fairmont,  N.H.  Enoch  Clark,  born  in  Went- 
worth,  Mass.,  who  is  a  carpenter,  has  followed 
that  occupation  with  success,  principally  in 
Wentworth  and  Lawrence.  He  now  resides 
in  Lawrence,  where,  although  sixty-five  years 
of  age,  he  does  most  satisfactory  work  in  the 
capacity  of  pattern-maker  for  the  Atlantic 
mills.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Universalist 
church.  His  wife,  Helen,  who  is  a  connec- 
tion of  the  well-known  Sears  family  of  Bos- 
ton, has  borne  him  two  children —  Walter  L. 
and  Jennie  S. 

After  completing  the  course  of  study  pur- 
sued in  the  Lawrence  public  schools,  Walter 
L.  Clark  went  to  Boston,  and  took  a  business 
course  at  Comer's  Commercial  College.  He 
then  entered  the  dry -goods  store  of  A.  W. 
Stearns  at  Lawrence  as  carpet-layer,  but  also 
served  as  a  clerk  behind  the  counter.  He  re- 
mained in  one  department  a  year,  and  after- 
ward worked  in  the  other  departments. 
Finally  he  was  placed  in  charge  of  the  drapery 
department.  Five  years  later,  in  January, 
1895,  he  came  to  Brockton,  and  opened  the 
dry-goods  store  he  now  conducts. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


In  politics  Mr.  Clark  favors  the  Republican 
party.  He  is  a  member  of  Fletcher  Webster 
Post,  No.  13,  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic. 
He  is  a  member  of  the  Baptist  church,  and  of 
the  Baptist  Young  People's  Union,  and  was 
sent  as  a  delegate  to  the  National  Convention 
held  in  1894.  He  was  a  member  of  the  Law- 
rence Young  Men's  Christian  Association, 
where  he  served  as  Treasurer  for  two  years; 
and  he  is  now  a  member  of  the  Brockton 
Youno;  Men's  Christian  Association. 


lAPTAIN  EBENEZER  NICKER- 
SON,  who  is  well  known  as  a  former 
follower  of  the  sea,  but  who  has 
now  retired,  is  a  resident  of  Plymouth,  Mass. 
He  was  born  in  the  village  of  Dennis,  Barn- 
stable County,  Mass.,  February  18,  1827,  a 
son  of  Ebenezer  and  Ruth  (Chapman)  Nicker- 
son.  His  father,  who  was  a  native  of  Dennis, 
was  a  seafaring  man.  He  married  Miss  Ruth 
Chapman,  a  daughter  of  John  Chapman,  of 
Dennis,  and  they  became  the  parents  of  ten 
children,  of  whom  three  only  are  now  living. 
Mr.  Ebenezer  Nickerson,  Sr.,  passed  away 
April  2,  1858,  his  wife  having  died  July  3, 
1839. 

At  the  age  of  nine  years  their  son  Ebenezer 
shipped  on  board  a  coasting-vessel  as  assistant 
cook.  In  his  twenty-first  year  he  was  given 
the  command  of  a  vessel,  and  he  engaged  in 
the  coasting  carrying  trade  from  Newfound- 
land to  the  State  of  Virginia.  He  followed  the 
sea  for  nearly  half  a  century,  or  until  1884, 
and  he  owned  an  interest  in  the  vessels  which 
he  sailed.  In  1861  he  came  to  Plymouth, 
and  soon  after  purchased  the  farm  upon  which 
he  now  resides.  During  the  last  decade,  at 
different  times  he  has  engaged  somewhat  in 
painting. 

Captain  Nickerson  and  Miss  Mary  A.  Lang- 


ford,  who  was  a  native  of  Plymouth  and  a 
daughter  of  William  and  Betsey  Langford, 
were  united  in  marriage  in  January,  1853,  and 
became  the  parents  of  one  child,  a  daughter, 
Mary  L.  Nickerson,  now  the  wife  of  E.  R. 
Manter,  of  Plymouth,  a  dealer  in  wood,  hay, 
and  grain.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Manter  have  two 
children:  Grace,  born  August  7,  1886;  and 
Anna,  born  March  26,  1889.  Captain  Nick- 
erson was  called  upon  to  mourn  the  loss  of  his 
first  wife,  who  died  July  5,  1856;  and  on 
February  26,   1861,  he  wedded    Miss   Margaret 

B.  Burgess,  who  was  born  in  Plymouth,  Sep- 
tember 5,  1832,  a  daughter  of  Captain  Will- 
iam and  Polly  Burgess.  Five  children  are  the 
fruit  of  this  union,  namely:  Charles  A.,  born 
October  2,  1863;  Lina  B. ,  born  June  29, 
1865;  William  ]i.,  born  June  16,  1867,  who 
is   now  the   Postmaster  of   Chiltonville;  John 

C,  born  August  3,  1869;  and  E.  Elliot,  who 
was  born  August  9,   1871. 

Captain  Nickerson  is  a  Free  and  Accepted 
Mason.  In  political  action  he  is  associated 
with  the  Republican  party.  He  and  his  wife 
attend  the  Congregational  church. 


AMUEL  M.  HALL,  who  carries 
on  a  thriving  confectionery  business 
in  Plymouth,  was  born  in  Cam- 
bridgeport,  Mass.,  December  27,  1829,  son  of 
Oliver  and  Jane  (Brown)  Hall.  Mr.  Hall's 
grandfather,  Oliver  Hall  (first),  who  was  a 
prosperous  farmer  of  Sutton,  N.  H.,  resided  in 
that  town  until  his  death,  and  had  a  family  of 
twenty-two  children.  Oliver  Hall,  second, 
Mr.  Hall's  father,  who  was  born  in  Sutton, 
acquired  the  stone  mason's  trade.  He  re- 
moved to  Cambridgeport,  Mass.,  where  he  fol- 
lowed his  trade  steadily  for  many  years,  and 
died  at  the  age  of  fifty-six.  He  was  a  member 
of  the  Universalist  church.     His  wife,  Jane, 


212 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


bore  him  seven  children,  of  whom  Samuel  M., 
the  subject  of  this  sketch,  was  the  third  born. 
All  the  sons  have  been  successful  in  business. 
One  of  them  is  now  janitor  of  Horticultural 
Hall  in  Boston.  The  mother  was  eighty- 
four  years  old  when  she  died  in  1894. 

After  receiving  his  education  in  the  com- 
mon schools,  Samuel  M.  Hall  learned  the  con- 
fectioner's trade  with  Robert  and  Royal 
Douglass,  of  Canibridgeport,  for  whom  he 
worked  four  years.  For  the  next  seven  years 
he  was  employed  by  Luther  B.  Dow  in  Port- 
land, Me.  At  the  expiration  of  that  time  he 
went  to  Roxbury,  Mass.,  and  worked  in  a 
store  on  Washington  Street,  kept  by  William 
Williams,  with  whom  he  remained  for  two 
years.  Returning  then  to  Portland,  he  spent 
three  years  in  the  employment  of  Green 
Sawyer,  after  which  he  returned  to  Mr.  Dow, 
and  continued  with  him  until  the  latter's 
death,  some  years  later.  He  afterward 
worked  with  Ferdinand  Richards  for  about 
two  years,  and  with  Benjamin  Pearson  in  the 
same  city  for  one  year.  In  company  with  his 
brother  he  now  started  in  the  confectionery 
business  in  Portland.  Later,  he  admitted  a 
brother-in-law  named  Johnson  to  the  firm, 
which,  under  the  style  of  Hall  Brothers  & 
Co.,  had  carried  on  business  for  two  years, 
when  Johnson  retired.  At  the  end  of  the  fol- 
lowing year  Mr.  Hall  became  sole  proprietor 
of  the  establishment,  conducted  it  for  the  suc- 
ceeding year,  and  then  sold  out.  After  this 
he  entered  the  employ  of  the  Wheeler  &  Wil- 
son Sewing  Machine  Company  at  Bridgeport, 
Conn.,  and  remained  with  them  for  seven 
years.  Resuming  the  manufacture  of  confec- 
tionery, he  worked  for  a  Mr.  Mead  in  Bridge- 
port for  about  two  years.  He  was  employed 
by  his  brother,  Jackson  E.  Hall,  in  the 
varnish  and  sewing  machine  business  for  three 
years.      In  1877  he  came  to  Plymouth  to  assist 


H.  A.  Alden,  the  confectioner.  One  year 
later  he  purchased  a  store  in  Barnes's  Block, 
which  he  conducted  until  December  16,  18S9, 
when  he  moved  to  his  present  well-known 
stand,  which  was  formerly  occupied  by  Mr. 
Bowen.  Here  he  has  since  conducted  a 
flourishing  trade.  He  also  speculates  in  real 
estate  to  some  extent. 

Mr.  Hall  has  been  twice  married.  By  his 
first  marriage,  contracted  in  1850,  he  was 
united  to  Anna  Rose,  of  Portland,  Me.  She 
died  in  1864,  leaving  five  children,  two  of 
whom  are  deceased.  The  survivors  are:  Ed- 
win F.,  a  successful  lawyer  and  prominent 
citizen  of  Bridgeport,  who  was  formerly  a 
member  of  the  Connecticut  legislature;  Jennie 
M.,  a  tailoress  of  Plymouth;  and  George  W., 
the  junior  member  of  the  firm  of  Holmes  & 
Hall,  carriage  painters  of  this  town.  Mr. 
Hall  was  married  the  second  time  in  1872  to 
Eliza  Gibbons,  a  daughter  of  Joseph  Gibbons, 
of  Pennsylvania.  In  politics  he  is  a  Demo- 
crat. He  cast  his  first  Presidential  vote  for 
Franklin  Pierce  in  1852,  and  he  well  remem- 
bers the  political  excitement  attending  the 
campaign,  which  resulted  in  the  election  of 
Andrew  Jackson,  having  as  a  boy  snuffed  the 
candles  used  in  celebrating  that  event.  Both 
he  and  Mrs.  Hall  attend  the  Methodist  Epis- 
copal church. 


(^Yr-LFRED  GRIFFIN,  a  venerable  and 
fmX  highly  respected  citizen  of  East 
/«J1b^^  ]5ridgewater,  Mass.,  was  born  in 
Manchester,  N.H.,  July  i,  1812,  son  of  James 
and  Jerusha  (Palmer)  Griffin,  both  of  whom 
were  natives  of  Manchester.  James  Griffin 
was  a  practical  farmer,  and  he  was  also  a  boat- 
man on  the  Merrimac  River,  being  well  known 
in  that  vicinity  as  Captain  Griffin. 

Until  about    thirteen  years  of    age,   Alfred 


u 


=•  V 


ALFRED    GRIFFIN. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


2IS 


Griffin  remained  with  his  parents  on  the  New 
Hampshire  farm,  and  during  that  time  was  an 
attendant  of  the  common  school.  The  meagre 
education  thus  obtained  has  since  been  supple- 
mented by  the  knowledge  acquired  in  the 
school  of  business  experience,  and  by  reading, 
he  having  kept  himself  well  informed  on  the 
general  topics  of  the  day.  The  remainder  of 
his  youth,  after  leaving  home,  was  spent  in  a 
variety  of  occupations.  For  a  time  he  drove  a 
stage  from  Boston  to  New  Bedford,  Mass;  and 
in  1833  he  started  in  the  livery  business  in 
Bridgewater,  whence,  six  years  later,  he  came 
to  East  Bridgewater,  where  he  continued  in 
the  same  line  of  enterprise  until  about  1886, 
when  he  retired,  after  over  half  a  century 
of  diligent  and  profitable  occupation.  He  is 
a  Republican  in  his  political  principles. 

For  his  first  wife  Mr.  Griffin  married  Har- 
riet N.  Howe,  of  Bridgewater,  Mass.  She 
bore  him  two  daughters,  namely:  Harriet  J., 
wife  of  A.  Harris  Latham;  and  Fannie  M., 
now  deceased.  Mrs.  Harriet  Howe  Griffin 
died  in  1875;  and  on  April  14,  1881,  he  mar- 
ried his  present  wife,  whose  maiden  name  was 
Lucy  A.  Johnson.  She  is  a  native  of  East 
Randolph,  Mass.,  but  was  reared  in  East 
Bridgewater,  where,  with  the  exception  of  a 
few  years  spent  in  Plymouth,  she  has  since 
resided. 


(sTVI^r^FRT  MANLEY,  a  well-known  milk 
f^A  dealer  of  Brockton,  was  born  here, 
■^  '"  V_^  July  28,  1857,  son  of  Milo  and 
Mary  M.  (Packard)  Manley.  Thomas,  the 
earliest-known  ancestor  in  this  country,  settled 
in  liaston,  Mass.,  where  he  married,  becoming 
the  father  of  a  son,  Daniel.  His  son,  Daniel, 
Jr.,  came  from  Easton  to  North  Bridgewater, 
now  Brockton,  when  a  young  man,  being  a 
well-to-do  farmer.  He  served  his  country  in 
the  Revolutionary  War,  and  the  town  as  Tax 


Collector.  His  wife,  whose  maiden  name  was 
Phctbe  Howard,  was  a  native  of  Bridgewater. 
Twin  sons,  Salmon  and  Galen,  were  born  to 
them  here  on  Christmas  Day,  1794.  These 
sons  became  successful  lumber  dealers,  and 
owned  a  great  deal  of  land.  Galen  lived  to  be 
eighty  years  old.  Salmon,  the  grandfather  of 
Albert,  the  subject  of  this  biography,  married 
Isah  A.,  daughter  of  Zephaniah  Howard,  of 
West  Bridgewater,  by  which  alliance  there 
were  five  children.  Salmon  Manley  was  re- 
ligiously interested  in  the  Methodist  Episco- 
pal church,  near  Marshall's  Corner,  Brockton. 
His  earthly  career  was  unfortunately  closed  by 
an  accident,  when  he  was  but  fifty-eight  years 
old. 

Milo  Manley,  his  second  child,  was  edu- 
cated in  the  town  schools  and  the  Adelphian 
Academy.  He  then  went  to  work  on  the 
farm,  which  he  has  enlarged  and  improved, 
being  still  active  in  the  management  thereof. 
He  married  Mary  M.,  daughter  of  Nathan 
Packard,  of  Brockton.  They  have  had  seven 
children,  all  of  whom  were  graduated  from  the 
Brockton  High  School.  They  are:  Ellen  and 
Albert  (twins),  Susan  E. ,  Bertha,  Lowell, 
Alice  P.,  and  Weston.  Ellen  and  Bertha  are 
graduates  of  the  Bridgewater  Normal,  and 
have  taught  school;  Lowell,  who  was  gradu- 
ated from  Amherst  Agricultural  College,  now 
superintends  a  farm  in  West  Roxbury ;  Alice 
P.  is  married,  and  resides  in  Brockton;  and 
Weston  is  attending  a  commercial  college. 

Albert  Manley,  after  completing  his  educa- 
tion in  the  Bryant  &  Stratton  Commercial 
College  in  Boston,  returned  to  the  farm,  and 
in  1888  started  in  the  milk  business.  He 
has  an  extensive  route,  and  employs  two  men, 
his  trade  requiring  one  hundred  cans  daily. 
Mr,  Manley  resides  on  the  farm  once  owned 
and  occupied  by  his  grandfather. 

In  politics  he  affiliates  with  the  Republican 


2l6 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


party.  Fraternally,  he  is  a  member  of  Paul 
Revere  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.  ;  is  a  Past  High 
Priest  of  Satucket  Royal  Arch  Chapter;  and 
also  officiates  as  Sword  Bearer  of  Bay  State 
Commandery,   Knights  Templars. 


JB 


AVID  GUSHING,  a  retired  lumber 
merchant  of  Hingham,  Mass.,  own- 
ing and  occupying  a  pleasant  resi- 
dence on  North  Street,  was  born  in  Freeport, 
Me.,  November  30,  1813,  son  of  Pyam  and 
Olive  (Lovell)  Gushing.  He  comes  of  a  long 
line  of  English  and  American  ancestors,  the 
family,  it  is  said,  "being  traceable  in  Eng- 
land for  several  generations  before  either  Pil- 
grim or  Puritan  set  sail  for  America." 

Thomas  Gushing  owned  land  in  Hingham, 
England,  and  other  places  in  the  fifteenth 
century.  William,  the  eldest  son  of  Thomas, 
wrote  his  will  in  1492,  beginning  as  follows: 
"  In  the  name  of  god  amen,  the  kx  Day  of  the 
moneth  of  Septembr  in  the  yere  of  o''  Lord 
God  M'cccc  Ixxx.xij,  I  William  Gusshyn  of 
Henghm  in  my  hoel  mend  and  good  memory 
beying,  make  my  testament  and  my  last  will, 
Declare  in  this  forme  P^olloying  "  ;  etc.  Will- 
iam's son  John  made  his  will  in  1522. 
Thomas,  son  of  John,  died  in  1588.  Peter, 
son  of  Thomas,  was  buried  in  Hingham,  Eng- 
land, March  2,  1596.  He  was  the  father  of 
five  sons  and  three  daughters.  Three  of  the 
sons  —  Peter,  Theophilus,  and  Matthew  —  emi- 
grated to  New  England.  Theophilus  came  in 
the  ship  "Griffin  "  in  1633,  and  resided  several 
years  at  Haynes  Farm,  settling  thereafter  in 
Hingham,  Mass.  He  lived  to  be  nearly  one 
liundred  years  old,  being  blind  for  the  last 
twenty -five  years  of  his  life.  It  is  not  known 
that  he  had  any  children. 

The  progenitor  of  the  family  in  America 
was  Matthew,  who  came  with  his  wife  and  five 


children  from  Hingham,  luigland,  in  the  ship 
"Diligent,"  commanded  by  John  Martin,  and, 
arriving  in  Boston  on  August  10,  1638,  settled 
in  Hingham,  Mass.,  in  the  autumn  of  that 
year.  Mr.  Gushing  had  several  lots  granted 
him  prior  to  his  arrival  here.  He  built  his 
first  dwelling-house  in  1638.  The  Gushing 
property,  situated  below  Pear  Tree  Hill  on 
Bachelor  (Main)  Street,  remained  in  the 
family  for  almost  two  and  a  half  centuries, 
from  1638  to  1887.  Matthew  Gushing  became 
prominent  in  public  affairs,  and  was  a  Deacon 
of  the  church.  He  was  married  in  England 
in  161 3  to  Nazareth  Pitcher,  a  daughter  of 
Henry  Pitcher.  They  had  five  children  — 
Daniel,  Jeremiah,  Matthew,  Deborah,  and 
John,  all  of  whom  were  natives  of  England. 
The  mother  died  in  Hingham  on  January  6, 
168 1-2,  at  the  age  of  ninety-six,  and  the 
father  died  September  30,  1660,  at  the  age  of 
seventy-one  years. 

Daniel,  the  eldest  son  of  Matthew  and  Naz- 
areth Gushing,  was  born  in  Hingham,  Eng- 
land. The  date  of  his  baptism  was  April  20, 
1 6 19.  He  was  first  married  on  January  ig, 
1645,  to  Lydia  Gilman,  daughter  of  lidward 
and  Mary  (Glark)  Gilman.  She  was  a  native 
of  England,  and  died  in  Hingham,  Mass., 
March  12,  1688-9.  Her  children  were:  Peter, 
Daniel,  Jr.,  Deborah,  Jeremiah,  Theophilus, 
and  Matthew.  On  March  23,  1690,  Daniel 
Gushing  was  again  married,  his  second  matri- 
monial partner  being  Mrs.  Elizabeth  (Jacobs) 
Thaxter,  widow  of  Gaptain  John  Thaxter. 
She  died  in  Hingham  at  an  advanced  age. 
Daniel  Gushing  was  an  influential  man  in  the 
town,  where  he  accumulated  a  large  property 
for  those  times.  He  resided  on  the  paternal 
homestead  until  his  death  on  December  3, 
1700,  at  the  age  of  eighty-one. 

His  son  Theophilus  was  born  in  Hingham, 
June   7,    1667.     On    November   28,    1688,    he 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


217 


was  united  in  marriage  witli  Mary  Tliaxter, 
daughter  of  Joiin  and  Elizabeth  (Jacobs)  Thax- 
ter.  She  was  born  in  Hingham,  August  19, 
1667,  and  became  the  mother  of  eleven  chil- 
dren —  Nehemiah,  Mary,  Adam,  David,  Abel, 
Rachel,  Mary,  Theophilus,  Seth,  Deborah, 
and  Lydia.      The  father  died   January  7,   1717. 

Theophilus,  son  of  Captain  Theophilus  and 
Mary  (Thaxter)  Gushing,  was  born  in  Hing- 
ham, June  16,  1703.  He  married  Hannah, 
daughter  of  Robert  and  Sarah  (Lewis)  Water- 
man, the  date  of  their  wedding  being  August 
27,  1723.  He  died  June  15,  1779.  Perez, 
born  July  13,  1746,  the  youngest  of  their  ten 
children,  was  the  grandfather  of  David,  the 
subject  of  this  sketch.  He  was  married 
August  30,  1770,  to  Ruth  Gushing,  who  was 
born  in  this  town,  November  i,  1752,  daughter 
of  Golonel  David  and  Ruth  (Lincoln)  Gush- 
ing. They  removed  to  Franklin,  Mass.,  and 
were  the  parents  of  six  children. 

Pyam,  the  fourth  child,  was  born  February 
21,  1778.  He  was  married  to  Olive  Lovell, 
of  Hull,  on  December  26,  1805,  the  ceremony 
being  performed  by  the  Rev.  Nicholas  Bowes 
Whitney.  He  passed  the  most  of  his  life  in 
Hull,  Mass.,  dying  in  April,  1841,  at  the  age 
of  sixty-three  years.  His  wife  was  born  De- 
cember II,  1783,  and  died  January  11,  1843. 
They  had  seven  children,  but  three  of  whom 
are  now  living:  David,  the  subject  of  this 
biography;  Olive  Gould,  who  married  Moses 
Tower,  of  Auburndale,  Mass. ;  and  Eliza  Jones 
Gushing,  born  in  Hull,  January  30,  1821,  also 
now  living  in  Auburndale. 

David  Gushing  was  taken  by  his  parents  in 
his  infancy  to  Hull,  where  the  entire  popula- 
tion at  that  time  was  only  one  hundred  and 
twenty.  While  a  boy  he  worked  at  farming, 
and  whatever  else  his  parents  found  for  him  to 
do;  and  they  kept  him  busy,  all  work  and  no 
play  makes  Jack  a  dull   boy  not   being  their 


theory  of  child-training.  His  educational 
privileges  were  limited  to  short  winter  terms 
at  schools  usually  taught  by  college  students, 
who  were  struggling  to  get  their  own  educa- 
tion. At  the  age  of  seventeen  he  was  appren- 
ticed to  a  carpenter  in  Medford,  and,  being 
apt  with  tools,  he  readily  acquired  his  trade. 
Three  years  later  in  1836,  the  times  being  so 
hard  that  he  could  get  nothing  to  do,  he  went 
South,  and  worked  in  Mobile,  Ala.,  and  in 
New  Orleans,  La.,  for  two  years.  Thereafter 
for  tour  years  he  was  engaged  in  getting  ship 
timber  from  the  Virginia  woods,  but  he  was 
obliged  to  abandon  that  enterprise  on  account 
of  fever  and  ague. 

Observing  on  a  trip  through  Hingham  that 
the  wharves  were  not  occupied,  he  thought  it 
would  be  a  good  place  to  start  the  lumber 
business,  and  acted  upon  this  judgment  in 
1845.  Although  he  had  no  knowledge  of  the 
trade,  it  proved  an  excellent  move  for  him, 
enabling  him  to  accumulate  considerable  prop- 
erty. In  1882  he  sold  the  plant  to  Wilder  & 
Kimball,  who  have  also  done  an  excellent 
business.  Mr.  Gushing  has  not  been  actively 
occupied  since  he  sold  out,  but  he  finds 
enough  to  do  in  looking  after  his  property. 
Included  in  his  landed  estate  is  a  tract  in 
Hull,  which  is  now  being  laid  out  in  lots  to 
sell  to  the  summer  residents. 

He  married  Elizabeth  Torrey,  who  died 
seven  years  ago,  leaving  two  children:  Eliza- 
beth, now  Mrs.  Henry  Stone;  and  Sarah,  who 
lives  at  home.  Politically,  Mr.  Gushing  was 
a  Democrat  until  1856,  when  he  joined  the 
Republican  party.  He  served  as  Representa- 
tive to  the  legislature  in  1868.  Personally, 
he  is  a  genial  gentleman,  hale  and  hearty  at 
the  age  of  eighty-three,  having  discovered  the 
secret  of  growing  old  gracefully,  in  not  allow- 
ing his  faculties  to  stagnate,  but  keeping  up 
his  interest  in  the  general  welfare  and  progress. 


2l8 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


JOSEPH  W.  SHERMAN,  a  general 
farmer  and  cranberry-grower  of  Carver, 
was  born  here,  September  5,  1831,  son 
of  Joseph  R.  and  Betsy  W.  (Cobb)  Sherman. 
He  represents  an  old  and  respected  family 
of  this  town,  his  great-grandfather,  Rufus 
Sherman,  a  prosperous  farmer,  being  a  life- 
long resident  of  that  place.  Micah,  a  son  of 
Rufus,  was  also  a  native  of  Carver,  and  there 
devoted  a  large  portion  of  his  life  to  farming. 
His  son,  Joseph  R.,  likewise  born  in  Carver, 
after  following  the  sea  in  the  earlier  part  of 
his  life,  worked  at  the  trade  of  carpenter.  On 
March  14,  1830,  he  married  Miss  Betsy  W. 
Cobb,  a  native  of  Carver,  and  by  her  became 
the  father  of  three  children  —  Joseph  W.,  Ann 
J.,  and  Frederick  C.  Ann  J.  became  the  wife 
of  A.  D.  Merritt,  of  Middleboro;  and  Fred- 
erick C.  died  in  1891.  The  mother's  death 
happened  in  1S63.  Joseph  R.  Sherman  after- 
ward married  Mrs  T.ydia  Atwood,  of  Plymp- 
ton,  who  bore  him  a  daughter.  Myrtle  L.,  now 
Mrs.  Henry  L.  Pratt,  of  Plymouth.  He 
passed  away  at  Carver  in  F"ebruary,  i8g6,  at 
the  venerable  age  of  ninety  years;  and  his  sec- 
ond wife  died  January  31,  1882,  aged  thirty- 
nine  years   six   months. 

Joseph  W.  Sherman  grew  to  manhood  at  the 
paternal  home,  receiving  his  education  in  the 
common  schools  of  his  native  town.  At  the 
age  of  fifteen  he  began  working  at  the  shoe- 
maker's trade,  which  he  afterward  followed  for 
thirty-five  years.  During  all  but  five  years  of 
that  period  he  had  a  shop  of  his  own  at 
Carver.  In  1871  he  moved  to  his  present 
farm,  comprising  fifteen  acres,  where  he  car- 
ries on  general  husbandry  and  the  culture  of 
cranberries.  Mr.  Sherman  has  been  twice 
married.  On  the  first  occasion  he  wedded 
Miss  Sarah  C.  Jones,  a  native  of  Maine,  and  a 
daughter  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Appolus  Jones. 
She  died   December  24,    1858,   having    borne 


two  children  —  Alberta  and  Edward.  The 
latter  is  now  deceased.  Mr.  Sherman  con- 
tracted his  second  marriage  on  November  27, 
1864,  with  Miss  Hannah  C.  Sherman,  daughter 
of  Henry  and  Christiana  Sherman,  of  Carver. 
Born  of  this  union  were  two  children,  both  of 
whom  died  in  infancy.  Mr.  Sherman  is  an 
earnest  promoter  of  judicious  measures  looking 
to  the  improvement  of  the  town.  In  national 
political  belief  he  is  found  among  the  ranks  of 
the  Republican  party. 


INSLOW  BREWSTER  STAND- 
ISH,  the  well-known  dealer  in 
antiques  in  the  historic  old  town  of 
Plymouth,  was  born  here  on  the  7th  of  March, 
1834.  Mr.  Standish  is  a  lineal  descendant  of 
Miles  Standish  and  John  Alden  of  "May- 
flower" fame.  His  great-great-great-great- 
grandfather, Alexander  Standish,  the  eldest 
son  of  Captain  Miles  Standish,  married 
Sarah,  daughter  of  John  and  Priscilla  (Mul- 
lens) Alden.  Their  son,  Ebenezer  Standish, 
was  the  father  of  Moses  Standish,  who  in 
turn  was  the  father  of  Moses,  Jr.,  and  grand- 
father of  Joshua,  whose  son  Joshua  was  the 
father  of  Winslow  Brewster  Standish,  of  this 
sketch. 

The  first  Moses  Standish  fought  in  the  ea:  1\' 
I<"rcnch  and  Indian  Wars,  making  a  good 
record  for  himself.  Moses  Standish,  Jr.,  was 
a  brave  soldier  in  the  Revolutionary  W'ar, 
where  he  lost  his  life.  Joshua,  son  of  the 
second  Moses,  was  a  blacksmith  by  trade,  and 
conducted  his  business  in  Plympton,  and  later 
in  Middleboro,  until  he  died  at  the  age  of 
seventy-four  years.  He  married  Susanna 
Cobb,  by  whom  he  had  six  children,  of  whom 
Joshua,  Jr.,  was  the  eldest. 

He  was  born  at  Plympton,  and  received  his 
education   in  the  schools  of  that  town.     Mr. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


>i9 


Joshua  Standish,  Jr.,  was  a  man  of  great  intel- 
ligence and  ingenuity.  He  invented  the  com- 
fortable split  crutches  for  cripples,  which  are 
now  so  common.  By  trade  he  was  a  black- 
smith like  his  father,  and  his  place  of  business 
was  on  South  Russell  Street,  Plymouth,  near 
the  prison.  He  also  was,  like  so  many  of  his 
distinguished  ancestors,  a  military  man,  and 
served  in  the  War  of  1812,  enlisting  at  Bris- 
tol, R.I.  He  was  also  the  last  Captain 
of  the  militia  at  Plymouth,  under  the  old 
militia  law.  He  was  a  religious  man,  and  at- 
tended the  Universalist  church.  In  politics 
he  was  an  ardent  Jackson ian  Democrat.  He 
married  Mary,  the  daughter  of  William  Shaw, 
of  Middleboro,  the  descendant  of  an  old  and 
well-known  Plymouth  County  family.  By 
this  union  he  had  eight  children,  of  whom  the 
subject  of  this  sketch  is  the  only  one  now 
living. 

Mr.  Winslovv  Brewster  .Standish  has  spent 
all  of  his  life,  with  the  exception  of  four  years, 
in  his  native  town  of  Plymouth.  These  four 
years  of  his  early  manhood  he  spent  in  Boston, 
in  the  employ  of  his  brother-in-law,  the  late 
P'rederick  Gleason,  for  some  years  publisher 
of  G/e<jso/i's  Pictorial.  Returning  to  Plym- 
outh, Mr.  Standish  there  took  up  the  shoe- 
maker's trade,  at  which  he  worked  until  the 
war  broke  out.  On  the  6th  of  May,  1861,  he 
enlisted  and  went  to  the  front,  being  in  Com- 
pany E,  Twenty-ninth  Massachusetts  Regi- 
ment, and  with  him  went  his  nephew,  Myles 
Standish.  Mr.  Standish  was  at  Newport 
News  at  the  time  of  the  engagement  between 
the  "Monitor"  and  the  "Merrimac,"  and  was 
an  eye-witness  of  that  remarkable  sea-fight. 
Here  he  took  part  in  several  heavy  skir- 
mishes. On  the  2ist  of  June,  i86i,  he  was 
in  the  army  corps  which  occupied  Hampton, 
Va. ,  and  after  three  months  was  transferred 
to   Fortress  Monroe.      On   the    loth    of    May, 


1862,  his  regiment  was  ordered  to  Norfolk, 
and  later  to  Suffolk.  Soon  they  joined  Mc- 
Clellan's  army  before  Richmond;  and  Mr. 
Standish  and  his  nephew  were  in  the  seven 
days'  fight  which  took  place  there.  Mr. 
Standish  was  subsequently  disabled  by  illness, 
and  on  the  6th  of  August,  1862,  was  dis- 
charged through  the  influence  of  President 
Lincoln,  who  with  his  wife  visited  him  at  the 
hospital. 

He  returned  home,  and,  as  soon  as  he  had 
sufficiently  recovered,  he  engaged  in  his  old 
business,  which  he  kept  up  until  the  end  of 
the  war.  As  he  did  not  regain  his  strength, 
he  was  ordered  by  his  physician  to  take  out- 
door exercise,  and  he  consequently  took  up  the 
employment  of  a  pedler,  that  being  a  trade 
in  which  he  could  constantly  keep  himself  in 
the  open  air.  He  drove  a  pedler's  cart  for 
four  years,  and  at  the  expiration  of  that  period 
he  bought  out  the  business,  and  managed  it 
till  1895,  gradually  working  himself  into  a 
position  where  he  could  undertake  the  collect- 
ing and  handling  of  antiques  and  curios 
solely.  He  has  since  been  strictly  a  dealer 
in  antiques. 

In  politics  Mr.  Standish  is  a  Republican, 
and  in  1856  he  voted  for  John  C.  Fremont. 
He  was  on  the  Town  Republican  Committee 
twenty-five  years  ago,  and  has  continued  there 
as  an  honored  meniber.  He  was  also  a  Select- 
man of  the  town  of  Plymouth  five  years,  from 
1 88 1  to  1886.  As  a  member  of  Collingwood 
Post,  No.  J6.,  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic, 
Mr.  Standish  has  held  every  office  from  that 
of  Commander  down,  and  is  now  and  has  been 
for  fifteen  successive  years  its  Chaplain.  He 
has  been  a  member  of  Mayflower  Lodge,  No. 
54,  Independent  Order  of  Odd  Fellows,  for 
nearly  thirty  years,  having  joined  in  August. 
1865,  but  has  never  been  willing  to  accept  a 
chair  there.      He  was  also  the  first  governor  of 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Patuxet  Colony,  No.   103,  United  Order  of  the 
Pilgrim  Fathers. 

Mr.  Standish  is  liberal  in  his  religious 
views.  He  was  married  May  10,  1861,  to 
Sylvia,  the  daughter  of  Mr.  Joseph  Maybury, 
of  Plymouth,  who  was  for  twenty-six  years  the 
superintendent  of  the  Russell  Iron  Works. 


Ji 


ANIEL  E.  DAMON,  a  prominent 
lawyer  now  residing  in  Plymouth, 
was  born  at  Scituate,  Mass.,  August 
2,  1829,  son  of  Daniel  and  Lydia  (Witherell) 
Damon.  The  first  bearer  of  his  name  in  this 
country  was  John  Damon,  who  arrived  in 
Scituate  in  company  with  his  uncle,  William 
Gilson,  about  the  year  1630,  and  subsequently 
held  the  office  of  Deputy  under  the  Colonial 
government.  He  married  Catherine  Merritt, 
daughter  of  Henry  Merritt,  of  Scituate,  and 
left  one  son,  Lieutenant  Zachary  Damon. 
Lieutenant  Damon,  who  earned  his  title  in 
the  early  Indian  wars,  married  Martha  Wood- 
worth. 

Joshua  Damon,  a  descendant  of  Zachary,  and 
the  grandfather  of  Daniel  E. ,  was  a  farmer  of 
Scituate,  and  died  there  at  the  age  of  seventy 
years.  His  son  Daniel,  who  also  followed 
farming  in  Scituate,  died  there  at  the  age  of 
seventy-eight  years.  He  married  Lydia 
Witherell,  who  was  a  descendant  of  lilder 
Brewster,  one  of  the  passengers  of  the  "May- 
flower." Her  grandfather,  James  Barrel!,  who 
served  throughout  the  Revolutionary  War  with 
two  of  his  sons,  was  within  a  few  months  of 
one  hundred  years  old  when  he  died,  having 
performed  the  work  of  an  ordinary  man  until 
he  was  ninety-five.  Daniel  Damon  had  six 
children.  Of  these  five  are  living,  four  being 
residents  of  Norwell.  Daniel  E.  Damon  was 
brought  up  in  Scituate,  and  lived  there  until 
he  was  seventeen  years  of  age.      He  then  left 


home,  and  afterward  attended  the  Worcester 
Academy,  where  he  was  prepared  for  college. 
In  1852  he  entered  Brown  University,  but 
had  soon  to  relinquish  his  college  studies  on 
account  of  a  persistent  illness.  After  leaving 
college  he  taught  school  for  a  time  in  South 
Scituate  and  Hingham,  also  reading  law  in 
the  office  of  the  Hon.  Perez  Simmons,  an  able 
lawyer  of  Hanover,  Mass.  Qualified  to  enter 
the  legal  profession  in  due  time,  he  was  ad- 
mitted to  the  bar  in  185S,  and  began  practice 
at  Plymouth  in  January,  1859.  After  a  short 
time  he  came  to  be  regarded  as  a  rising 
lawyer.  Early  in  his  professional  career  he 
was  elected  to  the  office  of  Register  of  Probate 
and  Insolvency,  which  he  held  for  the  unpre- 
cedented period  of  twenty-five  years.  He  has 
also  been  a  Special  Justice  of  the  Third  Dis- 
trict Court  for  ten  years.  Formerly  a  Whig 
in  politics,  Mr.  Damon  has  been  a  Republican 
since  the  formation  of  his  party.  While  a 
resident  of  South  Scituate,  he  was  a  Trial 
Justice,  and  also  served  on  the  School  Com- 
mittee. From  1882  to  1888  he  was  a  member 
of  the  State  Board  of  Agriculture.  Although 
he  has  been  a  Mason  for  forty  years,  he  would 
not  accept  any  chairs.  He  first  joined  the 
Old  Colony  Lodge  at  Hingham,  and  afterward 
became  a  member  of  Plymouth  Lodge.  A 
strong  temperance  man,  he  has  been  connected 
with  several  temperance  orders.  His  union 
with  tlie  Church  of  the  Pilgrimage  covers 
a  period  of  about  thirty  years.  In  the 
month  of  June,  i860,  Mr.  Damon  married 
Ruth  W.  Stetson,  a  daughter  of  Martin  \V. 
Stetson,  of  Hanover,  and  another  descendant 
of  Elder  Brewster.  Her  mother  was  by 
maiden  name  Ruth  Bailey  Stockbridge,  a  de- 
scendant of  Colonel  John  Bailey,  who  com- 
manded a  regiment  all  through  the  Revolu- 
tionary War.  His  daughter  Ruth  married 
William  Stockbridge,  who  held  a  commission 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


at   Hanover,    Mass.,    under  the  royal  govern- 
ment during  the  reign  of  King  George  III. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Daniel  E.  Damon  have  two 
children  —  Ruth  Stockbridge  and  Edwin  Stet- 
son. Ruth,  who  graduated  from  Wellesley  in 
1890,  is  now  a  teacher  in  l^Iairsville  College 
for  women  in  Pennsylvania;  Edwin  graduated 
from  Amherst  in  1886,  and  is  now  engaged  in 
manufacturing.  In  1883  Mr.  Damon  com- 
piled a  history  of  Scituate  and  South  Scituate 
for  the  "Plymouth  County  History."  He  has 
also  contributed  miscellaneous  articles  of 
much  value  to  the  newspapers. 


f^ENJAMIN  HARDEN,  Superintend- 
ent of  Streets  of  Bridgewater,  Mass., 
is  one  of  the  well-known  native  citi- 
zens of  the  place.  He  was  born  March  23, 
1833,  son  of  Captain  Jabez  and  Sarah  (Pratt) 
Harden,  both  of  Plymouth  County.  His 
grandfather,  Samuel  Harden,  fought  in  the 
Revolutionary  War,  and  Captain  Jabez  Harden 
was  a  soldier  in  the  War  of  181 2.  The 
latter,  who  was  a  lifelong  resident  of  Bridge- 
water,  was  a  prominent  citizen,  active  as  a 
Democrat  in  town  politics,  and  at  one  time 
commanded  a  company  of  State  militia.  He 
died  September  1 1,  1879.  His  children  are: 
George  P.,  who  is  living  in  Bridgewater; 
Alice,  wife  of  Albion  K.  Washburn,  in  the 
same  town ;  Albert  in  East  Bridgewater;  and 
Frank  B.  and  Benjamin,  both  in  Bridgewater. 
Benjamin  Harden  was  educated  in  the  com- 
mon schools  of  his  native  town.  He  was 
reared  on  a  farm,  and  when  he  attained  man's 
estate  he  chose  the  pursuit  of  agriculture, 
which  he  has  followed  up  to  the  present  time. 
For  a  number  of  years  he  was  engaged  in  lum- 
bering in  the  winter  season.  He  holds  a  lead- 
ing place  among  the  farmers  of  this  vicinity, 
and   is  a  prominent    member    of    Bridgewater 


Grange,  No.  201,  Patrons  of  Husbandry. 
When  the  men  of  Massachusetts  were  muster- 
ing at  the  call  of  President  Lincoln  to  save 
the  Union,  Mr.  Harden  joined  the  patriot 
ranks,  enlisting  in  April,  1861,  in  Company 
A,  Third  Massachusetts  Regiment;  and  after 
a  term  of  service  at  P"ortress  Monroe  he  was 
honorably  discharged.  Mr.  Harden,  who  is  a 
Democrat  with  independent  proclivities,  is 
now  serving  his  third  term  as  Superintendent 
of  Streets  of  Bridgewater,  and  devotes  to  the 
duties  of  his  office  such  attention  and  energy 
in  performance  as  gives  general  satisfaction. 
His  home  is  in  Papermill  Village,  in  the  part 
of  Bridgewater  known  as  Pratt-town,  evidently 
named  for  his  mother's  family. 

In  1863  he  was  united  in  marriage  with 
.Susan  L.  Andrews,  of  Bridgewater,  daughter 
of  Perez  Andrews,  a  native  of  the  State  of 
Maine.  Two  daughters  have  blessed  their 
union:  Alice  V.,  wife  of  Lyman  Pratt,  of 
Bridgewater;  and  Lizzie,  wife  of  Fred 
Thomas,  of  this  town.  Mr.  Harden  is  a 
member  of  the  Unitarian  church.  One  of  the 
older  active  citizens  of  the  town,  which  he 
has  seen  grow  from  a  quiet  village  to  one  of 
the  busiest  manufacturing  centres  of  the  State, 
he  has  long  been  identified  with  local  public 
affairs,  keeping  in  touch  with  the  progress  of 
the  times,  and  is  widely  known  and  respected. 


"^YOK  PEIRCE,  who  is  successfully  en- 
gaged in  farming  in  that  part  of  Mid- 
dleboro,  Mass.,  that  is  now  Lakeville, 
is  a  native  of  this  town,  having  been  born 
here  on  September  2,  18 12,  son  of  Oliver  and 
Amy  Peirce.  His  paternal  grandfather  was 
Enis  Peirce,  and  his  great-grandfather,  Isaac 
Peirce.  The  first  of  the  family  to  locate  in 
this  neighborhood  was  Abraham  Peirce. 
Oliver  and    Amy   Peirce   had   seven   children, 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


born  in  the  following  order:  Enis,  Job, 
Stephen,  Albert,  Ruth,  Amy,  and  George  VV. 
After  the  death  of  his  first  wife,  Oliver  Peirce 
married  Miss  Polly  Hathaway,  who  bore  him 
one  son,  Lysander. 

Job  Peirce,  the  only  living  representative 
of  this  family,  spent  his  early  years  on  a  farm, 
and  received  his  education  in  the  district  school 
and  at  Peirce  Academy  in  Middleboro.  He 
was  married  on  May  29,  1853,  to  Miss  Eunice 
R.  Ellis,  who  was  born  in  Rochester.  Four 
children  have  blessed  their  union,  namely: 
Polly,  who  is  engaged  in  teaching;  Judith  N. ; 
Lucy  M.;  and  Eunice  R. 

In  1865  Mr.  Peirce,  who  is  a  Republican, 
was  a  member  of  the  State  legislature.  He 
has  served  his  town  very  acceptably  as  Overseer 
of  the  Poor,  also  as  Assessor  and  Selectman. 


-j^TENRY  GURNEY,  Chairman  of  the 
f^\  Boartl  of  Selectmen  of  East  Bridge- 
J->^  V  ^  water,  and  a  highly  esteemed  citi- 
zen, was  born  in  this  town,  March  18,  1828,  a 
son  of  Captain  Seth  and  Anne  (Bates)  Gurney. 
His  mother  was  a  daughter  of  Christopher  and 
Mary  Bates,  and  his  father  was  a  son  of  Seth 
Gurney,  Sr.  Perkins  Gurney,  the  father  of 
Seth,  Sr. ,  was  a  son  of  Joseph,  who  was  a  son 
of  Zachariah  Gurney,  of  Braintree.  Two  of 
Henry  Gurney's  great-grandfathers  served  in 
the  War  of  the  Revolution. 

Captain  Seth  Gurney  and  his  wife,  Anne 
Bates  Gurney,  were  both  natives  of  Plymouth 
County.  He  spent  his  life  in  East  Bridge- 
water,  where  he  carried  on  farming  with  suc- 
cess ;  and  for  a  number  of  years  he  was  Cap- 
tain of  a  company  of  militia,  which  he  trained 
at  stated  times.  He  had  si.x  children,  of 
whom  Henry  is  the  only  survivor.  In  politics 
Captain  Gurney  was  a  Whig.  He  died  in 
1 844. 


Henry  Gurney,  who  was  si.xteen  years  old  at 
the  time  of  his  father's  death,  grew  to  man- 
hood on  a  farm  in  the  north  part  of  the  town. 
He  received  his  education  in  the  common 
schools  and  at  the  East  Bridgewater  Academy. 
On  starting  out  in  life  for  himself,  he  chose 
farming,  the  occupation  to  which  he  had  been 
reared,  and  he  has  followed  it  diligently  all 
his  life.  During  the  winter  seasons  he 
engages  in  logging  and  lumbering.  He  has 
resided  at  Elmwood  since  1882. 

On  the  1 2th  of  April,  1849,  Mr.  Gurney 
was  united  in  marriage  with  Sallie  P.  Poole, 
who  was  born  in  what  is  now  Whitman,  Mass. 
They  have  three  children  living,  namely: 
David  W. ;  Fannie  M.,  wife  of  Allan  B. 
Shaw;  and  Agnes  C,  wife  of  Prescott  H. 
Pratt. 

For  a  number  of  years  Mr.  Gurney  has 
served  as  Selectman  of  East  Bridgewater,  and 
he  is  now,  as  above  mentioned,  Chairman  of 
the  Board.  He  has  been  Town  Treasurer  one 
year,  and  on  the  School  Board  several  years. 
In  politics  he  is  a  Republican.  Mr.  Gurney 
is  a  member  of  the  Congregational  church 
at  Whitman. 


■OSEPH  D.  JONE.S,  an  enterprising 
citizen  of  East  Bridgewater,  where  he 
conducts  a  saw-mill  and  a  bo.x  manu- 
facturing business,  was  born  in  Warren,  Me., 
November  14,  1837,  a  son  of  Linus  and 
Phoebe  (Peabody)  Jones.  On  the  paternal 
side  he  is  a  descendant  of  Miles  Standish  of 
Plymouth  Colony  fame. 

The  line  is  thus  clearly  traced:  Captain 
Miles  Standish's  first  wife  died  in  1621,  and 
he  married  a  second  wife,  Barbara.  His  chil- 
dren were:  Alexander,  Miles,  Josiah,  Charles, 
Lora,  and  John.  Alexander,  son  of  Captain 
Miles,  married  Sarah,  daughter  of  the  Hon. 
John  Alden,  and  had:   Miles,  Ebenezer,  Lorah, 


# 


HENRY   GURNEY. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


225 


Lydia,  Mercy,  Sarah,  and  Elizabeth.  His 
first  wife  died,  and  he  married  Desire,  widow 
of  Israel  Holmes.  Miles,  son  of  Alexander, 
married  Experience,  daut;hter  of  his  mother-in- 
law  by  one  of  her  former  husbands,  and  had : 
Sarah,  Patience,  Priscilla,  Miles,  and  Pene- 
lope. Miles,  son  of  Miles,  second,  married 
Mehitable  Robbins,  lived  in  South  Bridge- 
water,  and  had :  Miles,  Experience,  Penelope, 
Hannah,  and  perhaps  others. 

Penelope  Standish,  daughter  of  Miles, 
third,  married,  in  1763,  Nathaniel  Cobb,  of 
Plympton.  Penelope  Cobb  married  Ichabod 
Leach,  and  had:  Jerathmael,  Enoch, 
Ephraim,    Backus,   and    Abigail. 

Abigail  Leach  married  Freeman  Jones,  and 
had:  Linus,  John  G. ,  Ichabod,  Penelope, 
Olive,  Mehitable,  Huldah,  Phcebe,  and  Lydia. 
Linus  Jones  married  Phcebe  Peabody,  and  had  : 
Mary  M. ;  Abbie;  James  W. ;  Oliver  F.  ; 
Benjamin  B.  ;  William  O.  ;  and  Joseph  D., 
the  subject  of  this  sketch. 

The  earl}'  boyhood  of  Joseph  D.  Jones  was 
spent  on  his  father's  farm  in  Warren,  Me. 
He  was  an  attendant  of  the  common  school 
until  eleven  years  of  age,  but,  having  been 
obliged  from  that  time  to  support  himself,  his 
education  has  been  acquired  chiefly  in  the 
school  of  practical  business  experience,  among 
the  many  valuable  lessons  learned  being  that 
of  self-reliance.  In  1858  he  went  to  Stough- 
ton,  Mass..  and  engaged  in  the  shoemaking 
business,  which  he  followed  until  1880,  being 
for  a  time  employed  in  George  Keith's  shoe 
shop  in  Campello.  He  then  came  to  East 
Bridgewater,  and  purchased  the  saw-mill  that 
he  now  owns,  and  which  has  been  in  operation 
for  sixty  years.  He  put  in  the  first  planer 
used  in  this  part  of  the  State.  After  conduct- 
ing it  as  a  saw-mill  for  five  years,  he  added 
box  making,  and  now  the  saw-mill  department 
is  run  only  winters,  but   the   box   manufactory 


is  kept  in  operation  the  year  round.  He 
employs  eight  hands  in  the  summer  and  thir- 
teen in  the  winter. 

On  August  8,  1861,  Mr.  Jones  married 
Jeannette  Pratt,  of  Turner,  Me.,  by  whom  he 
has  four  children,  namely:  Clarence  E.  ; 
Alice  E.,  wife  of  L.  P.  Churchill;  Benjamin 
O. ;  and  Daniel  B.  Clarence  E.,  the  eldest, 
is  a  cigar  manufacturer  in  Milford,  Mass. 
He  married  Winona  Hale.  Politically,  Mr. 
Jones  is  a  stanch  Republican.  Fraternally, 
he  is  a  member  of  Colfax  Lodge,  Independent 
Order  of  Odd  Fellows,  at  East  Bridgewater. 


*^m^¥ 


T.  PARKER,  an  enterprising  and 
prosperous  general  merchant  of 
Plympton,  was  born  in  this  town, 
January  29,  1842,  son  of  Zaccheus  Parker,  a 
lifelong  resident,  and  formerly  a  well-known 
merchant  here.  Mr.  Parker's  grandfather, 
Jonathan  Parker,  founded  the  business  which 
has  since  been  carried  on  by  his  descendants, 
and  Zaccheus  Parker  conducted  it  for  a  period 
of  forty-eight  years  or  until  1867,  when  he 
was  succeeded  by  his  son,  a  brother  of 
Z.  T.  Parker,  the  subject  of  this  sketch. 

Z.  T.  Parker  was  reared  and  educated  in 
Plympton,  and  resided  here  until  he  was 
twenty-one  years  old.  He  then  went  to  Bos- 
ton, where  he  was  employed  as  a  clerk  by 
R.  H.  White  &  Co.  until  18S3,  when  he  re- 
turned to  this  town,  anci,  succeeding  to  his 
brother's  business,  has  since  conducted  it  with 
success.  He  continued  to  occupy  the  old 
building  until  1893,  when  he  erected  his 
present  commodious  store,  which  is  furnished 
according  to  modern  ideas,  and  provided  with 
improved  heating  apparatus,  the  water  for 
which  is  supplied  by  the  aid  of  wind-mills. 
He  carries  a  large  and  varied  stock,  including 
dry      goods,      boots,     shoes,      and     groceries, 


226 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


together  with  a  great  variety  of  general  mer- 
chandise, and  by  promptness  and  fair  dealing 
has  secured  a  good  patronage. 

Mr.  Parker  is  highly  esteemed,  both  in  bus- 
iness and  social  circles,  and  has  been  Post- 
master in  Plympton  since  1884. 


OHN  DARLING  CHURCHILL,  the 
pioneer  station  agent  of  the  Old  Colony 
Railroad  in  Plymouth,  was  born  here, 
November  8,  18 17,  son  of  Sylvanus  and  Lydia 
(Churchill)  Churchill.  Mr.  Churchill's 
grandfather,  Zenas  Churchill,  who  was  a 
native  and  a  lifelong  resident  of  this  town, 
passed  the  active  period  of  his  life  in  sea- 
faring. 

Sylvanus  Churchill,  Mr.  Churchill's  father, 
was  born  in  Plymouth.  At  an  early  age  he 
began  to  follow  the  sea  as  a  means  of  liveli- 
hood. In  the  course  of  time  he  became  an 
able  seaman,  acquiring  a  reputation  for  his 
agility  aloft.  One  of  his  feats  was  to  coil  a 
rope  while  making  his  way  to  or  from  the 
mast-head.  A  man  of  strong  constitution,  he 
weathered  the  storms  of  the  Atlantic  for  many 
years,  and  he  lived  to  the  age  of  eighty-two. 
He  married  Lydia  Churchill,  daughter  of 
Thaddeus  Churchill,  of  Plymouth.  By  her  he 
became  the  father  of  seven  sons,  of  whom  John 
D. ,  the  youngest,  is  the  only  survivor.  The 
others  were:  Sylvanus  (first),  who  died  in  in- 
fancy; Sylvanus  (second),  who  lived  to  be 
eighty-two  years  old;  Hiram,  who  died  at 
seventy-nine;  Thomas,  who  died  at  eighty-six; 
Benjamin,  who  lived  to  the  age  of  eighty- 
three;  and  Josiah,  who  died  at  seventy-two 
years.  They  were  all  strong,  able-bodied 
men  and  worthy  citizens.  The  parents  were 
members  of  the  Orthodox  church. 

John  Darling  Churchill  was  educated  in  the 
common   schools.      While    still   a  youth,    he 


engaged  in  seafaring  on  coasting-vessels.  In 
his  young  manhood  he  was  for  a  time  em- 
ployed as  a  clerk  in  a  general  store  for  the  fit- 
ting out  of  fishermen.  Later  he  ran  a  packet 
between  Plymouth  and  Boston.  Upon  the 
completion  -oi  the  railroad  in  1845,  he  was 
tendered  the  position  of  station  agent  at  Plym- 
outh, to  the  e.xclusion  of  fourteen  eligible 
applicants  for  the  post.  Though  he  did  not 
desire  to  relinquish  his  packet  business,  he 
was  finally  prevailed  upon  to  accept,  and  for 
five  years  he  attended  to  the  company's  busi- 
ness here,  having  entire  charge  of  this  end  of 
the  line.  He  then  resigned  in  order  to  devote 
his  entire  attention  to  the  fishing  industry. 
Having  entered  this  business  with  two  small 
vessels,  he  gradually  increased  his  equipment 
to  six  stanch,  seaworthy  craft,  which  necessi- 
tated the  use  of  two  wharves.  He  was  pros- 
perously occupied  in  this  way  until  1875, 
when  he  retired  from  active  business  pursuits. 
His  vessels  were  kept  constantly  in  commis- 
sion, making  regular  trips  to  the  fishing  banks, 
generally  returning  with  good  catches.  He 
was  exceptionally  fortunate  in  keeping  them 
above  water,  his  only  serious  loss  having  been 
the  seizure  of  one  of  them  by  the  British  au- 
thorities, upon  a  false  charge  of  fishing  within 
their  territory. 

In  politics  he  has  been  a  Republican  since 
the  formation  of  the  party,  and  he  has  voted 
at  every  election  for  the  past  fifty-seven  years. 
The  pressure  of  business  obliged  him  to  de- 
cline the  nomination  to  public  offices  at  dif- 
ferent times. 

Mr.  Churchill  married  for  his  first  wife, 
Marcia  J.  Holmes,  daughter  of  Thomas 
Holmes,  of  Plymouth.  By  this  union  there 
are  three  children,  namely:  John  Franklin, 
who  was  born  January  11,  1841;  Frederick 
Lee,  who  was  born  February  8,  1 846 ;  and 
Josiah    D.,  who   was   born    October   24,    1853. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


227 


John  Franklin  Churchill  attended  the  United 
States  Naval  School  at  Annapolis,  Md.  At 
the  age  of  eighteen  he  entered  the  United 
States  Navy,  in  which,  during  the  Civil  War, 
he  held  the  rank  of  Ensign.  At  the  siege 
of  I-^ort  Fisher  he  was  highly  complimented 
by  Admiral  Porter  for  his  gallant  conduct. 
He  is  now  an  accountant.  Frederick  Lee 
Churchill  is  the  present  Postmaster  in  Plym- 
outh, and  Josiah  D.  Churchill  is  carrying  on 
a  flourishing  mercantile  business  here.  The 
mother  died  in  1882.  The  father's  second 
marriage  was  contracted  November  30,  1SS3, 
with  Julia  A.  Hawley,  of  Plymouth.  He  has 
been  a  member  of  Plymouth  Lodge,  A.  F.  & 
A.  M.,  for  about  thirty  years;  and  of  the  Pil- 
grim Society  of  Plymouth  for  several  years. 


lYRUS  H.  HARDY,  dentist.— In 
these  days  of  specialties,  when  it  is 
the  fashion  for  a  professional  man 
to  restrict  himself  to  one  narrow  path,  the  fact 
is  sometimes  lost  sight  of,  that,  to  insure 
success,  it  is  well  to  have  some  knowledge  of 
things  outside  of  one's  particular  work.  Dr. 
Hardy  has  studied  medicine,  and  can  deter- 
mine whether  the  state  of  the  teeth  is  due  to 
the  condition  of  the  system,  or  that  of  the  sys- 
tem to  the  teeth ;  and  he  understands  thor- 
oughly the  methods  of  administering  ether  or 
other  anaesthetics  without  danger  to  the 
patient.  Established  for  a  number  of  years 
in  Hingham,  Mass.,  he  has  won  the  confidence 
of  the  public,  and  occupies  a  front  rank  in  his 
profession.  He  was  born  in  Wilton,  Me., 
September  10,  1833,  a  son  of  Dr.  Daniel  and 
Lucinda  (Teague)  Hardy. 

The  Hardys  are  an  old  New  England  family. 
Two  of  the  earliest  colonists  bearing  this  sur- 
name were:  John,  who  settled  in  Salem  in 
1634;   and  Thomas,  who   was   one   of  the   first 


twelve  settlers  of  Ipswich,  Mass.,  in  1633, 
and  who  died  in  Bradford  in  1678,  leaving 
several  sons.  Dr.  Cyrus  H.  Hardy's  grand- 
father, Daniel  Hardy,  was  one  of  the  early 
settlers  in  Wilton,  Me.  He  was  a  man  of 
means  and  of  strong  character,  the  owner  at 
one  time  of  nearly  half  the  township,  and 
exercised,  by  his  upright  living  and  general 
example  for  good,  a  healthful  influence  on  the 
community. 

Dr.  Daniel  Hardy,  his  son,  was  a  successful 
and  popular  physician,  a  native  and  lifelong 
resident  of  the  Pine  Tree  State.  In  his  early 
life  he  had  an  extensive  country  practice,  cov- 
ering a  large  territory;  and  he  was  subse- 
quently actively  engaged  in  professional  duties 
in  the  city  of  Portland,  where  he  was  not 
obliged  to  take  such  long  and  tiresome  rides. 
He  lived  to  be  ninety-four  years  old.  His 
wife  died  at  the  age  of  seventy-three.  Four 
of  their  children  are  living:  Josephine  W., 
wife  of  Rufus  Teague,  of  Turner,  Me.  ;  Ade- 
line P.,  wife  of  Judge  Davidson,  of  Sierra 
County,  California;  Francis  A.,  in  Bucksport, 
Me.  ;  and  Cyrus  H.,  now  of  Hingham. 

Cyrus  H.  Hardy  obtained  the  fundamental 
part  of  his  education  in  the  common  schools 
of  his  native  place,  which  were  very  good 
schools.  He  early  took  up  the  study  of  medi- 
cine, for  which  he  had  a  natural  taste,  with 
his  father,  who  was  anxious  for  him  to  become 
a  regular  physician ;  but  he  had  a  mechanical 
bent,  and  dentistry  had  a  peculiar  charm  for 
him,  notwithstanding  the  fact  that  his  father 
was  opposed  to  his  being  a  dentist.  He  began 
to  practise  when  he  was  only  sixteen  years 
old,  pulling  teeth  for  those  who  would  trust 
themselves  to  him.  Teeth  in  those  days  were 
extracted  by  means  of  the  old  turn-screw,  a 
clumsy  tool  with  which  the  boy  dentist  was 
much  dissatisfied.  He  applied  to  the  town 
blacksmith  for  something  better,  and  that  arti- 


Z28 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


san  told  him  if  he  would  furnish  a  pattern  he 
would  make  the  tool  for  him.  The  lad  accord- 
ingly fashioned  a  pair  of  forceps  of  wood,  and 
the  blacksmith  made  for  him  a  finely  finished 
pair  of  steel.  These  forceps  did  excellent 
service,  for  people  came  far  and  near  to  "the 
boy  with  the  pincers  "  to  have  their  trouble- 
some teeth  removed. 

In  the  mean  time  the  lad  was  studying  med- 
icine with  his  father,  and  he  subsequently 
took  a  course  at  a  medical  school  of  the  eclec- 
tic order  on  Boylston  Street,  Boston.  He  was 
graduated  at  Beach's  Medical  School  when 
he  was  twenty-two  years  old,  and  he  subse- 
quently studied  the  formation  and  use  of 
chemicals  and  manufactured  chemicals  and 
chemical  combinations;  then,  after  practising 
medicine  for  a  while  with  his  father,  he 
took  up  the  study  of  dentistry,  and  going  to 
California  with  his  brother,  a  regular  physi- 
cian, he  practised  medicine  and  surgery  there 
for  a  while,  making  a  specialty  of  dentistry. 
About  twenty-three  years  ago  he  became  a 
resident  of  Hingham,  and  at  that  time  he  was 
still  making  a  study  of  the  science  of  den- 
tistry. After  a  term  under  the  excellent  in- 
struction of  Dr.  Sargeant,  of  Tremont  Temple, 
he  opened  an  ofifice  in  Hingham.  This  was 
fourteen  years  ago,  and  Dr.  Hardy  now  has  a 
large  and  lucrative  patronage,  his  work  being 
its  own  advertisement.  His  office  is  in  the 
Water  Company's  building. 

Dr.  Hardy  married  Julia  Roby,  of  Charles- 
ton, S.C.,  who  died  in  1890,  leaving  the  fol- 
lowing children:  Ida  Blanche,  who  is  still 
with  her  father;  Herbert  O. ,  foreman  of  the 
Journal  printing  office  in  this  town;  Cyrus 
Daniel,  a  graduate  of  the  Massachusetts  Col- 
lege of  Pharmacy,  now  in  charge  of  a  labora- 
tory in  Providence,  R.I.;  and  Forrester,  who 
is  still  at  home.  In  politics  the  Doctor  is  a 
Republican.       He    is    superintendent    of    the 


.Sunday-school  connected  with  the  Methodist 
church,  and  takes  an  active  interest  in  the 
work  of  the  society.  His  home,  which  is  on 
Lafayette  Avenue,  stands  on  an  elevation,  and 
commands  a  beautiful  view  of  the  surrounding 
country.  The  Doctor  is  a  genial,  pleasant- 
mannered  man,  and  has  a  large  circle  of 
friends. 


SRED  C.  SPARROW,  carpenter  and 
builder,  is  one  of  the  intelligent  and 
successful  business  men  of  Middleboro, 
Mass.  He  was  born  in  this  town,  January  ig, 
1857,  a  son  of  James  P.  and  Persis  L.  (Smith) 
Sparrow,  and  is  of  the  third  generation  of  his 
family  in  the  vicinity,  his  paternal  grand- 
father, James  Sparrow,  having  been  an  old 
resident  of  Fall  Brook.  James  P.  Sparrow, 
son  of  the  elder  James,  was  born  in  Middle- 
boro, and  was  for  a  number  of  years  in  busi- 
ness here  as  a  carpenter  and  builder.  He 
died  July  5,  1885,  at  the  age  of  sixty  years. 
His  wife  died  P'ebruary  17,  1892,  at  the  age 
of  sixty-seven.  They  reared  six  children, 
namely:  Alice  L. ,  wife  of  W.  F.  Davis,  of 
Duxbury,  Mass.  ;  Albert  S.,  a  resident  of 
Middleboro;  Samuel  J.;  Fred  C,  of  Middle- 
boro; Priscilla  li.,  wife  of  John  C.  Starbuck, 
of  Elmwood;  and  Sarah  L.,  wife  of  T.  A.  F. 
Washburn,  an  undertaker  of  Middleboro. 

Fred  C,  the  second  son,  as  he  grew  to  man- 
hood attended  the  schools  of  his  native  town, 
and,  making  rapid  progress,  entered  the  high 
school  before  he  was  thirteen  years  old.  He 
had  a  natural  aptitude  for  the  use  of  tools,  and 
when  a  boy  was  always  busy  upon  some 
mechanical  contrivance.  At  the  age  of  eigh- 
teen he  went  to  work  for  his  father,  and  his 
apprenticeship  was  a  very  short  one,  as  he 
seemed  to  know  by  intuition  all  the  mysteries 
of  the  joiner's  craft.  He  was  associated  with 
his  father  some  ten  years,  and   just   before   his 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


229 


father's  death  he  assumed  charge  of  the  busi- 
ness. It  is  needless  to  say  that  he  has  been 
successful,  and  has  finished  many  important 
contracts. 

Mr.  Sparrow  was  married  by  the  Rev.  N.  J. 
Dyer  (it  being  his  first  marriage  ceremony), 
September  22,  1878,  to  Miss  Sarah  F.  C. 
King,  a  most  estimable  lady  of  superior  intel- 
ligence and  ability.  They  have  two  children. 
The  elder,  Fred  S. ,  who  was  born  August  15, 
1882,  is  an  active-minded  lad  and  a  great 
reader  —  apparently  as  fond  of  brain  work  as 
his  father  at  the  same  age  was  of  handicraft. 
He  rises  at  daybreak  in  order  to  give  more 
time  to  his  beloved  books.  The  other  child, 
Sarah  K.,  died  June  13,  1S92,  having  lived 
but   thirteen   months. 

Mr.  Sparrow  is  Vice-President  of  the  Re- 
publican Club  of  Middleboro,  has  served  at 
many  elections  as  ballot  clerk,  and  has  been 
in  office  as  Constable  for  the  past  nine  years. 
He  belongs  to  the  Independent  Order  of  Odd 
Fellows,  the  Ancient  Order  of  United  Work- 
men, and  the  Junior  Order  of  American 
Mechanics;  and  he  is  insured  in  a  number  of 
life,  endowment,  and  accident  companies,  in- 
cluding the  Massachusetts  Mutual  Benefit  As- 
sociation, the  Union  Relief  Association,  and 
the  Citizens'  Aid  Society.  His  wife  is  an 
active  member  of  the  Congregational  church. 

Mr.  and  Mrs,  Sparrow  have  a  very  pleasant 
home  at  21  Plympton  Street.  The  house  is 
the  same,  remodelled,  in  which  his  father  was 
born,  and  where  he  died.  It  also  was  the 
birthplace  of  Mr.  Sparrow;  and  here  he  hopes 
to  die  as  soon  as  his  days  of  usefulness  are 
over.  The  house  was  erected  as  a  parsonage 
by  the  Rev.  Sylvanus  Conant,  the  fourth 
pastor  of  the  First  Congregational  Church  in 
Middleboro,  in  1752.  It  was  afterward  occu- 
pied by  the  Rev.  Joseph  Barker,  the  fifth 
pastor,    who    sold    it    to    James    Sparrow,    the 


grandfather  of  the  subject  of  this  sketch. 
Although  it  is  one  of  the  historic  landmarks 
of  old  Middleboro,  it  .stands  to-day  as  erect 
and  well  preserved  as  any  of  the  modern 
houses,  and  bids  defiance  to  the  storms  of 
another  century. 


TT^APTAIN     ALDEN     BESSE    is    a    re- 
l   jr'^      tired    ship-master,  residing  in  the  vil- 

\J?    ^  lage  of  Wareham,  Pl3'mouth  County, 
Mass.,  where  he  was  born  on  April  g,   182  i. 

His  father,  Samuel  Besse,  was  a  lifelons; 
resident  of  Wareham,  and  was  engaged  in  sea- 
faring pursuits  during  his  early  manhood.  In 
the  War  of  181 2,  when  he  was  visiting  his 
brother  at  West  Island,  he  was  taken  by  the 
English,  who  made  him  pilot  of  their  vessel, 
up  as  far  as  Bird  Island.  Eventually  he  was 
given  his  liberty  at  Martha's  Vineyard.  He 
married  Elizabeth  Young,  a  native  of  Ware- 
ham, and  they  became  the  parents  of  six  chil- 
dren, as  follows:  Charles  H.,  who  died  Janu- 
ary II,  1892,  aged  seventy-si.\  years,  eight 
months,  seven  days;  Samuel  B. ,  who  died 
June  22,  1S60,  aged  forty-three  years,  three 
months,  twenty  days;  Isaac  Y.,  who  died 
March  27,  1849,  aged  thirty-two  years,  three 
months,  twenty  days;  Zeruiah  Y.,  who  died 
March  28,  185 1,  aged  thirty -two  years,  one 
month,  six  days ;  Rodolphus,  who  died  March 
5,  1878,  aged  fifty-four  years,  ten  months, 
fourteen  days;  and  Alden,  the  only  one  now 
living. 

Samuel  Besse,  the  father,  died  August  16, 
1863,  aged  seventy-seven  years,  eleven 
months,  seventeen  days;  and  the  mother, 
Elizabeth  Besse,  died  April  5,  1863,  aged 
seventy-seven  years,  four  months. 

Alden  Besse  left  home  when  but  twelve 
years  old  to  go  on  board  a  coasting-vessel,  on 
which    he  was  employed   six  years.      He  then 


23° 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


shipped  before  the  mast  on  the  whaling  brig 
"Inga,"  which  cruised  in  the  North  and  South 
Atlantic  seven  months.  He  subsequently 
made  a  second  voyage  of  the  same  length  on 
the  same  vessel,  and  cruising  over  the  same 
waters,  but  held  the  position  of  boat-steerer. 
His  third  and  fourth  voyages  also  were  made 
on  the  "Inga,"  but  he  had  been  promoted  in 
each  case,  going  out  first  as  second  mate  and 
later  as  first  mate.  He  then  sailed  from  New 
Bedford  on  the  bark  "Charleston  Packet,"  as 
master,  being  away  from  home  eighteen 
months  at  that  time.  The  following  three 
years  he  had  command  of  the  bark  "Hecla," 
spending  the  time  chiefly  on  the  North  Pacific. 
Captain  Besse  on  his  return  remained  with  his 
family  six  months,  and  then  returned  to  New 
Bedford  to  take  charge  of  the  ship  "John 
Wells,"  going  to  the  Okhotsk  Sea,  where  he 
cruised  two  seasons.  After  spending  a  year 
in  Wareham,  he  next  went  out  on  a  sperm 
whaling  trip,  as  master  of  the  ship  "Hunter," 
to  the  coast  of  New  Zealand,  this  time  being 
away  four  years.  Two  years  later  he  made  a 
cruise  in  the  same  vessel  on  the.  Atlantic 
Ocean  for  nearly  two  years,  that  being  his  last 
voyage.  He  was  engaged  in  whaling  from 
1839  until  1868,  being  master  of  a  vessel  from 
1846,  and  in  his  voyages  meeting  with  invari- 
able success.  He  is  a  good  business  man, 
noted  for  his  honest  and  upright  dealings,  and 
in  the  course  of  his  career  has  accumulated 
considerable  property,  having  been  the  owner 
of  several  vessels  engaged  in  freighting  for 
foreign  ports,  and  he  is  still  interested  in 
these  pursuits  to  some  extent. 

Captain  Besse  was  married  December  26, 
1852,  to  Mrs.  Betsey  S.  (Jenney)  Besse,  the 
widow  of  his  brother  Isaac.  Mrs.  Besse  had 
two  children  by  her  first  marriage,  namely: 
Charles  A.,  who  lived  but  nine  months;  and 
Adelaide  S.,  wife  of  Gideon  M.  Washburn,  of 


Brockton,  Mass.  Captain  and  Mrs.  ]?esse 
have  had  two  children,  of  whom  Frank  A.,  a 
book-keeper  in  the  National  Bank  of  Ware- 
ham,  is  the  only  one  living,  Isaac  H.,  the 
youngest  child,  having  died  at  the  age  of  two 
years  and  five  months. 

In  politics  Captain  Besse  is  a  strong  advo- 
cate of  the  principles  of  the  Republican  party, 
and  takes  an  active  interest  in  local  affairs, 
having  served  in  nearly  all  the  offices  within 
the  gift  of  his  fellow-townsmen.  From  1868 
until  1880  he  was  one  of  the  Selectmen  of 
Wareham,  and  at  the  same  time  was  Assessor 
and  Overseer  of  the  Poor.  He  has  also  filled 
an  unexpired  term  as  Town  Treasurer  and  Col- 
lector. In  1 87 1  and  1872  he  represented  his 
district  in  the  State  legislature.  The  Captain 
has  been  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Directors 
of  the  National  Bank  of  Wareham  for  fifteen 
years,  and  is  a  Vice-President,  Trustee,  and 
one  of  the  Investment  Committee  of  the  Ware- 
ham Savings  Bank. 


LBERT  CULVER,  of  Rockland,  Mass., 
senior  member  of  the  firm  of  A.  Culver 
Company,  dealers  in  coal,  wood,  hay, 
flour,  and  grain,  and  other  merchandise,  is  a 
self-made  man,  who  has  won  his  way  from  a 
hard-working  boyhood  to  a  mature  manhood, 
blessed  by  wealth  and  position.  He  was  born 
in  the  town  of  Poultney,  Rutland  County, 
Vt.,  January  10,  1838,  son  of  Isaac  C.  and 
Maria  (Mead)  Culver,  natives  of  the  Green 
Mountain  State. 

Isaac  C.  Culver,  who  was  a  farmer,  removed 
about  1 841  to  Niagara  County,  New  York,  and 
there  followed  the  pursuit  of  agriculture  for 
fifty-six  years.  He  died  at  the  age  oL eighty- 
six,  his  wife  living  to  be  fourscore  and  four. 
They  had  a  family  of  eleven  children,  two  of 
whom   died  in  infancy.      A  son,  John  M.,  also 


ALBERT  CULVER. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


233 


is  deceased,  and  a  daughter,  Julia,  died  in 
North  Abington.  The  survivors  are:  Fran- 
cis, residing  in  Compton,  Cal.;  Frederick  and 
Ann  M.,  in  Niagara  County,  New  York; 
Mary  J.,  in  Detroit,  Mich.;  Charles  and 
Louisa,  in  Niagara  County,  New  York;  and 
Albert,  the  subject  of  this  sketch. 

Albert  Culver  was  three  years  old  when  his 
parents  removed  to  New  York  State,  and  he 
was  there  reared  on  a  farm.  He  was  given 
scant  educational  privileges,  being  obliged, 
from  the  time  that  he  was  ten  years  old,  to 
work  in  the  growing  season,  and  to  make  the 
most  of  his  opportunities  for  schooling  in  the 
winter;  but  he  was  naturally  intelligent,  and 
in  course  of  time  acquired  a  store  of  practical 
knowledge,  his  teachers  being  necessity  and 
experience.  He  remained  on  the  home  farm 
until  eighteen  years  of  age,  and  then  went  to 
work  for  his  brother  John,  a  merchant  who 
dealt  in  feed  and  coal  in  North  Abington, 
Mass.  With  his  brother  he  remained  about 
fifteen  months;  and  he  was  subsequently  in 
the  employ  of  Deacon  Ford,  a  North  Abington 
grocer,  for  fifteen  months ;  in  the  Union  Store 
at  the  same  place,  two  years;  and  in  a  grocery 
store  at  East  Abington,  three  months. 

While  employed  in  these  various  places  he 
had  perfected  himself  as  an  accountant,  and  he 
was  next  engaged  as  book-keeper  in  a  shoe 
factory,  where  he  remained  eleven  years. 
Although  almost  wholly  self-educated,  he  was 
an  expert  at  this  kind  of  clerical  work;  and 
when  the  Hanover  branch  of  the  railroad  was 
built,  Mr.  Lane,  one  of  his  employers  at  the 
factory,  being  Treasurer  of  the  railroad  com- 
pany, gave  Mr.  Culver  full  charge  of  the  rail- 
road accounts.  His  duties  included  the  issu- 
ing of  notices  and  the  receipt  and  expenditure 
of  funds;  and  he  displayed  such  good  judg- 
ment and  practical  ability  that,  on  Mr.  Lane's 
death,  he  was  appointed  Treasurer  of  the  cor- 


poration. He  was  in  office  some  ten  years, 
until  the  road  was  sold  to  the  Old  Colony 
Company. 

In  his  present  business  he  was  at  first  asso- 
ciated with  the  Lane  Brothers  and  others. 
The  Lanes  retired  after  a  while,  and  for  eleven 
years  the  firm  was  Culver,  Phillips  &  Co. 
Seven  years  ago  Mr.  Culver  purchased  the 
entire  business,  which  has  since  been  under 
his  direction  solely.  There  were  originally  a 
number  of  branch  stores,  one  of  which  was  in 
Hanover,  Mass.  It  has  required  firmness  and 
determination  to  carry  on  this  extensive  busi- 
ness, for  there  was  opposition  to  be  overcome, 
not  only  from  men,  but  also  from  nature. 
The  large  warehouse  on  Union  Street,  oppo- 
site the  railroad  station,  is  built  partly  on 
swampy  ground,  and  it  required  patience  and 
skilful  engineering  to  establish  a  firm  founda- 
tion. Mr.  Culver  was  not  to  be  turned  aside 
from  his  purpose  by  an  obstacle.  He  went 
steadily  on,  and  accomplished  all  that  he  had 
intended.  He  is  a  Director  of  the  Rockland 
National  Bank,  which  he  was  active  in  organ- 
izing; and  he  is  a  Trustee  of  the  Savings 
Bank,  and  a  member  of  the  Investing  Com- 
mittee. 

Mr.  Culver  was  married  in  1862  to  Nancy 
S.  Howland,  of  East  Abington,  daughter  of 
Jonathan  Howland,  and  they  have  two  chil- 
dren: Annie  M.,  born  September  23,  1867, 
wife  of  E.  B.  Church,  of  Rockland;  and  Ethel 
M.,  born  October  24,  1875,  who  has  not  ye"t 
left  her  parents. 

Politically,  Mr.  Culver  is  a  stanch  Republi- 
can. He  takes  a  lively  interest  in  local  im- 
provements, and  contributes  liberally  to  every- 
thing calculated  to  advance  the  interests  of  the 
town.  He  was  quite  active  in  the  organiza- 
tion of  the  Rockland  Commercial  Club,  an 
association  of  business  men,  of  which  he  is  a 
charter    member;    and    he    is    a    member    of 


234 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Standish  Lodge,  Odd  Fellows,  of  Rockland. 
Mr.  Culver  has  a  handsome  residence  at  8 
School  Street. 


IDWARD  A.  GAMMONS,  Cashier  of 
the  National  Bank  of  Warcham,  and 
Treasurer  of  the  Wareham  Savings 
Bank,  was  born  in  South  Wareham,  Mass., 
January  15,  1842,  a  son  of  William  and  Deb- 
orah B.  (Gallt)  Gammons.  Soon  after  his 
birth  his  parents  removed  to  East  Weymouth, 
but  two  years  later  settled  in  Wareham,  near 
Parker  Mills.  Here  their  son  Edward  was 
educated,  attending  the  common  schools  of 
this  town. 

At  the  age  of  eight  years  he  began  working 
in  the  Parker  mills,  where  he  was  employed 
during  the  winter  for  several  years,  while  in 
the  summer  months   he  followed   the   sea.      In 

1862,  in  the  month  of  October,  Mr.  Gammons 
enlisted  as  a  private  in  Company  B,  Third 
Massachusetts  Volunteer  Infantry,  and  was 
mustered  into  service  at  Camp  Joe  Hooker. 
Going  thence  to  North  Carolina  with  his 
regiment,    he    was    stationed    at    New    Berne, 

■  and  took  an  active  part  in  various  battles  in 
that  locality,  being  in  the  midst  of  the  conflict 
at  Kingston,  Whitehall,  and  Goklsboro,  and 
in    various     minor     engagements.       In     June, 

1863,  at  the  expiration  of  his  term  of  enlist- 
ment, he  was  discharged  from  service  at  Camp 
Joe  Hooker.  On  returning  to  Wareham,  Mr. 
Gammons  entered  what  is  now  known  as  the 
National  Bank  at  Wareham  as  a  clerk,  a  posi- 
tion which  he  liad  filled  twelve  years  when  he 
was  appointed  Assistant  Cashier.  Ten  years 
later  he  was  made  Treasurer  and  Cashier  of 
the  above-named  bank,  succeeding  Thomas  R. 
Miles,  who  died  in  March,  1885,  and  who  was 
connected  with  the  bank  as  Cashier  from  the 
date  of   incorporation    in    1833,  e.xcepting  five 


years.  Mr.  Miles  entered  banking  business  at 
the  age  of  twelve,  having  his  first  experience 
at  Newport,  R.I.,  being  there  about  ten  years. 
He  then  accepted  the  position  of  Paying 
Teller  in  the  Merchants'  Bank  at  Providence, 
R.I.,  where  he  remained  until  1833,  when  he 
came  to  Wareham.  He  was  a  man  highly  re- 
spected and  valued  in  the  community,  having 
good  judgment  in  financial  matters,  and  an 
extensive  acquaintance.  His  memory  is  held 
sacred  by  the  inhabitants  of  Wareham  and 
vicinity. 

On  January  15,  1867,  Mr.  Gammons  married 
Mary  B.  Billings,  a  daughter  of  Warren  and 
Mary  F.  (Caswell)  Billings,  of  Wareham. 
Of  the  union  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Gammons  three 
children  have  been  born,  namely:  Mary  B. , 
wife  of  Frank  A.  Besse;  William,  a  clerk  in 
the  employ  of  the  Boston  Dry-goods  Company; 
and  Henry  Elliott,  who  is  employed  in  the 
Compressed  Steel  Shafting  Works  at  South 
Boston.  Politically,  Mr.  Gammons  affiliates 
with  the  Democratic  party.  He  is  a  valued 
member  of  Social  Harmony  Lodge,  A.  F.  & 
A.  M.,  of  which  he  is  now  Secretary;  and  of 
the  General  William  T.  Sherman  Post,  No. 
208,  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic. 


(gYrLEXANDER  R.  GURNEY,  the  engi- 
t-:X  neer  in  charge  of  the  Middleboro 
-^  '^  V.^  Pumping  Station,  is  a  man  of 
unusual  ability.  He  was  born  in  Marion, 
Mass.,  March  23,  1848,  son  of  Rufus  H.  and 
Phoebe  (Cahoon)  Gurney.  Rufus  H.  Gurney 
was  a  ship-carpenter  by  trade.  He  followed 
the  sea  for  some  time  in  his  youth,  and  again, 
after  1869,  when  he  was  ship  navigator,  and 
visited  several  of  the  West  India  Islands.  He 
had  many  tales  to  tell  of  the  strange  sights  and 
peoples  he  had  seen.  After  settling  perma- 
nently   on    land,    he    gave    his    attention     to 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


23S 


mechanical  work,  in  which  he  was  naturally 
skilled.  In  December,  i86i,  he  enlisted  for 
three  years'  service  in  the  Civil  War,  joining 
Company  H,  Twenty-ninth  Regiment,  Massa- 
chusetts Volunteers.  At  the  end  of  this  term 
he  joined  the  ranks  again,  and  served  till  the 
close  of  the  war.  Shortly  before  Lee's  sur- 
render he  was  captured,  and  spent  two  weeks 
in  the  hands  of  the  Confederates.  His 
mechanical  skill  caused  him  to  be  in  much 
demand  in  the  surgeon's  department.  He 
died  in  18S7,  aged  sixty-four  years,  si.x 
months,  nine  days.  His  wife,  who  was  a 
Plymouth  girl,  after  surviving  him  about  four 
years,  died  aged  sixty -eight  years,  nine 
months,  twenty  days.  Their  children  were: 
Mary,  Alexander  R.,  Freeman  F.,  and  Anna 
F.  Mary  is  now  the  wife  of  Benjamin  S. 
Keyes,  of  Middleboro;  and  Anna  F.  is  the 
wife  of  G.  H.  Bourne. 

Alexander  R.  Gurney  attended  the  common 
schools  of  Wareham,  whither  his  parents  re- 
moved when  he  was  five  years  old.  He  spent 
one  season  on  the  sea  in  his  nineteenth  year, 
but  his  boyhood  was  principally  spent  in  farm 
work.  This  occupation  not  being  to  his 
liking,  he  learned  to  manage  an  engine,  begin- 
ning as  a  fireman.  His  carefulness  and  intel- 
ligence in  time  won  for  him  high  recommen- 
dations and  constant  employment.  In  18S5, 
after  filling  responsible  positions  in  Brockton 
and  Wareham,  he  was  appointed  to  his  present 
position.  He  has  now  a  license  as  a  first-class 
engineer,  under  the  act  of  1895.  The  general 
appearance  of  the  pumping  station  plainly  in- 
dicates that  it  is  in  thoroughly  competent 
hands.  Mr.  Gurney  is  a  voluntary  observer 
for  the  Agricultural  Department  of  the  United 
States,  and  keeps  a  full  and  systematic  meteo- 
rological record,  noting  temperature,  precipi- 
tation, winds,  clouds,  frosts,  etc. 

In    1887    Mr.   Gurney  was   married   to   Miss 


Alice  W.  Loring,  of  Wareham.  In  politics 
he  favors  the  Republican  side.  He  belongs 
to  one  fraternal  association,  the  Royal  Society 
of  Good  Fellows.  He  accompanies  Mrs.  Gur- 
ney to  the  Congregational  Church,  of  which 
she  is  a  communicant.  He  has  a  pleasant 
home  at  3  Rock  Street. 


OSIAH  W.  ATWOOD,  a  farmer  of 
Carver,  was  born  in  Carver  Centre, 
April  2,  1844.  His  parents  were 
Ebenezer  and  Waitstill  (Lucus)  Atwood,  who 
had  ten  other  children;  namely,  Mary  A., 
Stilmans,  Waitstill  S.,  Sarah,  Abbie,  Louisa, 
Ebenezer,  Charles  H.,  Hannah,  and  George  S. 
Mr.  Atwood  grew  up  on  his  father's  farm,  re- 
ceiving his  education  in  the  district  schools. 
He  was  still  beneath  the  family  roof  tree 
when  the  Civil  War  broke  out.  In  Septem- 
ber, 1862,  he  enlisted  in  Company  B,  Third 
Massachusetts  Infantry;  and  his  company  was 
mustered  at  Lakeville,  this  county.  The  reg- 
iment was  shortly  after  sent  to  North  Caro- 
lina, where  it  took  part  in  the  actions  at  King- 
ston, Whitehall,  and  Goldsboro.  Mr.  Atwood 
was  honorably  discharged  at  Lakeville  in 
June,   1866. 

On  returning  to  his  home,  illness,  resulting 
from  the  hardships  to  which  he  was  exposed  in 
the  army,  rendered  him  unable  to  resume  his 
former  routine  of  life  for  some  time.  As  soon 
as  he  was  sufficiently  recuperated  he  began  to 
work  at  farming.  In  1864,  while  at  home,  his 
term  of  service  having  expired,  he  was  joined 
in  matrimony  with  Miss  Lydia  Gammons. 
Their  only  child  is  Sadie  F. ,  now  a  teacher  of 
music.  Soon  after  his  marriage  Mr.  Atwood 
moved  to  the  farm  upon  which  he  now  resides, 
and  which  he  has  since  cultivated.  In  politi- 
cal aflfiliation  he  is  a  Democrat,  and  belongs 
to  the  Grand  Army  of  the   Republic,  Colling- 


236 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


wood  Post,  No.  "](),  where,  among  his  war- 
worn comrades,  he  recalls  his  military 
experience. 

-AMES  F.  ANDERSON,  a  well-known 
tack  manufacturer  of  Rockland,  Mass., 
was  born  in  Sandwich,  Cape  Cod, 
October  i,  1857,  son  of  William  P.  and 
Hannah  T.  (Vaughn)  Anderson.  William  P. 
Anderson,  who  was  a  Virginian  by  birth,  and 
by  profession  an  engineer,  went  to  Sandwich, 
Mass.,  where  he  spent  the  rest  of  his  life. 
His  wife,  Hannah,  was  a  native  of  Plymouth 
County,  Massachusetts.  They  became  the 
parents  of  thirteen  children,  seven  boys  and 
si.x  girls,  of  whom  seven  are  now  living. 
Mrs.  Hannah  Anderson,  who  is  now  seventy- 
six  years  old,  resides  with  her  son,  James  F. 
Mrs.  Anderson  takes  a  pardonable  pride  in  her 
large  family,  all  of  whose  members  as  they 
grew  up  subsequently  reflected  credit  upon 
their  parents. 

James  F".  Anderson,  who  was  the  seventh  son 
born  to  his  parents,  resided  at  home  until  he 
was  twenty-one  years  old,  and  received  a  prac- 
tical education.  His  first  employment  was  in 
a  glass  factory  in  his  native  town,  where  he 
remained  for  about  one  year,  having  begun 
work  at  the  age  of  twenty.  A  year  later  he 
learned  the  art  of  manufacturing  tacks,  and 
going  to  Whitman,  in  this  county,  he  worked 
at  that  trade  for  some  time.  He  afterward 
came  to  Rockland,  where  he  found  employ- 
ment in  the  same  line  of  industry  with 
French,  Hall  &  Company,  who  established 
their  large  business  here  in  1884.  Going  into 
their  factory,  he  worked  faithfully  until  two 
years  ago,  when  he  bought  out  the  plant,  and 
has  since  conducted  it  himself.  His  business 
is  the  only  one  of  the  kind  in  the  place,  and 
under  his  effective  management  it  has  grown  to 
large  proportions.      His  goods  are  sold  over  a 


wide  extent  of  country,  going  as  far  as  St. 
Louis,  St.  Paul,  and  other  large  Western 
cities. 

On  November  17,  1885,  he  was  married  to 
Helen  D.  Wentworth,  of  liast  Bridgewater. 
Mr.  Anderson  has  a  comfortable  dwelling- 
house  on  Maple  Street,  not  very  far  from  his 
factory  and  offices,  which  are  on  Grove  Street. 
In  his  political  opinions  Mr.  Anderson  is  a 
stanch  Republican,  but  has  taken  no  very 
active  part  in  politics.  He  belongs  to  the  In- 
dependent Order  of  Odd  P'ellows,  being  a 
charter  member  of  the  lodge  at  Whitman. 
He  is  an  active  and  prominent  member  of  the 
Consrrecrational  church. 


B 


E  WITT  CLINTON  BATES,  Chair- 
man of  the  Board  of  Selectmen,  As- 
sessors, and  Overseers  of  the  Poor 
of  the  town  of  Hingham,  Mass.,  formerly  a 
well-known  public-school  teacher  of  Plymouth 
County,  is  now  residing  on  a  farm  a  short  dis- 
tance from  Hingham  Centre,  and  about  a  mile 
from  Hingham,  and  engaged  in  market  garden- 
ing. He  was  born  in  Cohasset,  Norfolk 
County,  Mass.,  October  28,  1827,  a  son  of  Lot 
and  Winifred  (Ellms)  Bates. 

The  founder  of  the  Bates  family  in  America 
came  to  these  shores  a  few  years  after  the  set- 
tlement at  Plymouth  in  1620.  Of  that  remote 
progenitor,  the  following  is  recorded  in  the 
"History  of  Hingham":  Clement  Bates  (Bate, 
Batte),  aged  forty,  with  his  wife,  Anna,  and 
five  children,  embarked  at  London  for  New 
England,  April  6,  1635,  in  the  ship  "Eliza- 
beth." On  his  arrival  he  settled  in  Hingham, 
at  about  the  time  the  Rev.  Peter  Hobart  and 
his  followers  came  here;  and  on  September 
18,  1635,  he  received  a  grant  of  land  on  Town 
(South)  Street.  This  lot  contained  five  acres, 
and  was  bounded  on  the  north-east  by  land  of 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


237 


George  Russell,  and  on  the  south-west  by  land 
of  Thomas  Johnson.  It  was  the  fifth  in  num- 
ber from  Bachelor  (Main)  Street,  and  has  been 
in  'the  possession  of  some  of  the  posterity  of 
the  original  grantee  for  nearly  two  and  a  half 
centuries.  In  1883  the  estate,  including  an 
ancient  dwelling-house  formerly  known  as  the 
"Anchor  Tavern,"  was  sold  to  the  owners  of 
the  land  adjoining.  A  portion  of  the  estate, 
however,  has  since  been  repurchased ;  and  on 
the  spot  where  the  old  house  stood,  a  dwelling 
of  modern  style  has  been  erected,  and  is  now 
occupied  by  a  descendant  of  the  early  colonist. 
The  name  "Bate"  was  a  common  one  in  Eng- 
land for  nearly  two  centuries  before  any  of  the 
family  took  their  departure  for  America;  and 
the  English  ancestors  of  Clement  are  traceable 
for  five  generations  prior  to  that  time. 

The  father  of  Clement  Bates  was  James, 
who  died  in  1614,  at  Lydd,  Parish  of  All  Hal- 
lows, England.  Anna,  wife  of  Clement,  died 
in  Hingham,  Mass.,  October  i,  1669,  aged 
seventy-four.  Clement  died  September  17^ 
1 67 1,  aged  seventy-si.\.  Clement  and  Anna 
Bates  had  si.x  children,  of  whom  only  the 
youngest  was  born  in  Hingham.  Joseph, 
their  fourth  child,  who  was  born  in  England 
about  1630,  married  in  Hingham,  Mass.,  Jan- 
uary 9,  1657,  Esther,  daughter  of  William 
Hilliard.  Joseph  Bates  died  April  30,  1706, 
and  his  wife  Esther  on  June  3,  1709.  He  was 
a  bricklayer  by  trade.  He  served  as  Constable 
three  years,  and  as  Selectman  four  years ;  and 
in  1673  he  was  appointed  sexton  of  the  parish, 
in  which  capacity  he  served  a  number  of  years. 
He  resided  on  the  paternal  homestead  on 
South  Street.  Joseph  and  Esther  Bates  had  a 
family  of  nine  children. 

Joshua,  their  fifth  child,  was  born  in  Hing- 
ham, August  14,  167  I.  He  was  married  Jan- 
uary 15,  1695,  to  Rachel  Tower,  who  was  born 
in    Hingham    March     16,    1674,    daughter    of 


Ibrook  and  Margaret  (Hardin)  Tower.  Seven 
children  were  born  of  this  union.  Joshua, 
Jr.,  the  second  of  these,  was  born  June  15, 
1698.  He  married  December  28,  1721,  Abi- 
gail Joy,  daughter  of  Joseph  and  Elizabeth 
(Andrews)  Joy.  She  was  born  in  Hingham, 
December  29,  1701,  and  survived  her  husband, 
who  died  March  16,  1766.  He  was  a  brick 
layer,  and  at  his  death  left  a  large  estate.  In 
1735  he  served  as  Constable  of  the  town. 

Nathaniel,  the  fifth  of  the  seven  children  of 
Joshua  and  Abigail  Bates,  was  born  October  3, 
1733,  in  Hingham.  On  December  18,  1760, 
he  married  Mary  Hamlen.  His  residence  was 
on  Beechwood  Street,  and  his  life  was  spent 
in  Hingham,  except  the  period  of  his  absence 
as  a  soldier  in  the  Revolutionary  War.  Na- 
thaniel and  Mary  Bates  had  two  sons,  namely: 
Cornelius,  who  died  in  1850,  aged  eighty-eight 
years;  and  Jessaniah,  the  grandfather  of  De 
Witt  Clinton,  the  special  subject  of  this  brief 
biography.  His  birth  occurred  in  Hingham, 
June  29,  1768,  and,  after  he  established  a 
home  of  his  own,  he  lived  on  Beechwood 
Street,  Cohasset,  where  he  followed  farming. 
He  married  Phoebe  Litchfield,  of  Scituate, 
who  died  April  13,  1849,  aged  seventy-five 
years.  His  death  occurred  nearly  five  years 
later,  March  6,  1854.  Their  eight  children, 
all  born  at  Cohasset,  were:  Phcebe,  Rufus, 
Lot,  Lewis,  Warren,  Silas,  Mary,  and  Eze- 
kiel.  Lot  Bates,  the  father  of  De  Witt  Clin- 
ton, was  born  in  1802.  He  married  Winifred 
Ellms,  and  they  had  three  children,  born  at 
Cohasset  —  De  Witt  Clinton,  Lot  W.,  and  one 
that  died.      Lot  W.  Bates  resides  in  Cohasset. 

De  Witt  Clinton  Bates  attended  the  com- 
mon school  until  fourteen  years  old,  at  which 
time,  having  made  good  progress  in  his 
studies,  he  entered  the  Cohasset  High  School. 
He  continued  to  live  on  the  farm  with  his 
parents  until  he  was  seventeen,  and   then  went 


238 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


to  Dorchester  to  learn  the  carpenter's  trade, 
remaining  there  until  twenty-one  years  of  age. 
Returning  to  his  home  in  Cohasset,  he  after- 
ward studied  under  the  Rev.  Joseph  Osgood, 
and  at  the  Merrimack  Normal  Institute  in 
New  Hampshire;  and,  beginning  in  1851,  he 
taught  school,  first  in  Cohasset,  then  two 
years  in  Hingham,  two  years  in  North  Brain- 
tree,  and  twelve  years  in  the  Hingham  Centre 
Grammar  School.  While  teaching  the  last- 
named  school,  in  1866  and  1867,  he  repre- 
sented Hingham  at  the  General  Court.  In 
1 87 1  he  was  elected  to  the  offices  of  Select- 
man, Assessor,  and  Overseer  of  the  Poor, 
which  he  has  held  continuously  since  that 
time,  and  he  has  been  Chairman  of  the  Board 
the  past  fifteen  years.  In  politics  he  was  for- 
merly a  Free  Soiler;  and  since  1856,  when  he 
cast  his  Presidential  vote  for  John  C.  Fre- 
mont, he  has  affiliated  with  the  Republican 
party. 

Mr.  Bates  and  Sarah  A.  Burbank  were 
married  on  May  8,  1853,  and  their  union  has 
been  blessed  by  the  birth  of  si.x  children: 
William  Clinton,  a  graduate  of  Harvard  Col- 
lege, in  the  class  of  1877,  and  now  Superin- 
tendent of  Schools  in  P'all  River,  Mass. ; 
EUery  Webster,  who  died  while  attending 
Harvard  College;  Mary  Winifred,  a  teacher, 
living  at  home  with  her  parents;  Herbert 
Osgood,  a  farmer,  also  living  at  the  parental 
home;  Sarah  Elizabeth,  a  teacher  in  the  Hing- 
ham Centre  Grammar  School ;  and  Grace  Lin- 
coln, deceased.  William  Clinton  Bates,  the 
eldest  son,  married  Edith  E.  Taggert,  and  has 
two  children  —  P2dith  Dorothea  and  Clement 
Taggert. 


C^'\ 


APTAIN      WILLIAM 


McFAR- 


LIN,  a  veteran  of  the  Civil  War,  and 
vi£__^  an     esteemed     citizen     of     Carver, 
Plymouth    County,    Mass.,    was    born    on    the 


farm  on  which  he  now  resides,  July  11,  1827, 
son  of  Sampson  and  Polly  (Shurtleff)  McFar- 
lin.  He  is  the  eldest  of  a  family  of  ten  chil- 
dren, eight  sons  and  two  daughters;  namely, 
William  S. ,  Almena  L.,  Horatio,  Charles  H., 
Thomas  H.,  Charles  D.,  Polly  S.,  Henry  L., 
Peleg,  and  Jason  B.  Henry  L.  McFarlin,  the 
si.xth  son,  enlisted. in  Company  E,  of  the  I"or- 
tieth  Massachusetts  Regiment,  with  which  he 
served  until  the  battle  of  Cold  Harbor,  early 
in  June,  1864,  when  he  was  mortally  wounded, 
and  died  nine  days  later.  He  had  risen  from 
the  ranks  to  the  position  of  First  Sergeant, 
and  a  Lieutenant's  commission  awaited  him  at 
his  death.  Mrs.  Polly  McFarlin  died  at 
thirty-eight  years  of  age.  Her  husband  sur- 
vived her  many  years,  dying  on  the  farm  now 
owned  by  his  son,  William  .S. ,  at  the  age  of 
eighty-two. 

William  S.  McFarlin  spent  his  boyhood  and 
his  early  manhood,  up  to  twenty-three  years  of 
age,  on  his  present  farm.  He  then  began 
working  at  the  iron  moulder's  trade,  which  he 
followed  until  the  breaking  out  of  the  Civil 
War.  He  had  previously  been  a  Captain  in 
the  State  militia,  and  he  was  one  of  the  first 
to  go  into  service,  responding  to  the  first  call 
for  seventy-five  thousand  men,  and  going  di- 
rect to  Fortress  Monroe.  After  being  out 
between  three  and  four  months,  he  returned 
home  and  raised  one  hundred  men  in  Carver 
and  adjoining  towns,  forming  what  was  after- 
ward known  as  Company  C,  Eighteenth  Mas- 
sachusetts Volunteer  Infantry.  They  went  to 
Washington,  were  there  ordered  to  join  the 
Army  of  the  Potomac,  and  were  in  the  en- 
gagements at  Yorktown,  Hanover  Court-house, 
and  the  Seven  Days'  Fight  in  front  of  Rich- 
mond. On  the  Peninsula,  June  27,  1862,  in 
the  march  from  Cold  Harbor  to  White  House 
Landing,  Captain  McFarlin  received  a  sun- 
stroke, from  the  effects  of  which  he  was  under 


M^  ^ 


WILLIAM     L.    DOUGLAS. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


241 


the  doctor's  care  for  about  two  months.  He 
then  went  to  Fredericksburg,  but  was  subse- 
quently confined  in  the  Douglas  Hospital  at 
Washington  for  about  six  weeks.  On  account 
of  his  impaired  health,  as  soon  as  able  to  leave 
the  hospital,  he  resigned  his  commission  in 
the  army,  and  returned  to  Carver.  At  the 
present  time  he  is  engaged  in  carrying  on  the 
old  homestead  farm,  cranberries  being  one  of 
the  principal  crops  thereon^ 

On  May  9,  1891,  Captain  McFarlin  was 
married  to  Miss  Elizabeth  C.  Monroe,  widow 
of  Granville  Monroe,  of  Bridgewater,  Mass., 
and  daughter  of  David  Wilber.  In  1S73  and 
1874  Captain  McFarlin  was  a  member  of  the 
State  Board  of  Police,  and  was  stationed  at 
Wareham.  He  has  also  served  as  Constable 
and  on  the  School  Board.  In  politics  he  is  a 
stanch  Republican.  He  is  a  member  of  Plym- 
outh Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.  ;  of  Winthrop 
Lodge  of  Good  Templars ;  and  Post  No.  8, 
Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  of  Middleboro. 
Captain  McFarlin  is  a  communicant  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  church,  of  which  he  is  a 
Trustee,  and  is  active  in  other  offices. 


'ON.      WILLIAM      LEWIS      DOUG- 
LAS,    of     Brockton,     originator     of 
'^  *  the  famous    "Douglas    three-dollar 

shoe,"  was  born  in  the  town  of  Plymouth, 
Mass.,  August  22,  1845.  The  death  of  his 
parents  left  him  at  an  early  age  wholly  de- 
pendent on  his  own  exertions  for  a  livelihood. 
His  schooling  was  limited;  but  he  had  plenty 
of  determination  and  pluck,  and,  obtaining 
employment  in  a  shoe  shop,  he  gave  his  tal- 
ents and  whole  attention  to  thoroughly  and 
systematically  learning  the  trade.  His  close 
application  to  business  and  the  interest 
shown  in  his  work  soon  attracted  the  notice 
of    his    employer,    who    early   recognized     the 


ability  of  the  man,  and  it  was  not  long  be- 
fore he  occupied  positions  of  importance,  all 
of  which  he  filled  most  satisfactorily.  Mr. 
Douglas  became  a  resident  of  Brockton,  then 
North  Bridgewater,  in  1870,  and  worked  in 
several  factories  there.  In  July,  1876,  he 
began  business  for  himself,  with  small  capital 
but  plenty  of  confidence.  At  that  time  was 
laid  the  foundation  of  the  enormous  business 
which  he   controls   at   the  present  time. 

Besides  manufacturing  shoes,  Mr.  Douglas 
is  engaged  in  other  business  enterprises.  He 
is  President  of  the  People's  Savings  Bank; 
Director  of  the  Home  National  Bank;  Vice- 
President  of  the  Brockton  City  Hospital  Asso- 
ciation; and  proprietor  of  the  Brockton  Daily 
Tillies,  a  newspaper  occupying  already  an  im- 
portant place  in  the  journalistic  field  of  Mas- 
sachusetts, although  comparatively  young. 

In  Brockton  affairs  Mr.  Douglas  has  been 
particularly  conspicuous,  and  he  has  done 
much  in  promoting  the  interests  of  this  thriv- 
ing city.  Through  his  advertising  alone  he 
has  made  the  name  of  Brockton  almost  as 
famous  as  his  three-dollar  shoe.  In  politics 
Mr.  Douglas  has  always  been  a  Democrat. 
Although  his  district  is  largely  Republican, 
he  has  been  twice  elected  to  the  State  legisla- 
ture, and  once  to  the  State  Senate.  He 
served  in  both  places  with  honor  to  his  constit- 
uency and  to  himself,  doing  much  to  benefit 
factory  employees,  and  originating  the  famous 
"Arbitration  Bill,"  creating  the  State  Board 
of  Arbitration.  The  principle  of  arbitration 
has  been  established  in  his  factory  since  1888, 
and  it  has  proved  satisfactory  both  to  himself 
and  his  employees.  In  1890  Mr.  Douglas  was 
elected  Mayor  of  Brockton,  and  on  three  dif- 
ferent occasions  he  served  in  the  City  Council. 
While  in  the  service  of  the  city  he  improved 
the  various  departments,  by  introducing  busi- 
ness methods  in  transacting  the  affairs   of   the 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


city.  Mr.  Douglas  is  at  present  Cliairman  of 
the  Sewerage  Commission,  and  takes  great  in- 
terest in  tlie  commission's  work. 

As  a  manufacturer  Mr.  Douglas  has  made 
the  welfare  of  his  employees  a  major  consider- 
ation. As  far  as  business  would  permit,  he 
has  made  their  work  as  agreeable  and  remu- 
nerative as  it  is  possible  to  do.  For  their 
benefit  he  has  established  free  medical  attend- 
ance, any  person  in  his  employ  being  entitled 
to  receive  the  best  medical  treatment  without 
any  expense. 

Mr.  Douglas  is  exceedingly  domestic  in  his 
habits  and  tastes.  Surrounded  by  his  family, 
he  thoroughly  enjoys  life  in  his  beautiful 
home  on  West  Elm  Street.  Few  men  are 
better  known  or  more  highly  regarded  in  the 
commercial  world  to-day. 


LBERT     LORING     MURDOCK,    the 

proprietor  of  Murdock's  Liquid  Food, 
and  a  summer  resident  of  Hingham, 
was  born  in  Boston,  September  4,  1829,  son 
of  Amasa  Murdock,  Jr.,  and  his  wife,  Jane 
(Loriug)  Murdock.  His  grandfather,  Amasa 
Murdock,  Sr. ,  was  a  wheelwright  and  carriage- 
maker  in  Boston  for  many  years.  A  genial, 
sociable  man,  a  Whig  in  politics,  and  a  Uni- 
versalist  in  religious  belief,  the  grandfather 
had  many  friends,  was  highly  esteemed,  and 
lived  to  the  age  of  eighty-five  years.  His 
first  wife,  whose  maiden  name  was  Crane,  was 
the  mother  of  four  children,  none  of  whom  are 
now  living.  She  died  at  the  early  age  of 
thirty-five  years.  His  second  wife,  formerly 
a  Miss  Green,  who  had  no  children,  lived  to 
the  age  of  seventy  years. 

Amasa  Murdock,  Jr.,  was  a  native  and  life- 
long resident  of  Boston.  From  early  manhood 
until  his  death,  which  occurred  in  April, 
1843,  at  the  age  of  thirty-nine  years,  he  was 


engaged  in  business  as  a  plane-maker,  in  the 
firm  of  Gardner  &  Murdock  on  Green  Street. 
In  politics  he  was  a  Democrat.  A  Univcr- 
salist  in  religious  faith,  he  attended  Dr.  Bar- 
rett's church  on  Chambers  Street.  His  wife 
survived  him,  attaining  the  age  of  seventy- 
seven  years.  They  had  four  children,  three 
of  whom  are  now  living,  namely:  Albert  L., 
the  subject  of  this  sketch;  Alonzo  A.,  now  of 
Boston  ;  and  Mary  Jane,  the  wife  of  Washing- 
ton King,  of  Lynn,  Mass.,  and  mother  of  two 
children  —  Cora  and  Jennie. 

Albert  Loring  Murdock,  elder  son  of  his 
father,  grew  to  manhood  in  Boston,  and  was 
educated  in  the  public  schools.  On  leaving 
school,  he  gave  some  time  to  the  study  of  life 
insurance,  collecting  and  examining  statistics. 
Prompted  by  the  information  he  acquired  in 
this  way,  he  procured  the  passage  of  the  law 
requiring  the  payment  of  the  value  of  forfeited 
insurance.  Later  he  established  the  John 
Hancock  Life  Insurance  Company.  In  July, 
1861,  just  after  the  first  battle  of  Bull  Run, 
he  was  one  of  the  three  men  through  whose 
efforts  was  raised  the  Boston  contribution  of 
twenty-two  hundred  cases  of  hospital  stores 
and  seven  thousand  dollars  in  money,  which 
he  was  deputed  to  take  to  the  front.  At  the 
Centennial  Exposition  in  Philadelphia  in  1876 
Mr.  Murdock  was  very  active,  being  largely 
instrumental  in  securing  exhibits  from  the 
manufacturers  of  this  State,  and  being  espe- 
cially successful  in  the  collecting  of  the  agri- 
cultural exhibit.  In  1881,  after  twelve  years 
spent  in  experimenting,  he  brought  before  the 
public  the  Liquid  Food  which  bears  his 
name,  and  which  has  been  received  with  such 
signal  favor.  The  use  of  this  food  in  the  free 
hospitals  which  he  founded  and  sustained  in 
Boston,  including  the  Surgical  Hospital  for 
Women,  which  was  continued  for  six  year^ 
and  in  which  three  thousand  two  hundred  and 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


243 


seventy -eight  cases  were  treated,  with  the  loss 
of  only  five  on  the  last  thousand,  was  a  strik- 
ing confirmation  of  its  value. 

Mr.  Murdock  was  married  on  November  25, 
1855,  to  Helen  W.  Loring,  daughter  of  Enos 
and  Jane  (Hersey)  Loring,  of  Hingham,  Mass. 
They  have  two  sons  —  Albert  W.  and  Walter 
A.  Mr.  Murdock  is  a  Republican  in  poli- 
tics. He  makes  his  home  in  the  winter  in 
Boston  and  in  the  summer  at  Hingham.  In 
the  latter  place  he  has  a  beautiful  country 
seat,  a  farm  of  about  one  hundred  and  fifty 
acres,  with  a  fine  residence,  grounds  orna- 
mented with  fountains  and  statuary,  and  a 
thick-set  grove,  with  four  miles  of  foot  paths. 
His  estate  includes  the  old  Gushing  farm,  on 
which  stands  a  small  house  built  in  1687, 
called  Pilgrim  Cottage,  the  most  ancient 
dwelling  in  Plymouth  County.  Its  stout  tim- 
bers are  of  oak.  With  a  view  to  preserving 
this  time-honored  domicile  as  a  memorial  of 
past  generations  and  a  connecting  link  there- 
with, Mr.  Murdock  has  had  the  original  inside 
finishing  taken  out,  and  replaced  with  good 
hard  oak.  Nor  is  the  house  kept  uselessly 
idle.  It  is  the  home  of  the  hired  man  and  his 
family;  and  smoke  goes  up  the  great  chimney 
flue,  and  children  play  about  the  door.  Only 
a  little  less  ancient  than  Pilgrim  Cottage  is  a 
house  built  by  ancestors  of  Mrs.  Murdock  in 
1729,  which,  having  been  put  in  good  order  at 
much  expense,  now  constitutes  a  wing  of  the 
Murdock  mansion.  For  so  preserving  these 
old  landmarks,  Mr.  Murdock  is  entitled  to 
lasting  gratitude. 

Mr.  Murdock  is  an  earnest  supporter  of  the 
cause  of  the  higher  education  of  women,  and 
gives  much  of  his  time  to  forward  the  same. 
In  politics  he  is  an  adherent  of  the  Repub- 
lican party.  Both  he  and  his  wife  are  Unita- 
rians in  religious  faith.  Mr.  Murdock  is 
known   in  the   business   world    for   a    man   of 


integrity,  foresight,  and  good  judgment,  and 
is  esteemed  by  the  general  community  for  his 
good  citizenship,  works  of  improvement,  and 
his  readiness  to  befriend  the  needy. 


HARLES  E.  KNIGHT,  M.D.,  a 
popular  physician  residing  in  Rock- 
land, Mass.,  was  born  in  Liver- 
more,  Me.,  April  20,  1854.  He  is  a  son  of 
William  and  Rebecca  (Soper)  Knight,  both 
natives  of  the  Pine  Tree  State.  William 
Knight  is  an  enterprising  farmer  in  comfort- 
able circumstances,  a  dealer  in  poultry  and 
eggs.  He  has  reared  two  children  —  Rose 
and  Charles  E. 

Charles  E.  Knight  was  reared  on  a  farm; 
but  agriculture  had  no  charms  for  him,  one  of 
his  earliest  ambitions  being  to  qualify  himself 
as  a  physician.  He  attended  Waterville  In- 
stitute and  Bates  College,  read  medicine  first 
with  Dr.  Bridgham,  who  is  now  in  Cohasset, 
Mass.,  and  was  graduated  from  the  Medical 
School  of  Bowdoin  College  in  1879.  With 
an  admirable  spirit  of  independence  he  earned 
a  great  part  of  the  money  needed  for  his  pro- 
fessional training,  teaching  for  eight  or  ten 
years.  He  began  to  practise  in  his  native 
town,  then  moved  to  Livermbre  Falls,  and  in 
1895  located  in  Rockland  as  successor  to  Dr. 
Bradbury.  He  has  a  good  grasp  of  his  profes- 
sion, is  naturally  energetic  and  progressive, 
and  his  methods  have  proved  effective  in  the 
cure  of  disease.  During  his  short  stay  in 
Rockland  he  has  won  the  public  confidence, 
and  established  a  growing  practice. 

In  1879  Dr.  Knight  was  united  in  marriage 
with  Miss  Flora  B.  Howard,  of  Harrison,  Me. ; 
and  one  child,  Chester  L.,  has  blessed  their 
union.  The  Doctor  is  a  strong  Republican, 
and  has  taken  an  active  part  in  every  campaign 
since  casting  his  first  vote.     He   is  a  Royal 


244 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Arch  Mason  and  a  member  of  the  Independent 
Order  of  Odd  Fellows,  and  is  very  prominent 
socially. 


<■••  *» 


-^ENJAMIN  W.  ROBBINS,  a  suc- 
cessful farmer  of  Carver,  was  born 
here,  August  12,  1835,  son  of 
Chandler  and  Sarah  (Burgess)  Robbins.  He 
is  the  fourth  in  line  of  descent  from  his 
earliest  American  progenitor  in  this  locality. 
His  great-grandfather  left  a  son  bearing  the 
name  of  Joseph,  who  in  turn  had  a  son  named 
Chandler.  Chandler  Robbins,  who  was  born 
and  reared  in  Carver,  married  Sarah  Burgess, 
a  native  of  Plymouth,  who  became  the  mother 
of  seven  children.  These  were:  Chandler, 
who  died  in  1895;  Sarah,  also  deceased; 
Sarah,  second,  who  is  the  wife  of  Charles 
Shaw;  John,  who  was  killed  at  the  second 
battle  of  Bull  Run,  in  which  he  fought  as  a 
private  in  Company  E,  Eighteenth  Regiment 
of  Massachusetts  Volunteers ;  Joseph  and  Ben- 
jamin, who  were  twins;  and  Hannah,  who 
married  Richard  VV.  Wilber,  of  Bridgewater. 
Joseph,  who  was  also  a  soldier  in  the  Federal 
army,  serving  in  the  same  regiment  with  his 
brother  John,  received  three  wounds  at  the 
second  battle  of  Bull  Run.  He  died  in  1892. 
Chandler  Robbins's  life  was  for  the  most  part 
spent  in  Carver,  where  he  was  born.  He  died 
March  27,  1895,  aged  seventy-one.  His  wife 
is  still  living. 

Benjamin  W.  Robbins,  whose  circumstances 
in  boyhood  left  him  but  few  advantages,  ac- 
quired his  education  by  his  own  individual 
efforts.  Born  and  reared  on  a  farm,  he  be- 
came in  early  life  inured  to  the  hardships  of 
agricultural  life.  Yet,  appreciating  its  inde- 
pendence, he  followed  the  precedent  of  his 
forefathers,  and  became  a  farmer.  In  i860, 
when  twenty-five  years  of  age,  the  estate  he 
now  owns  was    intrusted    to    his    charge.      It 


contains  one  hundred  and  fifty  acres  of  good 
land.  For  a  number  of  years,  besides  general 
farming  he  has  been  engaged  in  the  culture  of 
cranberries,  now  a  staijle  product  in  the  fall 
and  winter  markets.  In  1862  he  wedded  Miss 
Lydia  M.  Hammond,  who  bore  Iiim  five  chil- 
dren. These  were:  Annie  H.,  who  became 
the  wife  of  Theron  M.  Cole;  John  S. ;  Lucian 
T. ;  Evelyn  F. ;  and  Morris  F.  Evelyn  has 
been  a  student  at  the  Normal  School  at  North- 
field.  In  politics  Mr.  Robbins  is  a  Republi- 
can, and  represented  his  district  in  the  State 
legislature  of  1882-83.  In  the  capacity  of 
Fire  Warden,  which  office  he  has  held  for  a 
number  of  years,  he  has  been  very  efficient. 
He  is  an  esteemed  member  of  the  Congrega- 
tional church  of  Carver. 


~CjvERETT  T.  LINCOLN,  Deputy  Sheriff, 
JQI  auctioneer,  and  dealer  in  carriages  and 
harness,  is  one  of  the  busy  and  enter- 
prising citizens  of  Middleboro,  Mass.  He 
was  born  in  this  town,  January  16,  1851,  and 
is  the  only  son  of  William  and  Juliet  (Sher- 
man) Lincoln. 

The  Lincoln  family  is  of  English  origin. 
Among  the  early  settlers  of  Hingham,  Mass., 
were:  Thomas  Lincoln,  the  "cooper,"  who 
came  about  1635  or  1636;  Samuel  Lincoln  and 
his  brother  Thomas,  the  "weaver,"  about 
1637;  .Sergeant  Daniel,  1644-5;  Stephen 
Lincoln  and  his  brother  Thomas,  the  "hus- 
bandman," 1638;  and  Thomas  Lincoln,  the 
"miller,"  who  came  to  Massachusetts  in  1635, 
settled  first  in  Hingham,  and  some  years 
later  removed  to  Taunton.  His  three  sons  — 
Thomas,  John,  and  Samuel — were  all  resi- 
dents of  Taunton. 

Mr.  William  Lincoln's  father,  Lewis  Lin- 
coln, who  was  an  able  mechanic,  was  a  suc- 
cessful self-made  man.     He  came   to    Middle- 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


245 


boro  when  seventeen  years  of  age,  and  died 
here  at  the  age  of  eighty-six.  His  wife  died 
at  the  age  of  sixty-two.  They  had  two  chil- 
dren—  William  and  one  who  died  in  infancy. 
William  Lincoln,  like  his  father,  had  natural 
mechanical  ability.  When  twenty-one  years 
of  age,  he  started  in  the  carriage  business  in 
Middleboro,  manufacturing  and  selling,  and 
did  not  disdain  to  work  at  the  forge  himself, 
fashioning  tires  and  springs.  This  was  in  the 
days  when  carriages  were  made  mostly  by 
hand,  and  until  the  advent  of  factories  he  had 
a  large  and  lucrative  business.  Since  ma- 
chine work  became  common,  his  business  has 
been  confined  to  selling  carriages.  Mr.  Will- 
iam I^incoln,  being  in  feeble  health,  has  for 
some  time  left  the  management  of  affairs  in 
his  son's  hands.  His  wife,  whose  maiden 
name  was  Sherman,  is  a  native  of  Carver, 
Mass. 

Everett  T.  Lincoln  enjoyed  good  educa- 
tional opportunities,  taking  an  advanced 
course  of  study  at  Pierce  Academy.  At  the 
age  of  seventeen  he  went  to  work  at  his 
father's  forge,  and  for  a  number  of  years  was 
engaged  with  him  in  the  manufacture  of  car- 
riages, the  name  of  the  firm  being  L.  Lincoln 
&  Son.  He  is  an  able  business  man,  know- 
ing how  to  care  for  the  property  accumulated 
by  his  father  and  how  to  add  to  his  own  re- 
sources by  careful  investment.  He  is  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Board  of  Investment  of  the  Middle- 
boro Savings  Bank  and  one  of  the  Trustees  of 
that  institution. 

Mr.  Lincoln  married  May  7,  1871,  Miss 
Lizzie  Bartlett,  of  Plymouth,  Mass.,  daughter 
of  Frederick  Bartlett.  In  politics  he  favors 
the  Republican  side.  His  ability  and  force 
of  character  are  recognized  by  his  townsmen, 
and  he  has  been  elected  to  a  number  of  offices 
of  trust  and  authority.  He  was  Constable 
eight  years,  and  has  been  Deputy  Sheriff  two 


years  ;  and  he  was  formerly  connected  with  the 
fire  department.  He  belongs  to  Mayflower 
Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.  ;  and  to  Lodge  No. 
665,  Knights  of  Honor.  Together  with  his 
parents  he  is  an  attendant  at  the  Baptist 
church;  and,  though  he  is  not  a  church  mem- 
ber, he  is  interested  in  the  welfare  of  the  so- 
ciety, and  for  two  years  has  been  Treasurer  of 
the  Baptist  Cemetery  Association. 


/pTTo 


\  f5T  known  dry-goods  merchant  in  Hing- 
ham,  Mass.,  dealing  also  in  fancy 
goods  and  furnishings.  He  was  born  in  Bos- 
ton, July  25,  1832,  son  of  William  and  Martha 
(Milner)  Defrees.  The  family  is  of  English 
ancestry.  William,  the  father,  came  to 
America  in  early  manhood  with  his  brother,  a 
sea  captain,  who  assured  him  that  the  country 
was  a  desirable  one  to  live  in.  William  De- 
frees  was  a  baker  by  trade,  and  continued  his 
business  in  Boston.  The  maiden  name  of  his 
wife  was  Martha  Milner.  They  had  eight 
children  —  William  H.,  Maria,  Elizabeth  C, 
Martha  H.,  George  T.,  Joseph  S.,  Emily  Jane, 
and  Charlotte  M.  But  two  of  the  family  are 
living  to-day:  William  H.,  a  resident  of 
Southboro,  Mass.,  now  at  the  age  of  seventy; 
and  George  T.,  the  subject  of  this  sketch. 
The  father  died  at  the  age  of  forty-six  years, 
and  the  mother  at  fifty. 

George  T.  Defrees,  the  fifth  child  ot  his 
parents,  had  excellent  educational  privileges 
in  the  Boston  schools;  but  at  the  age  of 
fourteen,  preferring  work  to  study,  he  engaged 
to  make  himself  generally  useful  in  Charles 
Cook's  paper  store.  He  was  subsequently 
employed  by  the  Remick  Brothers,  dealers  in 
millinery  and  fancy  goods,  remaining  with 
them  for  a  number  of  years.  Later  he  worked 
for  Kinmouth  &  Co.,  dealers  in  dry  goods  and 


246 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


ribbons,  and  then  returned  for  a  time  to  Remiclv 
Brotiiers,  becoming  familiar  with  all  the  de- 
tails of  the  business.  Failing  health  obliged 
him  to  quit  work  when  the  Civil  War  broke 
out,  but  he  was  anxious  to  do  something  for 
his  country.  He  therefore  enlisted  in  the 
Hospital  Corps,  and  was  detailed  to  Colum- 
bian College  Hospital,  where  he  had  charge  of 
the  clothing  distribution.  There  he  had  a 
heart-rending  experience  of  the  horrors  of  war; 
and,  being  obliged  to  sleep  in  a  tent,  he  con- 
tracted neuralgia,  from  which  he  suffered  for 
seven  years.  In  1867  he  began  the  dry-goods 
business  for  himself  in  Brookline,  Mass.;  but, 
ill  health  compelling  him  to  abandon  it,  he 
sold  out.  As  soon  as  he  was  sufficiently  re- 
cuperated, he  embarked  in  a  similar  enterprise 
in  Quincy,  Mass.  After  a  successful  busi- 
ness career  of  eight  years  in  that  town  he 
came  to  Hingham,  May  12,  1884,  where  he 
continues  the  same  line  of  trade,  with  which 
he  is  thoroughly  familiar. 

Twenty-nine  years  ago  Mr.  Defrees  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Frances  Daggett, 
daughter  of  Warren  and  Clara  (Gould)  Dag- 
gett. Her  ancestors  came  from  Maine.  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Daggett  had  three  other  daughters: 
Eliza,  deceased;  Addie,  who  resides  in  Ash- 
mont ;  and  Emma,  a  resident  of  Boston. 

Mr.  Defrees  has  uniformly  cast  his  vote  for 
the  Republican  party.  Fraternally,  he  be- 
longs to  Tremont  Lodge,  Independent  Order 
of  Odd  Fellows,  of  Boston,  in  which  he  has 
for  some  time  officiated  as  Chaplain.  He  is 
also  identified  in  the  membership  of  Massasoit 
Encampment,  the  Merrimont  Lodge,  No.  617, 
Knights  of  Honor,  and  the  New  England 
Accident  Insurance  Company.  In  religion  he 
is  an  Episcopalian.  Personally,  he  is  a  genial 
gentleman,  who  is  an  important  social  and 
commercial  factor  in  this  town.  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Defrees  reside  on  Hersey  Street. 


MOS  B.  PAUN,  M.D.,  has  been  for 
nearly  twenty  years  a  resident  physi- 
cian of  Middleboro,  and  during  his 
term  of  active  professional  work  has  won  the 
regard  and  respect  of  his  townsmen.  He  was 
born  in  New  Bedford,  Mass.,  October  18, 
1846,  a  son  of  John  and   Sarah  (Tripp)  Paun. 

His  father,  John  Paun,  was  born  in  Kings- 
ton, R.I.  He  was  engaged  for  a  number  of 
years  in  manufacturing  and  refining  oil  in 
New  Bedford,  making  a  specialty  of  the  fine 
oil  obtained  from  the  sperm  whale.  The 
latter  part  of  his  life  was  spent  on  a  farm  in 
Lakeville,  where  he  died  at  the  age  of  seventy- 
seven  in  1872.  His  wife  was  born  in  1801  in 
Fairhaven,  Mass.,  and  was  a  daughter  of  Cap- 
tain Gilbert  Tripp,  who  was  master  of  a 
vessel,  and  was  also  a  skilful  cooper.  Mrs. 
Paun  died  at  the  age  of  eighty-four.  She  was 
the  mother  of  nine  children,  namely:  Sarah, 
William,  and  Benjamin,  deceased;  John  H., 
living  in  Lakeville;  Deborah,  Charles,  David, 
and  Ellen,  deceased;  and  Amos  B.,  whose 
name  stands  at  the  head  of  this  sketch. 

Amos  B.  Paun  entered  learning's  gate 
through  the  common  schools  of  New  Bedford. 
He  was  eight  years  old  when  his  parents  re- 
moved to  Lakeville;  and  there  he  worked  on 
the  farm  for  a  while,  subsequently  attending 
Grossman  Sisters'  School  and  Pierce  Academy 
in  Middleboro.  A  little  later,  after  he  had 
begun  the  work  of  life,  he  had  the  misfortune 
to  fracture  his  ankle;  and  this  circumstance, 
curiously  enough,  led  to  his  adopting  the  pro- 
fession of  medicine.  At  the  time  the  acci- 
dent happened  he  had  a  good  position,  which 
he  filled  with  such  efficiency  that  it  seemed 
likely  he  wouU!  make  his  mark  in  the  com- 
mercial world ;  but,  now  that  he  was  unable  to 
stand,  he  was  obliged  to  give  it  up.  The  care 
of  the  broken  ankle  was  a  subject  that  caused 
great   anxiety.       His   father    and    the    family 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


247 


physician  were  afraid  that,  if  bones  were  taken 
out  and  other  painful  processes  entered  into, 
the  patient  would  die;  but  the  young  man  was 
not  satisfied  with  such  a  diagnosis,  and  began 
to  study  for  himself.  The  trouble  subse- 
quently yielded  to  proper  surgical  treatment. 
Following  his  first  investigations  in  the  realm 
of  anatomical  and  medical  science,  he  read 
with  Dr.  Charles  H.  Thomas  for  four  years, 
and  in  1865  entered  the  University  of  Penn- 
sylvania, where  he  was  graduated  cum  laiide  in 
1869.  He  was  an  enthusiastic  student,  and 
had  the  best  of  special  instruction.  In  Sep- 
tember, 1869,  he  opened  an  office  in  East 
Taunton,  Mass.,  where  he  remained  two  years; 
and  after  that  he  was  in  North  Middleboro 
four  years.  In  1877  he  removed  to  Middle- 
boro, and  for  some  time  his  home  and  office 
have  been  at"io8  Oak  Street.  He  is  a  skilful 
and  successful  physician  and  surgeon,  and  has 
a  large  practice. 

Dr.  Paun  married  Miss  Deborah  A.  Thomp- 
son, a  native  of  Thompson's  Mills,  111., 
daughter  of  Isaac  and  Anna  (Thompson) 
Thompson,  and  has  one  son,  Edgar  Amos, 
born  February  24,  1882.  Mrs.  Paun  is  a  de- 
scendant of  John  Thomson,  or  Thompson,  who 
came  to  Plymouth  in  1635,  it  is  said,  and  who 
married  Mary  Cook,  daughter  of  F"rapcis 
Cook,  one  of  the  "Mayflower"  Pilgrims. 

In  politics  Dr.  Paun  favors  the  Republican 
side,  and  while  residing  in  East  Taunton  he 
took  a  lively  interest  in  local  matters;  but 
his  professional  work  now  demands  all  his 
attention.  A  genial  and  hospitable  gentle- 
man, he  is  very  popular  in  society,  and  is  a 
prominent  member  of  several  fraternal  organi- 
zations. He  is  a  Mason ;  is  Past  Chief  Patri- 
arch of  Colfa.x  Encampment,  Independent 
Order  of  Odd  Fellows;  belongs  to  Sippican 
Tribe,  Improved  Order  of  Red  Men,  of  New 
Bedford;    to    New    Bedford    Lodge,    No.    J},, 


Benevolent  and  Protective  Order  of  Elks; 
and  to  the  Commercial  Club  of  Middleboro. 
Mrs.  Paun  is  a  member  of  the  Baptist  church, 
and  an  active  worker  in  the  Women's  Chris- 
tian Temperance  Union. 


ACOB  OSBORN  SANBORN,  the  effi- 
cient principal  of  the  Hingham  High 
School,  was  born  in  Loudon  Centre, 
N.H.,  on  July  6,  1840,  son  of  Daniel  L.  and 
Ada  S.  (Moore)  Sanborn.  His  great-grand- 
father. Captain  John  Sanborn,  a  native  of 
Kingston,  N.H.,  was  a  farmer,  and  one  of  the 
early  settlers  in  Loudon,  N.H.,  where  he 
owned  and  cleared  many  acres  of  land.  He 
served  in  the  old  State  militia.  He  was 
appointed  on  September  5,  1775,  F"irst  Lieu- 
tenant of  the  Tenth  Company,  Thirteenth 
Regiment  of  militia  in  the  colony  of  New 
Hampshire;  and  his  commission  is  in  the 
possession  of  his  grandson,  the  subject  of  this 
sketch.  He  subquently  became  Captain.  He 
married  Ruth  Rand,  and  they  had  five  chil- 
dren who  grew  to  maturity.  Captain  Sanborn 
and  his  wife  lived  to  a  good  old  age. 

Edmund,  their  youngest  child,  was  a  farmer 
and  miller  in  his  native  town  of  Loudon, 
N.H.,  for  many  years.  In  politics  he  was  a 
Democrat  and  officially  prominent,  serving 
the  town  as  its  Representative  to  the  legisla- 
ture. In  religion  he  was  a  Free  Will  Baptist. 
His  wife,  whose  maiden  name  was  Ruth 
Griffin,  was  a  native  of  Loudon.  They  had 
nine  children,  five  of  whom  are  now  living. 
Mrs.  Ruth  G.  Sanborn  lived  to  be  over  eighty, 
while  her  husband  attained  the  advanced  age 
of  ninety-three. 

Daniel  L.,  the  third  child  of  Edmund  and 
Ruth  (Griffin)  Sanborn,  was  born  in  Loudon, 
N.  H.,  where  he  was  engaged  in  farming  all 
his    life.      In   politics    he   was   a    Republican; 


248 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


and  he  served  as  Constable  for  many  years, 
being  also  Captain  of  the  State  militia.  He 
married  Ada  S.  Moore,  and  they  were  the 
parents  of  six  children,  namely:  Jacob"  O. ; 
Ruth  J.,  deceased;  Joseph  T.,  now  residing 
on  the  old  homestead,  and  whose  wife,  Fannie 
Cleverly,  died  without  children;  Charles  F. , 
a  resident  of  Loudon,  N.H.  ;  Mary  E.  Bus- 
well,  wife  of  John  L.  Buswell,  of  Loudon, 
N.H.,  and  mother  of  two  children  —  Abbie  E. 
and  Frank  W.  ;  and  Ada  Estelle  Sanborn, 
who  died  young.  The  father  and  mother  at- 
tended the  Free  Will  Baptist  church.  They 
lived  to  the  age  of  fifty-six  and  sixty-five  re- 
spectively. 

Jacob  O.  Sanborn,  after  acquiring  his  early 
education  in  Loudon,  N.H.,  fitted  for  college 
at  New  Hampton,  and  was  graduated  at  Dart- 
mouth College  in  the  class  of  1864.  The 
year  following  he  took  charge  of  the  South 
Hinghara  Grammar  School,  remaining  until 
the  spring  of  1866,  when  he  accepted  the  man- 
agement of  the  Cradock  Grammar  School  in 
Medford,  Mass.,  which  position  he  continued 
to  fill  until  the  fall  of  186S.  From  that  time 
until  1872  he  had  charge  of  the  Winchester 
Grammar  School.  Mr.  Sanborn  then  accepted 
the  principalship  of  the  Hingham  High 
School,  which  he  has  ably  filled  for  twenty- 
four  years.  In  politics  he  affiliates  with  the 
Republican  party.  He  is  President  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees  of  the  Hingham  Public 
Library. 

On  October  30,  1869,  Mr.  Sanborn  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Louise  Attelia 
Slader,  daughter  of  Edward  and  Almira  A. 
(Hunton)  Slader,  being  the  only  child  now 
living.  Mr.  Sanborn  is  highly  esteemed  as  a 
citizen  and  a  teacher.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Sanborn 
are  both  members  of  the  Congregational 
church  at  Hingham,  in  which  he  has  officiated 
as  Deacon  for  the  past  ten  years. 


ON.  GEORGE  M.  HOOPER,  of 
Bridgewater,  Mass.,  manufacturer  of 
building  brick,  is  one  of  the  well- 
known  public  men  of  this  vicinity,  having 
held  various  town  officers  and  served  two 
terms  in  the  State  legislature.  He  was  born 
in  Bridgewater,  September  i,  1S38,  and  is  a 
son  of  the  late  Mitchell  and  Jane  (Mitchell) 
Hooper. 

His  first  ancestor  in  this  country  came  from 
England  in  1635,  and  settled  in  what  is  now 
Wakefield,  Mass.  From  the  immigrant's 
youngest  son,  John  Hooper,  who  located  in 
Bridgewater  in  1700,  George  M.  Hooper  is 
a  direct  descendant,  in  the  sixth  generation. 
The  family  has  produced  soldiers  as  well  as 
financiers  and  statesmen,  Hezekiah  Hooper, 
Mr.  Hooper's  great-grandfather,  having  fought 
in  the  Revolutionary  War,  and  Joseph  Hooper, 
his  uncle,  in  the  War  of  181 2. 

Mitchell  Hooper  was  born  in  Bridgewater. 
An  active  Republican,  he  represented  this 
district  in  the  State  legislature  in  1861.  He 
died  October  15,  1886.  His  wife  was  born  in 
Enfield,  Mass.  She,  too,  was  of  Revolution- 
ary stock,  being  a  grand-daughter  of  Thomas 
Mitchell,  who  was  a  soldier  in  the  Continental 
army  under  Washington.  Mrs.  Hooper  died 
in  1 89 1.  Of  the  children  born  to  this  couple, 
three  are  living:  George  M.,  the  subject  of 
the  present  outline  sketch;  Lucia  H.,  wife  of 
Henry  T.  Pratt,  of  Bridgewater;  and  Eliza- 
beth L.,  widow  of  Frederick  A.  Barker,  now 
residing  in  Cambridge,  Mass. 

George  M.  Hooper  attended  the  Bridgewater 
Academy  and  Pierce  Academy  at  Middleboro, 
and  was  graduated  from  the  State  Normal 
School  in  this  town  in  1857.  After  teaching 
school  for  a  year,  he  engaged  in  the  manufact- 
ure of  building  brick,  and  has  followed  it  up 
to  the  present  time.  For  a  number  of  years 
he   has   served  as   clerk    and    Trustee  of    the 


GEORGE    M.    HCOPER. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


Bridgewater  Savings  Bank ;  and  he  has  been 
Treasurer  and  is  now  Secretary  of  the  Pl}m- 
outh  County  Agricultural  Society. 

Mr.  Hooper  has  been  twice  married.  His 
first  wife,  whose  maiden  name  was  Mary  E. 
Josselyn,  was  the  mother  of  eight  children, 
six  of  whom  are  living,  namely:  Jane  M.,  wife 
of  Emery  E.  Kent,  of  Salem,  Mass. ;  Louise, 
wife  of  Arthur  D.  Ferguson,  of  Allston, 
Mass.;  George  M.  and  Frederick  VV. ,  of 
Bridgewater;  Mary  F.,  a  graduate  of  the 
Bridgewater  Normal  School,  who  is  teaching 
in  a  private  school  in  Elizabeth,  N.J.;  and 
Mitchell,  residing  with  his  father.  The 
present  Mrs.  Hooper  was  before  marriage  Miss 
Catherine  Mitchell,  of  Bridgewater. 

Mr.  Hooper  is  a  strong  Republican  in  poli- 
tics. He  represented  Bridgewater  and  East 
and  West  Bridgewater  in  the  State  legislature 
in  1 888  and  i8go;  and  for  several  years  he 
has  been  a  member  of  the  town  School  Com- 
mittee, presiding  for  three  years  as  Chairman 
of  the  Board.  A  prominent  Mason,  he  be- 
longs to  Fellowship  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M., 
of  Bridgewater,  of  which  he  is  a  Past  Master; 
Harmony  Chapter,  Royal  Arch  Masons,  of  the 
same  place,  of  which  he  is  a  Past  High  Priest; 
and  Bay  State  Commandery,  Knights  Tem- 
plars, of  Brockton.  He  is  connected  with  the 
New  Jerusalem  church  (Swedenborgian). 
Mr.  Hooper  and  his  famil\-  are  esteemed  mem- 
bers of  the  community  in  which  they  dwell, 
prominent  in  all  the  important  social  events 
in  Bridsewater. 


Yp)l  ENRY    D.    ALLEN,    who    has    been 

r^n  identified  with  the  agricultural  in- 
Ji^  V^  ^  terests  of  Plymouth  County  through- 
out his  active  life,  was  born  March  9,  1824, 
in  Marion,  on  the  farm  where  his  father, 
Reuben    Allen,    was    born,    lived,    and    died. 


His  great-grandfather,  John  Allen,  settled 
here  in  Colonial  days.  Weston  Allen,  the 
paternal  grandfather,  purchased  and  improved 
the  Allen  homestead,  and  here  reared  his  chil- 
dren to  those  habits  of  industry  and  economy 
that  afterward  made  them  good  and  valued 
citizens. 

Reuben  Allen  succeeded  to  the  ownership 
of  the  ancestral  acres,  and  was  chiefly  engaged 
in  agricultural  pursuits.  He  married  Phoebe 
B.  Blankenship,  who  bore  him  seven  children; 
namely,  Polly  H.,  Matilda  L.,  Sallie  S., 
Henry  D.,  George  F.,  Charles  Weston,  and 
Lorenzo  T.  Charles  Weston  died  at  the  age 
of  five  years. 

Henry  D.  Allen  was  bred  and  educated  in 
his  native  town.  He  attended  the  public 
schools  during  his  boyhood,  and  on  the  home 
farm  received  a  practical  training  in  agricult- 
ure. He  resided  on  the  old  homestead  prop- 
erty until  1894,  when  he  removed  to  his 
present  snug  farm,  where  he  is  engaged  in 
general  agriculture  on  a  small  scale.  Mr. 
Allen  has  always  taken  an  active  and  intelli- 
gent interest  in  all  matters  pertaining  to  the 
town  and  county,  and  has  ably  served  the  town 
in  its  most  important  offices.  For  eight  years 
he  was  Selectman,  Assessor,  and  Overseer  of 
the  Poor,  a  member  of  the  School  Committee 
for  three  years,  and  Highway  Surveyor  for  a 
number  of  terms.  Politically,  he  is  a  stanch 
adherent  of  the  Republican  'party.  While  a 
member  of  no  religious  organization,  he  is  in 
sympathy  with  the  work  of  all  the  churches. 

On  June  10,  1847,  Mr.  Allen  married  Miss 
Eliza  W.  Delano,  a  daughter  of  Benjamin  and 
Thankful  (Delano)  Delano.  His  wife  has 
had  four  children,  as  follows:  Charles  H., 
who  died  March  13,  1850;  Mary  O. ,  whose 
death  occurred  November  2,  1863;  Annie  D., 
the  only  surviving  child;  and  Henry  T.,  who 
passed  away  November  7,   1888. 


252 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


T^HARLES  HAWKES  MARBLE,  an 
I  Sp  enterprising  member  of  the  well- 
VJl,^  Itnown  firm  of  Ricli  &  Marble, 
plumbers  and  hardware  merchants  of  Hing- 
ham,  Mass.,  was  born  in  Hingham  Centre  on 
July  II,  1858.  He  is  the  youngest  son  of 
Demerick  and  Deborah  H.  (Groce)  Marble, 
and  is  of  the  seventh  generation  in  descent 
from  Gershom  Marble,  the  original  progenitor 
of  the  family  in  Hingham  and  vicinity. 

He  was  a  mariner  in  early  manhood,  and 
a  resident  of  Charlestown,  Mass.  He  was 
twice  married.  His  first  wife,  Mary,  died  in 
Charlestown  on  December  30,  1694,  when  she- 
was  a  young  woman;  and  he  subsequently 
removed  to  Hingham,  where  he  resided  on 
Beechwood  Street.  In  Scituate,  Mass.,  in 
1697  he  was  married  to  Waitstill  Ingle,  who 
died  in  Hingham,  November  14,  1728.  Ger- 
shom Marble  died  August  6,  1725,  at  the  age 
of  si.xty. 

David,  fourth  child  of  Gershom  and  Wait- 
still  (Ingle)  Marble,  was  born  about  the  year 
1706.  On  December  27,  1732,  he  married 
Abigail  Joy,  who  was  born  in  Hingham, 
March  22,  1713,  daughter  of  Prince  and  Abi- 
gail (Tower)  Joy.  Four  children  were  the 
fruit  of  this  union.  Luther,  the  second  child, 
was  born  in  1735.  He  married  Priscilla 
James,  daughter  of  Thomas  and  Hannah  (Hol- 
brook)  James.  She  was  baptized  May  10, 
1 741.  Luther  Marble  was  a  mariner,  and  met 
the  fate  of  many  that  do  business  in  great 
waters,  being  lost  at  sea.  His  eldest  child, 
who  bore  the  name  of  James,  was  born  in 
Hingham,  November  3,  1760,  and  was  married 
June  7,  1785,  to  Fanny  Stodder.  Her  parents 
were  Reuben  and  Elizabeth  (Glover)  Stodder. 
She  was  born  in  Hingham,  June  10,  1766; 
and  after  her  marriage  to  Mr.  Marble  they 
resided  on  South  Street.  James  Marble  also 
was  a  seafaring  man.      He   died  on   April  26, 


1 801,  at  the  age  of  forty.  By  his  matrimonial 
alliance  there  were  seven  children.  His 
widow  was  married  on  April  24,  1802,  to 
Reuben  Thurston,  who  lived  but  a  few  years 
after;  and  on  June  12,  1808,  She  married  her 
third  husband,  John  Braslin.  She  passed 
away  August  3,  1833. 

Demerick,  third  son  of  James  and  Fanny 
(Stodder)  Marble,  was  born  in  Hingham,  July 
18,  1794.  On  December  7,  18 18,  he  was 
married  to  Olive  Easterbrook,  daughter  of 
Gorham  and  Susanna  (Gorham)  Easterbrook. 
She  was  born  in  Barnstable,  Mass.,  October 
28,  1798,  and  died  on  December  24,  1868. 
Demerick  Marble  was  lost  at  sea  March  30, 
1823,  while  in  command  of  the  schooner 
"Globe."  He  was  the  paternal  grandfather  of 
the  subject  of  this  biography. 

His  son,  Demerick  Marble,  Jr.,  was  born  in 
Hingham,  October  7,  1819.  After  availing 
himself  of  the  educational  opportunities 
afforded  by  the  common  schools  of  that  time, 
at  the  age  of  fourteen  and  a  half  years  he 
went  to  Boston  to  learn  the  painter's  trade. 
A  year  later,  however,  he  returned  to  Hing- 
ham, and  worked  at  the  carriage-maker's  trade. 
In  1849  he  formed  a  partnership  with  Bela  H. 
Whiton,  which  lasted  for  forty-two  consecu- 
tive years,  when  Mr.  Marble  retired  from  the 
arena  of  business,  having  been  engaged  in  all 
fifty-si.K  years  in  the  carriage-making  industry. 

In  politics  he  formerly  affiliated  with  the 
Free  Soil  party;  but  since  the  formation  of 
the  Republican  party  he  has  been  identified 
with  the  latter  organization,  invariably  casting 
his  vote  for  Republican  candidates.  An  active 
and  public-spirited  citizen,  Mr.  Demerick 
Marble  has  served  efficiently  in  various  town 
and  State  offices.  For  many  years  he  was  on 
the  School  Committee,  for  nine  years  he  was  a 
Selectman,  and  he  is  at  present  Town  Auditor. 
In  1859  and    i860  he  was   Representative   to 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


253 


the  State  legislature.  Since  1877  he  has 
been  Trustee  of  the  Hingham  Institution  for 
Savings,  and  since  1871  a  Director  of  Hing- 
ham Mutual  I'ire  Insurance  Company. 

Fraternally,  Mr.  Marble  is  identified  with 
Old  Colony  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  having 
taken  the  third  degree  in  March,  1859;  and 
for  over  half  a  century  he  has  also  been  a 
member  of  Old  Colony  Lodge,  Independent 
Order  of  Odd  Fellows.  Reared  by  a  Baptist 
mother,  he  was  thoroughly  indoctrinated  in 
that  religious  faith.  He  subsequently  be- 
came a  Universalist,  and  is  ever  ready  and 
willing  to  state  intelligently  the  reason  for 
his  belief.  He  is  a  man  of  strong  convic- 
tions, but  is  not  opinionated.  He  is  an 
attendant  of  the  old  Unitarian  church  in 
Hingham.  Mr.  Marble  has  accumulated  a 
good  property,  and  stands  high  socially. 

Mr.  Demerick  Marble  and  Deborah  H, 
Groce,  who  was  born  in  Hingham  on  June  25, 
1823,  daughter  of  Jacob  and  Olive  F.  (Burr) 
Groce,  were  married  on  July  31,  1842.  They 
became  the  parents  of  four  sons.  William 
Demerick,  the  eldest,  who  was  born  in  We\-- 
mouth,  Mass.,  March  15,  1845,  died  in  Hing- 
ham on  May  8,  1850.  The  second,  Thomas 
Burr,  born  in  Hingham,  November  2,  1848, 
died  October  30,  1851.  Arthur  Demerick, 
the  third  son,  now  city  engineer  of  Lawrence, 
Mass.,  was  born  in  Hingham,  April  10,  1853. 
He  is  a  natural  artist,  and  is  also  the  family 
historian,  having  compiled  a  number  of  inter- 
esting biographical  sketches.  He  married 
Mary  A.  Richardson,  and  has  one  daughter, 
Marion  Wright  Marble. 

Charles  Hawkes  Marble,  the  youngest  child 
of  Demerick  and  Deborah  H.  (Groce)  Marble, 
was  born  in  Hingham  on  July  11,  1858.  He 
attended  the  public  schools,  and  was  subse- 
quently graduated  at  the  Hingham  High 
School,  standing  well    in  scholarship.      For  a 


time  he  ofificiated  as  Assistant  Postmaster  at 
Hingham  Centre,  and  was  assistant  to  the  Li- 
brarian of  the  Hingham  Public  Library.  He 
then  entered  the  employ  of  I.  W.  Loring,  to 
gain  an  insight  into  the  mysteries  of  plumbing 
and  tinsmithing,  remaining  with  him  eighteen 
months.  He  afterward  returned  to  the  post- 
ofifice  for  another  period  of  service.  In  1879 
his  present  partnership  with  Atkins  S.  Rich 
was  formed,  the  enterprise  having  been  estab- 
lished by  Mr.  Rich  five  years  previously.  Mr. 
Marble's  business  tact  and  popularity  make 
him  an  important  factor  of  the  concern.  They 
employ  from  si-^c  to  eight  men,  their  work  cov- 
ering an  extensive  territory.  In  1880  they 
bought  a  new  business  plant  to  better  meet  the 
demands  of  their  steadily  increasing  trade. 

In  politics  Mr.  Marble  affiliates  with  the 
Republican  party.  For  five  years  he  officiated 
on  the  Board  of  Registration  for  voters,  then 
resigning  to  become  a  member  of  the  Board  of 
Health,  of  which  he  is  Chairman.  He  is  a 
Director  of  Hingham  Co-operative  Bank,  and 
for  the  past  three  years  he  has  served  as  Presi- 
dent of  the  Hingham  Centre  Croquet  Club. 

On  July  17,  1S84,  Mr.  Charles  H.  Marble 
was  married  to  Estella  L.,  daughter  of  Reuben 
and  Sarah  J.  (Dyer)  Sprague,  of  Hingham 
Centre,  and  a  descendant  of  William  Sprague, 
who  settled  in  Hingham  about  1636.  Mr. 
Marble  is  very  prominent  in  Masonic  circles, 
being  Past  Master  of  Old  Colony  Lodge,  A.  F. 
&  A.  M.  While  he  was  ?naster  in  1892  the 
lodge  celebrated  its  one  hunuiedth  anniver- 
sary, the  success  of  which  was  largely  due  to 
his  efforts.  A  book,  entitled  "One  Hundred 
Years  of  Old  Colony  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.," 
contains  an  interesting  account  of  this  occa- 
sion, and  also  a  fine  portrait  of  Mr.  Marble. 
It  is  the  testimony  of  brother  Masons  that 
Worshipful  Master  Marble's  work,  both  in  the 
lodge    room    and    on    public    occasions,    was 


254 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


masonically  perfect  and  very  impressive.  In 
religion  he  is  a  Universalist  in  belief,  but 
with  his  wife  affiliates  with  the  First  Parish 
Unitarian  Church,  of  which  he  is  Treasurer. 


'RANKLIN  E.  NESMITH,  manufact- 
urer of  paper  boxes,  is  one  of  the  suc- 
cessful young  business  men  of  Rock- 
land, Mass.  He  was  born  in  Tewksbury, 
Middlesex  County,  Mass.,  November  9,  1861. 
His  parents  were  Thomas  and  Frances  A. 
(Crane)  Nesmith,  the  former  a  native  of  New 
Hampshire,  the  latter  of  Connecticut. 
Thomas  Nesmith  was  engaged  in  farming  for 
a  number  of  years,  and  lived  in  Tewksbury 
and  in  Lowell.  He  died  in  August,  1895, 
aged  seventy-four.  He  had  three  children, 
namely:  Franklin  E.,  the  subject  of  this 
sketch;  Henry  I.,  in  Lynn,  treasurer  of  the 
Lynn  Box  Company;  and  lilizabeth  F.,  wife  of 
Amasa  Harrington,  of  Waltham,  Mass. 

Franklin  E.  Nesmith  passed  his  youth  in  his 
native  town  and  in  the  city  of  Lowell,  acquir- 
ing a  good  practical  education.  As  soon  as 
his  studies  were  finished,  he  went  to  work  in  a 
box  factory  in  Lowell,  and  in  course  of  time 
learned  all  the  details  involved  in  the  manu- 
facture of  paper  boxes.  He  then  took  charge 
of  the  business  which  is  now  under  his  control 
in  Rockland,  and  his  factory  on  Grove  Street 
is  the  centre  of  a  large  trade.  He  manufact- 
ures principally  boxes  for  shoes,  and  during 
the  twelve  years  that  he  has  been  in  business 
has  supplied  a  large  demand,  keeping  a  num- 
ber of  hands  employed,  and  weathering  suc- 
cessfully financial  crises  like  the  one  which  is 
at  present  vexing  the  public. 

In  1887  Mr.  Nesmith  was  united  in  mar- 
riage with  Miss  Hattie  F.  Lawrence,  of  Rock- 
land. He  has  a  pleasant  home  at  18  Union 
Street.      In  political   preference   he   is   a   Re- 


publican. He  is  a  Mason,  belonging  to  John 
Cutter  Lodge  of  Abington;  Pilgrim  Royal 
Arch  Chapter;  and  Old  Colony  Commandery, 
Knights  Templars,  of  Abington;  and,  as  an 
Odd  Fellow,  he  is  a  member  of  Standish 
Lodge,  No.  177,  of  Rockland.  He  is  very 
popular  as  a  member  of  society,  and  as  a  busi- 
ness man  has  displayed  much  ability. 


/STkORGE  a.  BEAL,  of  Abington, 
Vp  I  Treasurer  of  the  Savings  Bank,  was 
Town  Treasurer  twenty -five  years  in 
succession,  and  has  been  identified  with  the 
welfare  of  the  place  for  a  much  longer  period. 
He  was  born  in  Abington,  December  21,  1830. 
His  parents,  Benjamin  and  Dorothy  B.  (Nash) 
Bcal,  were  natives  and  lifelong  residents  of 
this  town. 

His  mother  died  in  1837,  at  the  early  age 
of  thirty-three;  and  his  father,  who  was  by 
occupation  a  boot  and  shoemaker,  died  in 
1888,  at  the  age  of  eighty-eight  years. 

George  A.  Beal  was  given  good  educational 
opportunities,  completing  his  studies  at  a  pri- 
vate academy  in  his  native  town.  He  em- 
barked in  the  boot  and  shoe  business  in  1857, 
and  was  prosperously  engaged  in  this  manu- 
facturing industry  for  nearly  thirty  years.  In 
company  with  Joshua  L.  Nash,  under  the  firm 
name  of  Nash  &  Beal,  he  carried  it  on  by  the 
steam  factory  system,  the  firm  being  one  of  the 
first  to  use  steam  power  in  this  section  of  the 
State.  From  1872  to  1883  Mr.  Beal  was  a 
member  of  the  Board  of  Investment  of  the 
Savings  Bank,  and  in  1884  he  retired  from  the 
shoe  business  to  enter  upon  his  duties  as 
Treasurer  of  the  bank.  Since  July  of  that 
year  he  has  filled  this  responsible  position, 
giving  entire  satisfaction  to  all  concerned,  and 
establishing  a  firm  hold  upon  the  confidence 
of  the  community. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


2SS 


Mr.  Beal  married  three  sisters,  members  of 
an  old  and  prominent  family  of  Plymouth 
County,  which  originally  settled  in  Wey- 
mouth. In  1852  he  was  united  to  Helen  M. 
Reed,  who  died  January  30,  1861,  leaving  one 
son,  Herbert  A.  In  1864  he  was  married  to 
Lucretia  A.  Reed,  by  whom  he  had  two  chil- 
dren—  George  C.  and  Charles  A.  She  died 
February  2,  1885.  In  1886  he  married  Flor- 
ence L.  Reed,  who  has  no  children.  Mr. 
Beal  was  Selectman  and  Town  Clerk  of  Ab- 
ington  for  ten  years,  and,  as  stated  above. 
Town  Treasurer  twenty-five  years ;  and  he  is 
also  Treasurer  of  the  Old  Colony  Command- 
ery.  Knights  Templars.  He  is  a  regular  at- 
tendant of  the  Congregational  church. 


-j^TOVENDON    L.    HOWARD,  a  retired 
f^\       farmer    of     Brockton,     was     born     in 

Ji®  V  ^  Bridgewater,  March  15,  1S21,  son 
of  Sidney  and  Sally  (Littlefield)  Howard. 
His  paternal  grandfather  was  Daniel  Howard, 
Jr.,  a  Justice  of  the  Peace.  He  had  ten  chil- 
dren, of  whom  Sidney,  born  in  1790,  was  the 
eighth.  Sidney  Howard  was  engaged  in  shoe- 
making  for  some  years,  and  also  owned  and 
worked  a  small  farm.  A  Republican  in  poli- 
tics, he  served  as  Constable  for  a  number  of 
years.  His  wife  was  a  daughter  of  Major 
Samuel  Littlefield,  of  East  Stoughton.  She 
became  the  mother  of  four  children:  Hoven- 
don,  the  subject  of  this  biography;  John  S. ; 
Nathan  Capen ;  and  Vesta.  John  S.  has 
passed  away;  Nathan  Capen  resides  at  Cam- 
pello;  and  Vesta  married  F.  W.  Hatch,  of 
Marshfield.  The  father  died  at  the  age  of 
sixty-three  years,  the  mother  surviving  until 
her  seventy-seventh  year. 

Hovendon  L.  Howard  was  educated  in  the 
common  schools  of  his  native  town.  At  the 
age  of  twelve  he  began  to  learn   shoemaking. 


which  trade  he  subsequently  followed  for 
twenty-two  years.  He  then  turned  his  atten- 
tion to  farming,  which  occupation  he  pursued 
until  his  retirement  from  active  labor.  He 
owns  one  hundred  acres  of  land,  which  is  at 
present  under  the  management  of  his  son,  J. 
Capen  Howard.  In  September,  1846,  he  mar- 
ried Emily  J.,  daughter  of  Sumner  French,  of 
Turner,  Me.  By  her  he  has  had  six  children, 
four  of  whom  are  now  living  —  Sidney, 
Charles  A.,  J.  Capen,  and  Ellis  C.  The  two 
deceased  are:  Sumner  F.,  who  died  in  1865; 
and  Clinton  F.,  who  died  July  8,  1896. 
Three  of  the  children  reside  in  this  city.  In 
politics  Mr.  Howard  is  a  Republican. 


WALTER  F.  CLE/ 
known  city  offic 


AVELAND,  a  well- 
icial  of  Brockton,  was 
born  at  Franklin,  Mass.,  P"ebruary 
17,  1830,  son  of  Albert  and  Susan  (Daniels) 
Cleaveland.  Bela  Cleveland,  the  father  of 
Albert,  was  born  at  Medfield,  Mass.,  and  died 
on  May  20,  1832.  He  married  Hannah 
Adams,  of  Medfield,  and  they  had  a  family  of 
eight  children,  four  boys  and  four  girls,  of 
whom  but  one  is  living.  Albert  Cleaveland, 
the  eldest  child,  went  to  California  in  1849, 
where  he  spent  the  remainder  of  his  life,  and 
died  when  about  seventy-six  years  of  age. 
Susan  (Daniels)  Cleaveland,  his  wife,  was 
born  in  Franklin,  Mass.,  October  6,  1808,  and 
was  a  descendant  of  one  of  the  early  New  Eng- 
land families.  She  died  February  6,  i83.'i. 
They  were  the  parents  of  two  children  —  Wal- 
ter F.  and  a  boy  that  died  in  infancy. 

Left  motherless  when  but  four  years  old, 
Walter  F.  Cleaveland,  within  a  year  after, 
went  to  live  with  his  paternal  grandmother. 
At  the  age  of  ten  he  accompanied  his  father  to 
Woonsocket  Falls,  and  later  to  Providence, 
R.  I.,  attending  the  common  schools  in  the  dif- 


^56 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


ferent  places  in  which  he  lived.  He  then 
learned  the  sash  and  blind  business,  at  which 
he  worked  in  Providence  for  about  four  years, 
with  his  uncle  at  East  Freetown  until  1856, 
and  in  New  Bedford  until  September,  1859. 
Removing  from  there  to  North  Bridgewater, 
now  Brockton,  he  followed  his  trade  for  about 
two  years  more,  and  then  went  into  the  ice, 
wood,  and  teaming  business,  as  a  member  of 
the  firm,  Daniel  Eames  &  Co.  At  the  end  of 
three  years  he  purchased  his  partner's  interest, 
and  carried  on  the  business  alone  until  the 
spring  of  1883,  when  he  sold  out  to  Wallace 
C.  Flagg.  He  ne.xt  built  a  shop,  and  for  four 
years  did  wood  sawing. 

In  1 85 1  Mr.  Cleaveland  married  Marietta 
H.  Whipple,  daughter  of  Amos  and  Rosella 
Whipple,  of  Cumberland,  Mass.  She  died 
some  years  later,  and  Mr.  Cleaveland  then 
married  Mary  E.  Chipman,  of  Sandwich, 
Mass.,  who  died  October  21,  1884.  There 
were  six  children  by  his  first  union,  namely: 
Susan  L.,  who  died  when  two  years  of  age; 
Albert  A.,  who  married  Eva  Cook,  of  Brock- 
ton, resides  in  Brockton,  and  is  employed  in 
the  shoe  shop;  Frances  R.,  who  married 
Charles  A.  Braley,  of  Brockton;  Ullian  G. , 
who  died  at  the  age  of  five  years;  Henry  W. , 
who  married  Helen  Ransom,  and  works  in  the 
Brockton  shoe  shop;  and  Carrie  A.,  who  lives 
with  her  father.  In  1879  Mr.  Cleaveland, 
who  was  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Selectmen, 
became  a  member  of  the  Building  Committee. 
He  served  on  the  Board  of  City  Water  Com- 
missioners until  1893,  being  for  a  number  of 
years  Superintendent  of  Works.  He  is  now  a 
member  of  the  Board  of  Sewerage  Commission- 
ers, and  he  has  been  Superintendent  of  Sewers 
since  1893.  With  one  exception,  he  has  al- 
ways voted  the  Republican  ticket,  and  is  a  firm 
believer  in  the  importance  of  maintaining  the 
present  monetary  standard  of  the  country. 


TIS  WINSLOW  SOULE,  of  Abing- 
ton,  clerk  of  the  District  Court,  and 
President  of  the  Savings  Bank,  was 
born  in  Middleboro,  Mass.,  January  2$,  1828. 
He  is  a  son  of  the  late  Otis  and  Irene  (Cush- 
man)  Soule.  Otis  Soule  was  born  February 
13,  1799,  and  died  August  13,  1871.  He  was 
a  tanner  and  currier  at  Middleboro,  Mass. 
Four  chiklren  were  born  to  him  and  his  wife, 
and  three  are  living  at  the  present  time,  as 
follows:  Otis.  Winslow,  Augustus  H.,  and 
Carrie  Elizabeth,  all  residing  in  Middle- 
boro, Augustus  H.  being  married  to  Amanda 
Sears,  of  Halifax,  Mass.  Mrs.  Irene  Cush- 
man  Soule,  who  died  December  24,  1881,  was 
a  daughter  of  Jacob  and  Sylvia  (Sampson) 
Cushman ;  and  her  mother  was  a  sister  of 
Deborah  Sampson,  who  served  in  the  Revolu- 
tionary War.  Deborah  and  Sylvia  Sampson 
were  daughters  of  Jonathan  and  Deborah 
(Bradford)  Sampson,  and  great-great-grand- 
daughters of  Governor  William  Bradford. 

Otis  Winslow  Soule  acquired  his  education 
in  the  public  schools  of  Middleboro.  He 
first  worked  for  his  father  in  the  tannery  in 
that  town,  and  in  1844  obtained  employment 
in  a  shoe  shop  in  Abington.  While  earning 
a  livelihood  by  manual  labor  he  displayed 
ability  as  a  financier  and  a  public  servant,  and 
increasing  responsibilities  were  thrust  upon 
him  by  his  townsmen.  For  a  number  of  years 
he  was  Trustee  of  the  Abington  Savings 
Bank;  in  1884  he  was  elected  a  member  of 
the  Board  of  Investment;  and  he  has  been 
President  since  1892.  In  1861  and  1862  he 
represented  the  district  in  the  legislature. 
In  1868  he  was  appointed  Trial  Justice,  and 
was  in  ofifice  till  1874,  when  the  District  Court 
was  established,  and  he  was  appointed  clerk. 
As  clerk  of  the  court  for  nearly  a  quarter  of 
a  century  he  is  well  known  to  the  public,  and 
has  many  friends,  among  the  legal  fraternity 


OTIS   W.    SOULE. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


259 


especially.  Mr.  Soule  was  chosen  a  member 
of  the  School  Committee  in  1884,  and  served 
four  years.  In  every  office  to  which  he  has 
been  elected  he  has  performed  his  duties  ably 
and  conscientiously. 

He  was  married  February  21,  1847,  to  Mary 
Brown,  of  Abington,  a  descendant  of  the 
Rev.  Samuel  Brown,  the  first  minister  in  the 
town,  and  has  two  children :  Abbie  Frances, 
wife  of  Frank  E.  Goddard ;  and  Carrie  Brown, 
wife  of  Herbert  F.  Ellis,  both  living  in  Ab- 
ington. Mr.  Soule  has  three  grandchildren, 
as  follows:  Frederick  Edwards,  Mary  Eliza- 
beth Brown,  and  William  Otis,  all  children 
of  Abbie  Frances  and  Frank  E.  Goddard. 
Mr.  Soule  is  prominent  in  Masonic  circles, 
belonging  to  John  Cutler  Lodge,  A.  F.  & 
A.  M.  ;  Pilgrim  Chapter  of  the  Royal 
Arch;  and  Old  Colony  Commandery,  Knights 
Templars.  He  attends  the  Congregational 
church.      In  politics  he  is  a  stanch  Republican. 


/3JeORGE  C.  GARY,  a  former  resident 
\J^  I  and  native  of  Brockton,  who  was 
prominently  identified  with  the  busi- 
ness and  religious  interests  of  the  city,  was 
born  on  Gary  Hill,  April  5,  183 1.  He  was 
educated  in  the  common  schools  and  at  the 
Adelphian  Academy.  He  served  as  workman 
and  foreman  in  various  branches  of  the  shoe 
industry,  and  as  a  manufacturer  until  he  be- 
came the  manager  of  a  business  plant  of  his 
own.  He  was  a  shoe  crimper  for  about  five 
years,  working  for  himself  until  a  few  months 
previous  to  his  death.  He  then  became  a  col- 
lector. In  November,  1852,  he  joined  the 
Porter  .  Congregational  Church,  and  subse- 
quently took  an  active  interest  in  all  its 
various  lines  of  Christian  endeavor.  In  i86g 
he  was  elected  Deacon,  and  for  about  twenty- 
two  years  officiated  as   Clerk  and   Treasurer, 


rendering  also  efficient  service  to  the  Young 
Men's  Christian  Association.  He  had  been 
superintendent  of  the  Sunday-school,  in  which 
he  taught  until  the  Sunday  before  his  death. 
He  was  esteemed  as  the  motive  power  of  the 
church  machinery  among  the  laymen,  and  he 
was  a  member  of  the  Congregational  Club. 
In  politics  he  belonged  to  the  Republican 
party. 

On  August  2,  185s,  Mr.  Gary  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Harriet  G.  P"ord,  a  daughter  of 
Daniel  F"ord,  who  was  engaged  in  the  shoe  in- 
dustry in  this  city.  By  her  he  had  one  child, 
Henry  Martin,  who  was  born  in  January,  1857, 
and  died  at  the  age  of  eight  years.  Deacon 
Gary  died  of  heart  disease  on  September  12, 
1896,  his  last  words  to  Mrs.  Gary  being  a  sug- 
gestion to  get  the  notices  for  the  Sunday  ser- 
vices to  Deacon  Wade  in  time  for  proper 
attention.  A  fine  epitome  of  his  life  was 
given  by  the  Rev.  R.  L.  Rae,  in  the  te.xt 
chosen  for  his  funeral  sermon,  from  2  Chron. 
.x.x.xi.  21,  "And  in  every  work  that  he  began  in 
the  service  of  the  house  of  God,  .  .  .he  did  it 
with  all  his  heart,  and  prospered."  His  funeral 
was  largely  attended,  and  bore  evidence  of  the 
respect  in  which  he  was  held  by  men  of  all 
classes.  Mrs.  Gary,  who  united  with  the 
Porter  Congregational  Church  in  November, 
1852,  is  a  lady  of  prominence  in  church  work, 
and  is  greatly  beloved  by  her  class  of  Chinese 
pupils,  and  by  all  who  know  her  unselfish 
nature  and  practical  Christian  spirit. 


rmo 


EORGE  L.  SOULE  is  one  of  the 
\  f5>  I  prominent  business  men  and  well- 
known  citizens  of  Middleboro,  Plym- 
outh County,  Mass.,  where  he  was  born  on 
March  25,  1832.  His  parents,  George  and 
Mary  (Harlow)  Soule,  both  of  early  Colonial 
stock,  were  also  natives  of  this  town. 


26o 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


His  father,  the  elder  George  Soule,  estab- 
lished himself  here  as  a  furniture  dealer  and 
funeral  director,  and  successfully  carried  on 
the  business  for  a  number  of  years,  attending 
to  the  larger  patronage  incident  to  the  growth 
of  the  town.  He  died  at  the  age  of  sixty- 
seven.  Mrs.  Mary  Harlow  Soule  is  living  in 
Middleboro,  and,  though  eighty-six  years  of 
age,  is  active  and  in  good  health,  appearing 
much  younger  than  she  really  is.  Three  chil- 
dren were  born  to  her  and  her  husband, 
namely:  George  T>. ,  the  subject  of  this  sketch; 
Charles  W.,  residing  in  Middleboro;  and  one 
who  died  in  infancy. 

George  L.  Soule  acquired  a  good  education, 
attending  the  common  schools  of  his  native 
town  and  Pierce  Academy.  He  has  a  natural 
talent  for  music,  and  for  some  time  was  en- 
gaged successfully  as  a  dealer  in  musical  in- 
struments and  teaching  music.  He  also 
helped  his  father  somewhat;  and  after  his 
father's  death  he,  in  company  with  his  brother, 
assumed  the  management  of  the  business,  so 
that  he  is  now  manager  of  one  of  the  most  lu- 
crative enterprises  in  the  town.  Mr.  Soule  is 
gifted  with  the  faculty  that  wins  financial  suc- 
cess, and  he  also  knows  how  to  win  and  keep 
friends — -an  important  item  in  business  as 
well  as  in  social  life. 

He  was  married  to  Miss  Anna  S.  Cathcart, 
of  Nantucket,  in  1855,  and  they  became  the 
parents  of  the  following  children:  Mary 
Susan,  now  wife  of  Abbott  Jones,  of  Plym- 
outh; Annie  L.  ;  William  L.,  who  is  asso- 
ciated in  business  with  his  father;  and  Mabel, 
who  died  in  infancy.  Mrs.  Anna  S.  C.  Soule 
died  in  1867;  and  in  August,  1871,  Mr.  Soule 
was  again  married  to  Miss  Amanda  Earl  Bart- 
lett,  of  Middleboro.  Three  children  — Ida 
Lamb,  George,  and  Charles  Howard  Soule  — 
have  been  born  of  this  union. 

A   Republican  in  politics,  Mr.  Soule  repre- 


sented the  town  in  the  State  legislature  in 
1892  and  1894.  He  has  been  a  member  of 
the  Prudential  Committee  of  the  Middleboro 
Fire  Department  since  its  organization.  In 
several  of  the  leading  fraternal  organizations 
he  takes  an  active  interest,  being  a  member  of 
the  Masonic  order,  the  Sons  of  Temperance, 
and  the  Middleboro  Grange.  In  religious 
belief  he  is  a  Congregationalist. 


HARLES    S.    PIERCE,    of    Brockton, 
is   a   good    example    of   our    self-made 
men.     A    son    of    Charles    S.    and 
Elizabeth  (Copeland)  Pierce,  he  was  born    in 
North  Bridgewater,  this  county,  November  29, 
1852.     Charles  S.    Pierce,    Sr.,    was    born    in 
Fall  River,  Mass.      A  cabinet-maker  by  trade, 
he  worked  for  Howard  &  Clark,  furniture  man- 
ufacturers of   Brockton  some   thirty  years,  and 
was  one  of  their  most  reliable  and  trusted   em- 
ployees.     He  was    a   member   of    the   Central 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  and  he  died   in 
1866,  at  the  age  of   forty-seven.      His   wife   is 
a   daughter    of    Ward    and    Martha  Copeland. 
Her  father  was  a  soldier  in   the  Revolutionary 
War.      Widow    Pierce,  now   seventy-two   years 
of  age,  is  living   in    Brockton.      She   had   four 
children,  namely:    Abbie    C,    now    deceased, 
who   was   the   wife   of    Stanford     W.  \'incent; 
George  R.,  of  the  firm  of  Pierce  &  Packard,  of 
Campello;   Susan  M.,  the  widow  of  Walter  O. 
Packard,  late  of  Brockton;  and  Charles  S.,  the 
subject  of  this  sketch. 

Charles  S.  Pierce  attended  the  common 
schools  of  Brockton  until  he  was  fourteen 
years  old.  He  then  decided  that  he  was  old 
enough  to  work,  and,  taking  matters  into  his 
own  hands,  obtained  employment  in  the  shoe 
factory  of  Peleg  S.  Eeach,  were  he  had  been 
working  for  a  month  before  his  father  discov- 
ered that  he  had  left  school.      Judging  it  best 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


261 


not  to  interfere  then,  the  father  left  him  to 
follow  his  own  inclination.  For  a  year  or 
more  he  remained  in  that  factory,  receiving 
four  dollars  a  week.  After  that  he  earned 
fairly  good  wages,  his  father  allowing  him  to 
keep  all  over  five  dollars  a  week.  For  ten 
years  he  worked  for  wages,  employed  in  the 
shoe  factory  when  business  was  good,  and  as 
clerk  at  other  times  in  the  stores  of  the  Hon. 
J.  J.  Whipple,  and  other  merchants.  In  1872 
he  borrowed  one  hundred  dollars,  and  started 
in  business,  in  company  with  Enos  S.  Maloon, 
"bossing  "  vamps.  The  firm,  which  at  first  was 
Maloon  &  Pierce,  became  Maloon,  Pierce  & 
Morey  in  18S1,  and  the  manufacture  of  shoes 
was  added  to  their  business,  though  kept  apart 
from  the  vamping  business.  At  the  death  of 
Mr.  Maloon  in  1884,  W.  S.  Morey  purchased 
his  interest,  the  style  being  changed  to  W.  S. 
Morey  &  Co.  In  1888  Mr.  Pierce,  having 
other  business  to  occupy  his  attention,  pur- 
fchased  the  interest  of  Mr.  Morey,  and  discon- 
tinued the  manufacture  of  shoes.  Since  then 
he  has  been  without  an  associate.  Mr.  Pierce 
was  the  first  to  "crimp"  congress  shoes,  a 
method  of  adjusting  the  shoe  to  the  shape  of 
the  last.  The  machine  he  used  was  his  own 
invention,  called  the  J.  C.  Locket  Crimping 
Machine.  He  has  recently  patented  a  canvas 
bo.\-toe,  which  is  said  to  be  practically  inde- 
structible. This  is  manufactured  by  the 
Carver  Cotton  Gin  Company  of  Boston,  a  firm 
formed  in  1890,  and  of  which  Mr.  Pierce  is 
the  President.  In  1895  he  erected  on  Mon- 
tello  Street  the  large  business  block  that 
bears  his  name.  It  is  a  handsome  structure, 
with  a  street  frontage  of  one  hundred  feet, 
and  an  area  extending  back  to  the  railroad, 
which  is  connected  with  the  building  by  a 
private  track.  Mr.  Pierce  also  owns  a  val- 
uable piece  of  land  on  Montello  Street.  It 
has  five  hundred   feet  frontage,  and  runs  back 


one  hundred  and   fifty  feet   to  the  railroad  anil 
Crescent   Street. 

Mr.  Pierce  was  married  June  18,  1889,  to 
Annie  L.  Bigelow,  a  daughter  of  Charles  and 
Hannah  B.  Bigelow,  of  Millis,  Mass.,  and 
now  has  one  child,  Marion  B.  Mr.  Pierce  is 
a  member  of  the  Commercial  Club,  an  associa- 
tion of  business  men  of  Brockton;  and  of  Paul 
Revere  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.  A  Congrega- 
tionalist  in  religious  belief,  he  attends  the 
Porter  Church. 


LBERT  M.  NILES,  for  a  number  of 
years  a  well-known  shoe  manufacturer 
of  Brockton,  was  born  in  Randolph, 
Mass.,  April  14,  1846,  son  of  Captain  Isaac 
and  Maria  Niles.  His  father  was  a  shoe  man- 
ufacturer in  Randolph.  His  brother.  Captain 
Horace  Niles,  who  commanded  Company  E, 
Thirty-fifth  Massachusetts  Volunteer  Militia, 
was  wounded  at  Antietam,  and  died  from  the 
effects  thereof  at  Spring  Hill  Hospital  on 
September  27,  1862. 

Albert  M.  Niles  acquired  his  education  in 
the  common  schools  of  his  native  town  and 
the  Stetson  High  School,  and  for  several  years 
thereafter  he  was  employed  in  his  father's 
shoe  shop  in  Randolph.  Later  he  came  to 
Brockton,  and  entered  Charles  F.  Porter's 
shop,  where,  with  the  exception  of  a  short 
time,  he  worked  continuously  until  he  went 
into  business  for  himself.  In  1873  he  formed 
a  partnership  with  Hamrlton  Gould,  under  the 
style  of  Hamilton  Gould  &  Co.,  which  lasted 
two  years,  Mr.  Niles  then  buying  out  his  part- 
ner. The  business  was  managed  alone  by  him 
for  two  years,  when  Dexter  E.  Wilber  was 
admitted  to  partnership,  the  firm  narue  chang- 
ing to  A.  M.  Niles  &  Co.  Eight  years  later 
Mr.  Niles  gave  up  business  for  two  years  on 
account  of  poor  health.     At  the  expiration  of 


262 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


that  time  a  corporation  was  formed,  under  the 
firm  name  A.  M.  Niles  Shoe  Company,  Mr. 
VVilber  again  becoming  associated  with  him. 
In  1894  they  dissolved  partnership,  and  Mr. 
J.  C.  Frederic,  of  Philadelphia  became  asso- 
ciated with  Mr.  Niles.  They  carried  on  an 
extensive  business  until  Mr.  Niles's  death  in 
i8g6.  In  politics  he  affiliated  with  the  Re- 
publican party. 

Fraternally,  he  was  an  enthusiastic  Mason, 
belonging  to  Paul  Revere  Lodge,  A.  F.  & 
A.  M. ;  Satucket  Royal  Arch  Chapter,  and 
Bay  State  Commandery,  Knights  Templars. 
The  Commercial  and  Howard  Clubs  also  in- 
cluded him  in  their  membership  rolls.  Mr. 
Niles  was  a  great  lover  of  horses,  and  was  the 
owner  of  several  animals  of  local  reputation. 
Among  these  were  Paddy  De  Long,  who  made 
a  record  of  2.29,  Homer,  and  Miss  Barbe,  who 
are  also  well-known  pacers  on  the  track.  He 
was  greatly  interested  in  the  national  game, 
rarely  missing  an  opportunity  to  witness  a 
match.  Personally,  he  was  fond  of  and  popu- 
lar with  children,  even  the  newsboys  contrib- 
uting many  floral  decorations  at  his  funeral. 
Among  all  classes  of  people  of  a  larger 
growth,  he  was  likewise  a  great  favorite.  In 
his  religious  views  he  was  liberal,  attending 
the  Universalis!  church,  of  which  his  wife 
was  a  member.  On  May  15,  1876,  at  North 
Easton,  he  was  united  in  marriage  with  Mrs. 
Helen  F.  Thayer  Calkins,  widow  of  Clarence 
Calkins. 

Her  first  husband,  Clarence  Calkins,  was 
born  in  West  Bridgewater,  October  4,  1842, 
and  died  April  26,  1873.  He  was  a  shoe 
manufacturer,  doing  business  alone  until 
within  three  years  of  his  death,  Henry  J.  Me- 
lendy,  of  Boston,  was  admitted  to  partnership, 
the  plant  continuing  under  Mr.  Calkins's 
name.  At  the  time  of  the  Civil  War  Mr. 
Calkins  enlisted   in   Company   I,  Fifty-eighth 


Massachusetts  Regiment,  and  served  as  Cor- 
poral of  the  Color  Guard  in  the  assault  on 
Petersburg.  He  was  taken  prisoner,  and  con- 
fined for  a  long  time  in  Libby  and  Danville 
Prisons,  remaining  in  the  service  until  the 
close  of  the  war.  On  April  5,  1866,  he  mar- 
ried Helen  F.,  daughter  of  Joseph  G.  Thayer, 
a  shoe  manufacturer  of  Brockton.  Three  chil- 
dren blessed  their  union:  Clarence  L.,  who  is 
a  foreman  in  the  factory  where  the  late  A.  M. 
Niles,  his  stepfather,  carried  on  business; 
Clara,  who  married  John  Smith,  of  New  Bed- 
ford, Mass.,  where  she  now  resides;  and  Oscar 
L.,  who  lives  in  this  city. 


RANK  E.  ANGERER,  Secretary  and 
Director  of  one  of  the  large  shoe  manu- 
facturing companies  of  Brockton,  was 
born  in  Walhalla,  S.C,  July  24,  1865,  a  son 
of  August  W.  and  Matilda  (Fahrig)  Angerer. 
August  W.  Angerer,  who  was  born  in  the 
province  of  Wiilfrath,  Germany,  P^ebruary  22, 
1832,  studied  in  different  universities  in  Ger- 
many, and  became  an  accomplished  linguist 
and  deeply  learned  in  the  sciences.  Herr 
Angerer  lived  for  a  number  of  years  in  Wash- 
ington, D.C.,  and  was  associated  with  some  of 
the  leading  scholars  of  his  time.  In  1874  he 
was  American  Representative  to  the  World's 
Congress  of  Languages  at  Berlin.  P"or  some 
time  be  was  Lecturer  on  Political  Economy  at 
Cornell  University.  Subsequently  he  was 
Chief  Translator  and  Statistician  of  the  Treas- 
ury Department  at  Washington  from  1865  up 
to  the  time  of  his  death,  which  happened  Feb- 
ruary 23,  1877,  at  the  age  of  forty-five. 
While  in  the  service  of  the  United  States  gov- 
ernment, he  travelled  for  four  years  around  the 
world  to  verify  the  statistics  of  different  coun- 
tries. He  was  a  member  of  the  German 
Lutheran  church.      His  wife,  who  was  born  in 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


263 


Artern,  Saxony,  died  January  31,  1895,  aged 
fifty-eight  years.  Tiiey  were  the  parents  of 
four  children,  two  of  whom  died  young.  The 
survivors  are  Frank  E.  and  his  sister  Minnie. 

Frank  E.  Angerer  attended  the  public 
schools  of  Washington,  D.C.,  and  subse. 
quently  graduated  from  Gonzaga  College.  He 
served  for  nine  years  in  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives, in  the  successive  capacities  of 
page,  clerk,  and  book-keeper.  This  experi- 
ence, which  brought  him  into  contact  with  the 
most  brilliant  men  of  the  nation,  broadened 
his  mind,  and  gave  to  his  early  training  a 
finish  which  no  college  could  supply.  He 
was  afterward  associated  with  his  uncle  at 
Wiilfrath,  Germany,  for  about  four  years. 
He  returned  to  America  in  1887,  and  was  en- 
gaged as  confidential  clerk  and  book-keeper  by 
Lilly,  Brackett  &  Co.,  of  Brockton.  In  May, 
189s,  a  corporation  was  formed  of  this  com- 
pany, and  Mr.  Angerer  became  Secretary  and 
one  of  the  Directors  of  the  body. 

Mr.  Angerer  was  married  December  10, 
1889,  to  Marian  Inglee,  of  Halifax,  Plymouth 
County,  and  has  two  bright  little  daughters. 
Politically,  he  favors  the  Republican  side. 
He  was  elected  from  Ward  6  to  the  City 
Council  in  1894.  He  is  a  member  of  the 
Brockton  Lodge  of  the  Benevolent  and  Protec- 
tive Order  of  Elks,  No.  164;  and  of  the 
Brockton  Commercial  Club.  In  religion  he 
favors  the  Unitarian  belief,  attending  the 
Church  of  the  Unity  of  Brockton. 


(^OHN  DUNHAM,  who  is  extensively 
engaged  in  the  cultivation  of  cran- 
berries at  Carver,  was  born  here  Sep- 
tember 3,  1822,  son  of  James  and  Ruth  (Pratt) 
Dunham. 

James  Dunham,  who  had   his  birth  in  Plym- 
outh, was  engaged  throughout  his  active  life 


in  general  agriculture  in  this  town.  By  his 
wife,  who  was  a  native  of  Carver,  and  a  daugh- 
ter of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Isaiah  Pratt,  he  became 
the  father  of  nine  children,  five  sons  and  four 
daughters,  of  whom  seven  yet  survive.  Mr. 
Dunham  passed  away  July  31,  1870,  aged 
sixty-nine  years;  and  his  wife,  August  i  i, 
1881. 

John  Dunham  attained  maturity  on  the 
home  farm,  receiving  his  education  in  the  pub- 
lic schools  of  his  native  town.  When  about 
eleven  years  old  he  began  to  learn  shoemaking 
from  his  father.  In  his  fifteenth  year  he  went 
to  work  on  a  farm  by  the  month,  at  which  he 
continued  three  years.  He  then  turned  his 
attention  to  peddling,  and  was  engaged  in  it 
for  ten  years.  During  the  succeeding  three 
years  he  ran  a  wagon  through  the  surrounding 
country,  selling  boots  and  shoes,  with  other 
articles.  Then,  resuming  the  last,  he  con- 
ducted a  shoe  shop  at  North  Carver  for  nine 
years.  Since  then  he  has  been  extensively 
and  successfully  engaged  in  the  culture  of 
cranberries.  He  erected  all  the  buildings 
used  in  the  industry.  In  1861,  on  the  out- 
break of  the  Civil  War,  Mr.  Dunham  enlisted 
in  Company  K,  of  the  Third  Regiment  of 
Massachusetts  Infantry.  Subsequently,  he 
was  mustered  in  at  Fortress  Monroe  as  First 
Lieutenant,  and  then  went  to  Hampton,  Va. 
At  the  expiration  of  his  term  of  service  he 
was  discharged  at  Boston  as  First   Lieutenant. 

On  November  22,  1845,  Mr.  Dunham  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Hannah  H. 
Cobb,  a  daughter  of  Captain  Charles  and 
Sylvia  Cobb,  of  Carver,  where  she  was  born 
March  7,  1820.  Four  children  were  born  of 
the  union,  namely:  Algelo  L. ,  now  deceased ; 
Rebecca,  born  November  16,  1850;  Rolinda, 
June  4,  1854;  and  Marrietta  L. ,  November 
17,  1 86 1.  Mr.  Dunham  takes  an  active  in- 
terest  in  the  affairs  of  the  town,  and  he  has 


264 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


served  it  for  sixteen  years  in  the  capacity  of 
Public  Surveyor.  He  maintains  his  fellow- 
ship with  his  comrades  of  the  late  war  by  as- 
sociation with  Post  No.  8,  of  the  Grand  Army 
of  the  Republic,  at  Middleboro.  He  attends 
the  Congregational  church.  In  politics  he 
supports  the  Republican  party. 


"KNRY     W.     SEARS    is    one    of    the 
leading     merchants     of     Middleboro, 

L^  V,^^ Mass.,  managing  an  extensive  trade 

in  lumber,  doors,  sashes,  blinds,  hardware  and 
paints,  and  builders'  supplies  of  all  kinds. 
He  was  born  in  South  Yarmouth,  Mass.,  April 
24,  1859,  son  of  Barnabas  and  Deborah  M. 
(Clark)  Sears. 

Barnabas  Sears  was  a  carpenter  and  builder. 
He  removed  from  South  Yarmouth  to  Middle- 
boro in  1874,  and,  in  company  with  his 
brother,  engaged  in  the  lumber  business,  under 
the  firm  name  of  J.  K.  &  B.  Sears.  He  met 
with  good  success;  and  in  the  latter  part  of 
his  life  was  practically  retired,  leaving  the 
management  of  the  business  to  his  son.  He 
died  August  30,  1894,  aged  seventy-five.  His 
wife  was  a  daughter  of  Captain  William 
Clark,  of  Brewster,  Mass.  Captain  Clark's 
family  consisted  of  four  children;  and  it  is 
curious  to  note  that  his  youngest  child  died 
first,  the  third  child  next,  then  the  second, 
next  the  eldest,  then  the  mother,  and  last  the 
father,  who  was  the  oldest  of  all.  Mrs.  Sears 
died  April  22,  1S85,  when  she  was  about  fifty- 
three  years  of  age.  Her  children  were:  Isaiah 
C.  ;  Etta  F.,  wife  of  W.  H.  Doane,  of  New- 
ton, Mass.;  and  Henry  W.,  the  special  sub- 
ject of  the  present  sketch. 

Henry  W.  Sears,  after  attending  the  com- 
mon schools  of  South  Yarmouth,  took  a  three 
months'  course  of  study  at  a  commercial  col- 
lege in  Boston.      When  he  was  fifteen  years  of 


age  he  obtained  a  position  in  a  grocery  store, 
where  he  was  employed  about  six  months;  and 
in  1875,  when  he  was  sixteen  years  old,  he 
began  to  work  for  his  father.  On  January  i, 
1S82,  he  took  an  interest  in  the  business,  the 
firm  name  being  changed  to  its  present  form  of 
J.  K.  &  B.  Sears  &  Co.  Mr.  Sears  carries 
an  extensive  stock.  His  business  is  well  con- 
ducted, and  his  trade  is  increasing  every  year. 
He  married  December  5,  1883,  Martha  S., 
daughter  of  James  M.  Pickens,  of  Middleboro, 
and  has  two  children:  Henry  W.,  born  Janu- 
ary II,  1888;  and  Mabel  B.,  born  April  20, 
1892.  Mr.  Sears  is  a  strong  and  active  Re- 
publican, and  has  served  on  the  Town  Com- 
mittee. He  is  a  stanch  advocate  of  total 
abstinence,  and  is  a  member  of  the  .Sons  of 
Temperance.  He  has  been  a  Director  in  the 
Middleboro  Co-operative  Bank  since  the  date 
of  its  organization  in  1889,  and  is  also  on  the 
Finance  and  Security  Committee,  and  is  Pres- 
ident of  the  Commercial  Club.  In  the  Con- 
gregational Church  he  is  Deacon,  clerk,  and 
President  of  the  Christian  Endeavor  Society, 
and  he  is  interested  in  the  Sunday-school. 


KIEUTENANT  HENRY  A.  SEAV- 
E.RN.S,  late  a  prominent  member  of 
^^  the  Grand  Army,  and  the  senior 
partner  of  the  firm  of  Seaverns  &  Spear,  one 
of  the  leading  mercantile  houses  of  Scituate, 
Mass.,  was  for  years  actively  identified  with 
the  business  and  social  life  of  this  town.  He 
was  born  in  Dorchester,  Mass.,  Ajjril  21, 
1842,  a  son  of  Charles  H.  and  Sarah  L. 
(Smith)  Seaverns.  His  parents  also  were 
natives  of  the  old  Bay  State.  He  was  edu- 
cated in  the  public  schools  of  Dorchester,  and 
after  leaving  school  learned  the  machinist's 
trade,  at  which  he  worked  for  a  short  time. 
He  was    one   of    the  youthful    soldiers  who 


HENRY   A.    SEAVERNS. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


267 


answered  President  Lincoln's  call  for  volun- 
teers in  May,  1861,  enlisting  on  the  tenth  of 
the  month,  having  just  entered  on  his  twenti- 
eth year.  He  was  first  enrolled  as  a  private 
in  the  Eleventh  Massachusetts  Volunteer  In- 
fantry, joining  Company  K,  under  command 
of  Captain  Benjamin  Stone,  and  was  mustered 
into  the  United  States  Service  at  Fort  War- 
ren, Boston  Harbor,  June  13,  1861.  He  was 
discharged  August  26,  1861,  at  Washington, 
D.C.,  by  reason  of  sickness.  He  re-enlisted 
August  7,  1862,  as  Sergeant  in  Company  H, 
Thirty-ninth  Regiment,  Massachusetts  Volun- 
teer Infantry,  in  which  he  served  also  as 
Commissary-sergeant.  He  was  discharged 
April  18,  1864,  by  order  of  Major-general 
Warren  in  order  that  he  might  accept  a  com- 
mission as  Second  Lieutenant,  this  commis- 
sion being  dated  March  30,  1864.  He  was 
present  with  his  regiment  and  participated  in 
the  following  engagements:  Bristol  Station, 
October  14,  1863;  Rappahannock  Station, 
November  i,  1863;  Mine  Run,  November  27, 
1863;  Wilderness,  May  3  to  7,  1864;  Spott- 
sylvania,  May  8  to  19,  1864;  Jericho  Mills, 
May  23,  1864;  North  Anna,  May  23  to  30, 
1864;  Magnolia  Swamp,  June  i,  1864;  Be- 
thesda  Church,  June  i  to  3,  1864;  Cold  Har- 
bor, June  2  and  3,  1864;  Norfolk  Railroad, 
June  iS,  1864;  Jerusalem  Plank  Road,  June 
20,  1864;  Petersburg,  June  30,  1864;  Wel- 
don  Railroad,  August  18,  1864. 

In  the  last-named  engagement  he  was  se- 
verely wounded,  a  minie  ball  splitting  on  his 
sword;  both  pieces  entered  his  thigh,  piercing 
to  the  bone,  one  deflecting  to  the  front,  the 
other  to  the  back,  just  glancing  over  the 
sciatic  nerve.  He  was  carried  to  the  field 
hospital,  where  one  piece  of  the  bullet  was 
removed.  August  19  he  was  transferred  to 
the  division  hospital,  and  on  August  26  to 
the  McClellan   Hospital  at  Philadelphia.      On 


September  7  he  was  transferred  to  the  Officers' 
Hospital.  On  September  15  he  was  commis- 
sioned First  Lieutenant ;  and  on  January  7, 
1865,  he  was  discharged  from  the  service  on 
account  of  his  wound.  He  then  returned 
home,  but  found  himself  unable  to  resume 
work  at  his  trade.  In  1867  he  bought  out  the 
firm  of  H.  W.  Bailey  &  Co.,  dealers  in  dry- 
goods  and  notions  at  North  Scituate.  This 
business  was  established  in  1823,  and  the  store 
was  well  known  to  the  people  of  Scituate  and 
the  adjoining  towns.  The  store  was  enlarged, 
and  the  business  was  greatly  increased  by  Mr. 
Seaverns.  He  managed  the  business  for 
twenty  years,  from  1867  to  1887,  under  the 
name  of  H.  A.  Seaverns  &  Co.  ;  and  then 
S.  T.  Spear,  of  Chelsea,  Mass.,  becoming  a 
partner,  the  style  was  changed  to  its  present 
form,  Seaverns  &  Spear.  Shortly  after  this 
Mr.  Seaverns  visited  Florida,  hoping  that  his 
health  would  be  benefited  by  the  change  of 
climate.  There  he  contracted  typhoid  ma- 
laria, and  his  old  wound  broke  out  afresh, 
taking  the  form  of  serious  inflammation  of  the 
knee  joint.  A  complication  of  troubles  re- 
sulted, and  he  was  an  invalid  for  over  six- 
years.  He  passed  away  September  26,  1894, 
as  the  result  of  hemorrhage  from  wounds 
received  in  service. 

Mr.  Seaverns  was  a  very  successful  business 
man,  and  had  the  confidence  and  esteem  of  the 
community.  He  was  Postmaster,  at  North 
Scituate  for  a  number  of  years,  and  served  for 
some  time  on  the  School  Board.  A  po]nilar 
member  of  society,  he  belonged  to  the  Masonic 
fraternity  and  to  George  W.  Perry  Post, 
Grand    Army    of    the    Republic,    of    Scituate. 

He  was  a  member  of  the  P'irst  Baptist 
Church,  having  united  with  the  Neponset 
church  by  baptism  in  May,  i860,  and  was  for 
nineteen  years  actively  identified  with  its 
work,  teaching  also  in  the  Sabbath  school. 


268 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


His  obsequies  were  attended  with  cere- 
monies befitting  the  part  he  had  tai<en  in  life, 
the  Grand  Army  Post  escorting  his  remains 
to  Groveland  Cemetery,  where  they  were  in- 
terred. In  accordance  with  his  expressed 
desire,  the  Rev.  B.  W.  Barrows,  of  New 
York,  the  clergyman  who  had  baptized  him, 
came  to  officiate  at  the  funeral ;  but  he  was  so 
much  affected  that  the  Rev.  A.  D.  Spalding, 
his  pastor  here,  conducted  the  services.  The 
monument  which  marks  his  grave  bears  this 
inscription  in  obedience  to  his  dying  request: 
"A  soldier  of  the  Cross  and  of  the  Flag." 

Mr.  Seaverns  was  married  May  i6,  1S67,  to 
Mercy  G.  Litchfield,  a  native  of  Scituate, 
daughter  of  James  S.  and  Martha  L.  (Mott) 
Litchfield.  Mr.  Litchfield,  now  in  his  eighty- 
sixth  year,  resides  in  Scituate,  a  widower,  his 
wife  having  departed  this  life  some  years  ago. 
Mrs.  Seaverns,  who  is  a  very  capable  woman, 
now  represents  her  husband  in  the  mercantile 
business.  She  has  been  a  member  of  the 
First  Baptist  Church  at  North  Scituate  since 
she  was  nineteen  years  old.  She  has  many 
acquaintances  and  friends  in  this  vicinity,  and 
is  highly  esteemed. 


61  HOMAS  N.  ELDRIDGE,  a  prosper- 
^  I  ous  merchant  of  Plymouth,  was  born 
March  5,  1833,  in  Bourne,  Mass.,  son 
of  Captain  Thomas  M.  and  Ann  (Haines)  El- 
dridge.  The  Eldridges  were  among  the  early 
settlers  of  Cape  Cod,  and  became  one  of  the 
most  prominent  families  in  that  district. 
Captain  Thomas  M.  Eldridge  was  a  master 
mariner,  and  for  many  years  was  engaged  in 
the  China  and  East  India  trade.  He  aban- 
doned the  sea  some  twenty  years  previous  to 
his  death,  and  passed  his  last  days  in  retire- 
ment. He  married  Ann  Haines,  a  native  of 
Cape  Cod,  whose  father  was  a  soldier  in  the 


War  of  181 2.  By  her  he  became  the  father 
of  eight  children.  Of  these,  Ann  M.,  twin 
sister  of  Thomas  N.,  is  now  a  resident  of  New 
Bedford,  Mass. 

Thomas  N.  Eldridge  attended  the  common 
schools  of  Bourne.  At  the  age  of  twelve  years 
he  went  to  sea.  When  fifteen  years  old  he 
obtained  employment  in  the  dry-goods  store 
of  Jason  Hart  in  Plymouth,  where  he  remained 
until  he  was  twenty-one,  receiving  for  salary  a 
dollar  per  week  and  his  board.  He  then  went 
to  Boston,  where  he  secured  a  position  as  clerk 
in  the  store  of  William  R.  Storms,  with  whom 
he  remained  for  six  months.  Returning  then 
to  his  former  employer  in  Plymouth,  he  con- 
tinued with  him  until  Mr.  Hart's  failure  a 
year  later.  Thereupon  he  once  more  became 
an  employee  of  Mr.  Storms  in  l^oston.  He 
subsequently  worked  in  several  of  the  largest 
dry-goods  stores  of  Boston,  including  that  of 
Prcscott  Barker,  at  the  corner  of  Tremont  Row 
and  Pemberton  Square,  formerly  located  at  28 
Hanover  Street,  and  those  of  George  B. 
Milton  and  George  Whiting.  After  leaving 
the  employ  of  Prescott  Barker  he  went  to  P'air- 
haven,  Mass.,  where  he  managed  the  grocery 
store  of  M.  Delano  &  Co.  for  three  years. 
About  the  year  1861  he  returned  to  Plymouth 
as  head  clerk  for  B.  O.  Strong,  in  whose  em- 
ployment he  continued  for  twenty  years.  In 
1883  he  commenced  business  here  on  his  own 
account.  Two  years  later,  compelled  by  his 
increasing  trade,  he  removed  to  his  present 
store.  Since  then  he  has  been  obliged  to  take 
for  his  use  another  story  of  the  building.  He 
is  also  interested  in  one  of  the  banks  here,  of 
which  he  is  a  director. 

In  1855  Mr.  Eldridge  wedded  Eunice  Pope, 
a  daughter  of  Richard  Pope,  of  Plymouth. 
His  only  son,  William  T.,  now  assists  him  in 
business.  Pie  has  been  a  member  of  the 
Masonic  fraternity  for  the  pa.st  twenty  years. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


269 


His  success  in  life  has  been  won  in  tlie  face  of 
many  difficulties  by  pluck  and  perseverance. 


ARZILLAI  FIELD,  a  farmer  of 
15rocl<ton,  was  born  here  February 
17,  1842,  son  of  John  and  Olive 
(Thompson)  Field.  His  grandfather,  Bar- 
zillai  Field,  fought  in  the  Revolutionary  War 
with  his  three  brothers,  Ephriam,  Fobes,  and 
Richard.  John  Field,  when  but  sixteen  years 
old,  served  his  country  in  the  last  war  with 
England.  He  followed  farming,  and  was 
Selectman  of  North  Bridgevvater  for  one  term. 
His  wife,  Olive,  was  a  daughter  of  John 
Thompson,  whose  house  stood  on  the  line 
between  Stoughton  and  North  Bridgevvater. 
They  had  ten  children  —  Olive,  Franklin, 
Eustace,  Owen  A.,  Elizabeth,  Clarissa,  John, 
Charles  T.,  Caroline,  and  Barzillai.  Olive, 
born  June  16,  1S20,  married  Elisha  Bumpus, 
a  tailor  of  North  Bridgewater,  and  is  now 
deceased.  Also  deceased  are:  Franklin,  born 
April  7,  1822;  Eustace,  born  May  17,  1824; 
and  Owen,  born  July  24,  1826.  Elizabeth, 
who  was  born  April  11,  1829,  married  Francis 
Brett,  of  South  Paris,  Me.,  and  now  resides 
in  this  city.  Clarissa,  born  January  5,  1S32, 
married  William  W.  Allen,  of  Brockton,  and 
resides  in  California.  John,  born  March  19, 
1834,  is  now  living  in  the  State  of  Minnesota. 
For  information  regarding  Charles  T. ,  see  the 
notice  of  his  life  elsewhere  fn  this  work. 
Caroline,  born  August  27,  1839,  who  became 
Mrs.  Charles  G.  Wilber,  of  Brockton, has  since 
passed  away.  The  father  died  January  20, 
1866,  in  the  seventieth  year  of  his  age.  He 
was  a  man  of  independent  ideas  respecting 
religious  questions,  being  one  of  the  original 
members  of  the  Swedenborgian  Church.  The 
mother  died  on  March  25,  1883,  in  the  eighty- 
first  year  of  her  age. 


Barzillai  Field,  after  acquiring  a  common- 
school  education  here,  took  a  course  of  study 
in  the  Hunt  Academy.  He  then  worked  in 
the  shoe  shops  for  D.  S.  Howard  and  others  for 
some  time,  and  then  went  to  the  West.  Later 
he  returned  to  the  farm,  which  he  now  con- 
ducts. On  July  8,  1864,  he  enlisted  in  Com- 
pany C,  Si.xtieth  Massachusetts  Regiment, 
and,  after  serving  for  a  little  more  than  four 
months  at  Indianapolis,  he  was  honorably  dis- 
charged November  30,  1864. 

On  August  II,  1874,  Mr.  Field  was  united 
in  marriage  with  Elizabeth  Putnam  Kimball, 
of  Campello.  Her  parents  were  Samuel  and 
Betsy  Ann  (Keith)  Kimball.  Her  father, 
who  was  born  September  19,  1S19,  enlisted  in 
Company  E,  Eighteenth  Massachusetts,  Au- 
gust 30,  1862,  and  was  killed  at  the  second 
battle  of  Bull  Run.  Mr.  Field  and  his  wife 
have  a  daughter,  F'lavella  Field.  In  politics 
Mr.  Field  is  an  Independent.  He  is  a  com- 
rade of  the  Fletcher  Webster  Post,  No.  13, 
Grand  Army  of  the  Republic. 


LLEN  DANFORTH  was  a  well-known 
editor  and  banker  of  Plymouth.  He 
was  born  at  Taunton,  Mass.,  Janu- 
ary 18,  1796,  son  of  Asa  and  Deborah  (Thayer) 
Danforth.  Tiie  Danforths,  who  are  an  old 
and  respected  family  of  New  England,  come 
of  English  extraction.  In  Flngland  their  an- 
cestral history  goes  back  to  the  year  1538.  A 
record  gives  the  information  that  Thomas 
Danforth  in  1634  was  executor  of  his  mother's 
will.  In  the  same  year  his  brother  Nicholas 
emigrated  from  England,  and  settled  at  Cam- 
bridge, Mass.,  where  he  died  in  1638.  Nich- 
olas's son  Samuel,  who  was  born  in  lingland  in 
1626,  and  died  in  1674,  labored  in  the  ministry 
at  Roxbury,  Mass.,  in  conjunction  with  John 
Eliot,  the  celebrated  Indian  missionary.      His 


270 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


son,  the  Rev.  Samuel  Danforth,  who  was  born 
December  18,  1666,  graduated  from  Harvard 
College  in  1683.  Samuel  wedded  Miss  Han- 
nah Allen,  and  with  his  family  removed  to 
Taunton,  Mass.,  in  1687,  where  he  passed 
away  November  14,  1727.  His  son  James, 
who  was  born  November  11,  1692,  married 
Miss  Sarah  Dean,  and  died  February  27, 
1759.  James  Danforth,  Jr.,  born  July  16, 
1724,  married  Miss  Mehitable  Baker,  by  whom 
he  became  the  father  of  Asa,  and  passed  away 
on  April  15,  1777.  Asa  Danforth,  who  was 
born  January  9,  1766,  wedded  Miss  Deborah 
Thayer,  the  mother  of  the  subject  of  this 
sketch,  arid  departed  this  life  July  15,  1841. 

Allen  Danforth  resided  in  Taunton  until 
1822,  when  he  removed  to  Plymouth.  On 
May  4  of  that  year  he  published  the  first  num- 
ber of  the  Old  Colony  AJcniorial,  which  was  the 
first  newspaper  produced  in  Plymouth.  Hav- 
ing conducted  that  journal  until  1836,  he 
thereafter  devoted  his  attention  exclusively  to 
financial  institutions,  enjoying  the  confidence 
and  respect  of  all  the  people  of  Plymouth. 
He  was  one  of  the  incorporators  of  the  Plym- 
outh Institution  for  Savings,  now  called  the 
Plymouth  Savings  Bank.  In  1829,  when  the 
bank  was  a  year  old,  he  was  elected  Treasurer, 
in  which  capacity  he  served  until  his  demise, 
a  period  of  nearly  forty-three  years.  When 
he  assumed  charge  of  the  bank,  its  total  de- 
posits were  six  thousand,  seven  hundred  and 
forty  dollars.  At  his  decease  they  amounted 
to  over  one  million,  eight  hundred  thousand 
dollars.  Mr.  Danforth  was  also  Secretary  of 
the  Old  Colony  Insurance  Company  from  its 
organization  in  1835  to  1853,  during  which 
time  the  company  enjoyed  uninterrupted 
prosperity. 

On  December  13,  181 3,  Mr.  Danforth 
wedded  Miss  Lydia  P.  Seaver,  a  daughter  of 
Mr.   and    Mrs.    William    Seaver,    of   Taunton. 


Five  children  came  of  the  marriage,  namely: 
Nathaniel,  born  in  1821,  who  died  in  the  fol- 
lowing year;  James  Allen,  born  September 
19,  1 8 19,  who  married  Sarah  T.  Jackson,  of 
Plymouth;  Lydia  Ann,  born  October  16, 
1825,  who  still  resides  on  the  old  homestead; 
Mary  A.,  born  June  6,  1828,  who  became 
the  wife  of  John  J.  Russell,  of  Plymouth;  and 
William  Seaver,  born  January  20,  1832,  who 
wedded  Miss  Abbie  D.  Mace,  of  Colebrook, 
Conn.  Mr.  Danforth  represented  his  district 
in  the  legislature  of  1830-31,  and  he  was 
Selectman  of  Plymouth  in  184S  and  1S49. 
He  was  affiliated  with  the  fraternity  of 
Masons,  being  a  member  of  Plymouth  Lodge, 
Plymouth.  In  national  politics  he  was  a  Re- 
publican. He  maintained  fellowship  with  the 
Unitarian  Church  of  Plymouth  from  the  date 
of  his  settlement  there  to  his  decease,  serving 
it  for  a  part  of  that  time  in  the  capacity  of 
Treasurer.  He  died  May  28,  1872,  in  the 
full  enjoyment  of  the  confidence  and  respect 
of  all  who  knew  him,  and  regretted  as  a  loss 
to  Plymouth. 


{^- 


ALLX   HUMPHREY,   an    intelligent, 
\  P  I       prosperous,  and  highly  esteemed  citi- 
zen   of    Wareham,    this    county,    was 


born    September 


1823,    at    South    Carver, 


Mass.,  son  of  Asa  and  Mary  (Maxim)  Hum- 
phrey. He  attended  the  public  schools  at 
Carver,  where  he  acquired  a  practical  educa- 
tion fitting  him  for  the  position  of  a  teacher 
in  the  common  schools,  and  before  attaining 
his  majority  had  spent  two  years  as  a  teacher 
in  Middleboro,  Plymouth  County.  At  the  age 
of  twenty  he  removed  to  Hopkinton,  Middle- 
sex County,  Mass. 

In  1845  Mr.  Humphrey  settled  in  East 
Wareham,  and  he  there  taught  fifteen  consecu- 
tive terms.      In  1850  he  started  for  California, 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


271 


the  Eldorado  of  the  West,  taking  the  pioneer 
route  to  San  Francisco.  He  remained  in  that 
vicinity  until  the  spring  of  1852,  engaged  in 
prospecting  and  mining;  but,  not  meeting  with 
the  wished-for  success  in  his  search  for  gold, 
he  then  returned  to  his  native  State.  From 
that  time  until  1863  he  was  engaged  in  farm- 
ing in  East  Wareham,  where  he  subsequentl}' 
carried  on  a  substantial  grocery  business  for 
fifteen  years.  Disposing  of  his  store  in  that 
place  Mr.  Plumphrey  was  engaged  as  a  mer- 
chant in  South  Wareham  from  1S80  until 
1883,  but  since  that  time  has  made  his  home 
at  Wareham,  where  he  occupies  an  assured 
position  among  the  useful  and  valued  members 
of  the  community. 

On  January  19,  1853,  Mr.  Humphrey  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Nancy  N.  Besse, 
a  daughter  of  Captain  Seth  and  Sarah  (Briggs) 
Besse,  of  Wareham.  They  have  four  chil- 
dren, namely:  Sophia  B. ,  born  November  23, 
1853;  Albert,  born  December  3,  1855;  Clin- 
ton, born  April  30,  1858,  now  deceased;  and 
Horace  M.,  born  January  25,  1867.  Sophia 
B.  Humphrey  married,  May  26,  1887,  Almon 
H.  Stone,  of  Phillipston,  Mass.,  and  is  the 
mother  of  one  child  —  Nelson,  born  .September 
9,  1891.  Albert  Humphrey  married  in  Janu- 
ary, 1892,  Emma  G.  Pettigrew,  of  Phillipston, 
Mass.  They  have  one  child  —  Mary  E.,  born 
in  February,   1893. 

Politically,  Mr.  Humphrey  is  a  decided  Re- 
publican, and  faithfully  sustains  the  principles 
of  that  party.  He  is  also  a  stanch  temperance 
advocate.  He  has  been  a  member  of  the 
School  Committee  fifteen  years,  a  Justice  of 
the  Peace  for  the  same  period ;  and  he  has 
likewise  served  as  Selectman,  Assessor,  and 
Overseer  of  the  Poor,  besides  being  Road 
Master  and  holding  other  minor  offices.  Re- 
ligiously, he  and  his  estimable  wife  are  mem- 
bers of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  church. 


JSAAC  SAMPSON  was  born  in  Lakeville, 
Plymouth  County,  Mass.,  July  12, 
1826,  and  is  to-day,  after  varied  experi- 
ences in  life,  a  successful  farmer  in  his  native 
town.  His  parents  were  Nathaniel  and  Zil- 
pha  L.  (Shaw)  Sampson.  Nathaniel  Sampson 
was  also  a  native  of  Lakeville,  and  was  the 
father  of  si.x  children,  three  of  whom  are  no 
longer  living.  The  survivors  are:  Nathaniel 
M.,  Zilpha  L. ,  and  Isaac.  Attending  the 
district  school  and  Pierce  Academy  in  his 
boyhood,  until  the  year  1850,  Isaac  Sampson 
lived  on  the  farm  where  he  had  made  his 
advent  into  the  world,  and  among  the  sur- 
roundings of  a  peaceful  country  home  passed 
his  childhood  and  youth.  The  tidings  from 
the  adventurous  explorers  of  the  American 
Eldorado,  who  told  of  fabulous  fortunes  made 
in  the  Californian  gold  mines  which  had  just 
been  discovered,  filled  him  with  a  desire  to 
seek  his  fortune  there  also;  so  he  took  passage 
for  San  Francisco  by  way  of  the  Isthmus,  and 
landed  in  the  city  of  the  Golden  Gate  I'n  the 
fall  of  1850. 

Following  the  precedent  of  the  Western 
pioneers,  he  took  possession  of  a  tract  of  land 
in  Alameda  County,  and  became  what  is  called 
in  the  settlers'  parlance,  a  "squatter."  With 
an  energy  born  of  intense  ambition,  the  young 
New  Englander  put  in  a  crop  of  vegetables  in 
July,  and  then  hurried  to  the  mines,  where  he 
purchased  an  interest  in  one  which  seemed  to 
promise  great  returns.  Having  accomplished 
this  arrangement,  he  then  returned  to  his  field, 
and  gave  it  his  whole  attention  for  several 
months.  He  then  engaged  in  a  mercantile 
enterprise  at  the  Mission  of  San  Jose,  and 
continued  in  this  from  the  winter  of  1851  to 
that  of  1853.  In  the  latter  year  he  returned 
to  the  old  farm  in  Lakeville,  Mass.,  glad,  no 
doubt,  to  set  his  foot  once  more  upon  New 
England  soil.      Here  he  remained  until    1859, 


272 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


when  a  desire  to  breathe  the  balmy  air  of  the 
Pacific  shore  again  seized  him,  and  he  returned 
to  San  Jose  and  resumed  his  former  pursuit  in 
that  growing  town.  In  1863  he  returned  East 
for  his  family,  for  the  ties  of  home  and  kin- 
dred were  as  strong  as  ever  about  his  heart. 

The  Western  life  seemed  a  different  thing 
when  wife  and  children  were  with  him,  and 
for  three  years  the  Sampsons  lived  in  the  land 
where  so  many  fortunes  had  been  made  and 
wrecked  within  one  short  decade.  In  1866 
he  returned  with  his  family  to  New  England; 
but  the  West  seems  to  have  had  a  strange  bold 
upon  him,  for  in  1869  he  again  went  to  the 
Pacific  coast,  engaging  this  time  in  the  com- 
mission business  in  San  Francisco.  His  last 
journey  to  Calfornia  was  made  in  1877,  in 
which  year  he  established  himself  in  San 
Leandro  as  a  merchant.  This  venture  was 
short  lived,  as  he  returned  to  his  native  home 
in  1878,  and  has  since  resided  here.  It  was 
on  the  third  of  his  many  Western  voyages  that 
Mr.  Sampson  experienced  the  horrors  of  ship- 
wreck, near  Cape  St.  Lazro.  The  vessel  went 
ashore;  and  he  was  finally  taken  off  by  a  pass- 
ing steamer,  and  in  this  wise  reached  his  des- 
tination after  suffering  and  delay. 

While  in  California  he  was  Postmaster  of 
San  Leandro,  and  was  Notary  Public  for  Ala- 
meda County;  and  he  has  in  his  own  native 
place  filled  many  offices  of  trust  and  impor- 
tance. He  was  first  Town  Clerk  at  Lakeville, 
and  he  has  also  been  Treasurer,  Assessor,  Se- 
lectman, and  a  member  of  the  School  Commit- 
tee in  the  town  of  his  birth  and  present  resi- 
dence. 

The  year  1S53  was  the  date  of  his  marriage 
to  Miss  Julia  Sampson,  who  did  not  change  her 
name  by  becoming  a  bride.  To  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Sampson  two  children  were  born,  namely : 
Eujiene  H.,  who  married  Ardelia  B.  Merrill, 
daughter    of    Nathaniel    Merrill,     of     Turner, 


Me.  ;    and    Julia    I.,    who    married    James    M. 
Willis,  Jr.,  of  New  Bedford,  Mass. 

Isaac  Sampson  is  now  settled  on  the  farm 
of  his  inheritance;  and  he  is  a  citizen  with 
whom  the  people  of  Plymouth  County  would 
be  loath  to  part  again,  for  much  travel  has 
made  him  broad,  liberal,  and  progressive,  the 
sort  of  man  who  makes  a  just  neighbor  and  a 
kindly  friend.  Having  no  special  party  preju- 
dices, he  is  at  liberty  to  vote  for  whatever 
candidate  seems  best  fitted  to  fill  office,  and 
may  therefore  be  called  in  the  best  sense  of 
the  term  an  independent  voter. 


fffjYOSEPH  RIPLEY,  a  highly  respected 
old  resident  of  Hingham,  where  he  has 
been  engaged  as  a  manufacturer  of  fur- 
niture and  as  an  undertaker  for  many  years, 
was  born  here  May  9,  18 19.  His  parents  were 
Nehemiah,  third,  and  Eunice  (Whiting)  Rip- 
ley. His  earliest  known  ancestor  in  America 
was  William  Ripley,  who  came  from  Hing- 
ham, England,  in  1638,  and  settled  in  Hing- 
ham, Mass.  His  wife,  who,  with  their  two 
sons  and  two  daughters  accompanied  him,  died 
a  few  years  later;  and  on  September  29,  1654, 
he  was  married  to  Mrs.  Eizabeth  Tha.Nter, 
widow  of  Thomas  Thaxter.  William  Ripley 
died  July  20,  1656.  His  second  wife  outlived 
him,  and  on  January  20,  1658,  married  her 
third  husband,  John  Dwight,  of  Dedham. 
She  died  July  17,  1660. 

John,  the  first-born  son  of  William  Ripley, 
married  Elizabeth,  daughter  of  the  Rev.  Peter 
Hobart.  He  died  P'ebruary  3,  1684,  and  his 
wife  died  March  26,  1692,  at  the  age  of  sixty. 
Next  in  the  ancestral  line  was  Peter,  the  fifth 
child  of  John  and  Elizabeth  (Hobart)  Ripley, 
who  was  born  October  21,  1668.  On  April 
17,  1693,  he  was  united  in  marriage  with 
Sarah  Lassell,  daughter  of  John  and  Elizabeth 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


273 


(Gates)  Lassell.  She  was  born  in  Hingliam, 
November  29,  1666,  and  died  September  19, 
1736.  He  died  April  22,  1742.  He  lived  on 
the  paternal  homestead  on  Main  Street,  Hing- 
ham  Centre,  and  was  an  influential  man  in 
town  affairs,  serving  as  Constable  in  1708  and 
as  Selectman  in  1725. 

Peter,  the  second  child  of  Peter  and  Sarah 
(Lassell)  Ripley,  was  born  in  Hingham,  No- 
vember 7,  1695,  and  on  January  5,  1720,  mar- 
ried Silence  Lincoln,  daughter  of  Caleb  and 
Rachel  (Bate)  Lincoln.  She  was  born  here 
December  26,  1692,  and  died  March  11,  1760. 
Peter  Ripley,  second,  died  in  April,  1765, 
having  officiated  as  Constable  in  1735,  and 
as  Selectman  in  1738  and  1741.  He  also  re- 
sided on  the  old  paternal  acres.  Nehemiah, 
first,  son  of  Peter  and  Silence  (Lincoln)  Rip- 
ley, born  April  2,  1727,  was  married  June  4, 
1752,  to  Lydia  Hobart,  daughter  of  the  Rev. 
Nehemiah  and  Lydia  (Jacob)  Hobart.  She 
was  born  in  this  town  February  9,  1733.  Ne- 
hemiah Ripley,  first,  was  a  farmer,  and  served 
the  town  as  Constable  in  1766.  He  died 
August  10,  1769,  aged  forty-three.  His  son, 
Nehemiah,  second,  born  April  18,  1755,  on 
February  24,  1780,  married  Priscilla  Lincoln, 
whose  parents  were  Moses  and  Mary  (Burr) 
Lincoln.  She  was  born  here  February  13, 
1757,  and  died  March  30,  1829.  Nehemiah, 
second,  died  March  8,  1829.  He  also  occu- 
pied the  ancestral  farm.  By  his  marriage 
there  were  nine  children :  Nehemiah,  third, 
the  father  of  the  subject  of  this  sketch;  Jus- 
tin, who  died  very  young;  a  second  Justin; 
Lydia,  who  also  died  in  early  life;  John; 
Peter;   Ebed  ;   Priscilla;   and  Lydia. 

Nehemiah,  third,  son  of  Nehemiah,  second, 
and  Priscilla  (I^incoln)  Ripley,  was  born  in 
Hingham,  November  5,  1780.  He  also  fol- 
lowed farming  on  the  old  home  acres.  On 
February   i,    1807,  he  was  married  to  Eunice 


Whiting,  daughter  of  Amasa  and  Lydia  (Ja- 
cobs) Whiting.  She  was  a  native  of  Hing- 
ham, born  in  June,  1786.  She  died  October 
15,  1850,  and  he  died  October  11,  1863,  leav- 
ing six  children:  Eunice  W.,  who  married 
Francis  Campbell,  of  Milton,  Mass.  ;  Ann 
Eliza,  the  wife  of  Winslow  C.  Whiting,  of 
New  York;  Abigail,  now  Mrs.  William 
Whiton ;  Nehemiah;  Joseph;  and  Lydia  Ja- 
cobs, who  married  Abner  L.  Baker.  A  son, 
Peter,  died  in  1841,  aged  seventeen.  William 
died  in  1853,  in  his  twenty-fifth  year.  An- 
other had  died  in  infancy. 

Joseph  Ripley  during  his  boyhood  worked 
at  farming  and  everything  else  he  could  get  to 
do,  his  early  educational  opportunities  being 
limited  to  brief  terms  of  schooling.  He, 
however,  gained  by  experience  and  contact 
with  the  business  world  a  fund  of  practical 
knowledge  which  has  served  him  in  good 
stead.  When  he  was  seventeen  years  old  he 
was  apprenticed  in  Milton  to  learn  the  carpen- 
ter's trade,  which  he  readily  acquired.  Upon 
attaining  his  majority  he  returned  to  Hingham  ; 
and,  instead  of  making  a  business  of  carpenter- 
ing, in  1842  he  engaged  with  hi.s  brother  in 
the  manufacture  of  furniture.  Two  years 
later  he  formed  another  partnership  with  Mr. 
Newhall,  under  the  firm  name  of  Ripley  & 
Newhall.  They  manufactured  furniture  for  the 
Boston  market  with  good  financial  success  until 
18S2,  when  the  j^artnership  was  dissolved  by 
mutual  consent.  In  the  meanwhile  Joseph 
Ripley  had  given  attention  to  the  undertaking 
business,  which  had  assumed  such  proportions 
as  to  require  his  undivided  time.  He  has 
continued  engaged  in  this  ever  since,  keeping 
pace  with  the  latest  improvements  in  embalm- 
ing and  furnishings,  being  also  an  excellent 
funeral  director.  He  is  pleasantly  located  on 
South  Street,  his  residence  being  on  one  side  of 
the  street  and  his  place  of  business  on  the  other. 


274 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Mr.  Ripley  married  Elizabetli  L.  Lane  in 
1846,  and  they  celebrated  their  golden  wed- 
ding last  June.  In  politics  he  is  a  Republi- 
can, casting  his  first  vote  for  John  C.  Fremont, 
and  voting  for  every  Republican  Presidential 
candidate  ever  since.  Religiously,  he  was 
brought  up  under  Unitarian  influence;  but 
since  1842  he  has  been  a  member  of  the 
Haptist  church,  in  which  he  is  actively  inter- 
ested. He  is  a  Deacon  who  is  tender  in  his 
relations  with  the  church,  being  a  Christian 
gentleman  who  tries  to  follow  the  example 
and  teaching  of  the  Master.  Though  he  has 
attained  the  age  of  seventy-seven  years,  he  is 
still  vigorous  and  active. 


ILLIAM  STETSON,  a  well-known 
carpenter  and  contractor  of  Brock- 
ton, was  born  in  Pembroke,  Plym- 
outh County,  in  1842.  His  parents  were 
Harvey,  Jr.,  and  Abigail  D.  (Walker)  Stet- 
son. The  family,  which  is  of  English  origin, 
was  founded  by  Cornet  Robert  Stetson,  who 
came  from  the  County  of  Kent,  England,  in 
1634.  He  settled  in  Scituate,  Mass.,  on  a 
farm  adjoining  the  one  supposed  to  be  alluded 
to  in  the  popular  song,  "The  Old  Oaken 
Bucket."  His  rank  of  cornet  was  received  in 
the  first  company  of  horse  raised  in  the  Plym- 
outh Colony.  He  married  and  became  the 
father  of  four  sons.  Harvey  Stetson,  the 
grandfather  of  William,  was  born  in  Pem- 
broke, where  he  was  subsequently  engaged  in 
the  trade  of  ship  carpenter.  He  married 
Polly  Lanman,  of  Scituate,  and  they  had  three 
children  —  Harvey,  Jr.,  Mary  Ann,  and  Ed- 
ward. Harvey  Stetson,  Jr.,  a  native  of  Plym- 
outh, was  considered  a  mechanical  genius. 
He  was  also  engaged  in  ship-building,  but  he 
subsequently  forsook  that  calling  for  farming. 
By  his  wife,  Abigail  D.,  he  became  the  father 


of  three  children — Isaac,  William,  and  John 
— ^and  he  died  at  the  age  of  seventy-four 
years. 

After  attending  the  common  school  in  his 
native  town  for  the  usual  period,  William 
Stetson  took  a  course  at  Bryant  &  Stratton's 
Commercial  College  in  Providence.  He  sub- 
sequently learned  the  carpenter's  trade  in  less 
time  than  any  other  apprentice  of  his  em- 
ployer. He  was  afterward  employed  in  a  cot- 
ton gin  manufactory  for  some  time.  Then  he 
and  D.  H.  Dunbar  kept  a  grocery  store,  the 
firm  being  known  as  Dunbar  &  Stetson. 
After  that  he  worked  at  his  trade  in  Boston, 
Lynn,  and  Bridgewater,  and  was  in  the  em- 
ployment of  Charles  Johnson,  of  Brockton,  as 
foreman  for  four  years.  In  the  centennial 
year  he  began  undertaking  contracts  in  Brock- 
ton. Now,  in  the  possession  of  a  profitable 
contracting  business,  he  puts  up  houses  to 
sell,  and  otherwise  deals  in  real  estate.  On 
September  8,  1875,  Mr.  Stetson  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Diana  P.  Beale,  of  West 
Bridgewater.  While  he  supports  the  Repub- 
lican party,  he  takes  no  part  in  political  affairs 
beyond  voting.  At  several  times  he  has  been 
solicited  to  accept  important  public  offices. 


REDERICK  SIMPSON  STRONG  was 
for  over  thirty  years  superintendent  of 
the  Carver  Cotton  Gin  Company  of  East 
Bridgewater,  also  one  of  its  stockholders  and 
directors;  and  much  of  its  early  success  is  due 
to  his  wise  management  and  his  valuable 
labor-saving  inventions,  on  which  large  royal- 
ties had  been  paid.  Mr.  Strong  was  born  in 
South  Coventry,  Conn.,  August  25,  1824,  a 
son  of  Frederick  A.  and  Julia  (Simpson) 
Strong,  both  natives  of  that  town.  His  an- 
cestry was  a  distinguished  one,  the  family 
characteristics   being  patriotism,  a  keen  sense 


■^e--ip^^^fy>^i-o 


/.Y, 


'  i./r  /■  I- 1 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


277 


of  right  and  wrong,  and  great  simplicity  and 
purity  of  character. 

He  was  eighth  in  descent  from  Elder  John 
Strong,  who  came  to  the  Massachusetts  Bay 
Colony  from  England  in  1630,  and  was  active 
in  founding  the  towns  of  Dorchester,  Hing- 
ham,  and  Taunton.  Removing  finally  to 
Northampton  in  1659,  he  took  a  prominent 
part  in  the  development  of  that  place.  He 
was  possessed  of  considerable  wealth,  and  was 
a  large  land-owner.  Of  stanch  Puritanical 
principles,  he  was  the  head  and  support  of  the 
church  in  Northampton.  His  descendants, 
who  were  men  and  women  of  firm  character, 
prominent  in  every  generation  in  church  and 
town  affairs,  settled  in  various  towns  in  Con- 
necticut. In  1763  Justice  Joseph  Strong,  at 
the  age  of  eighty-nine  was  elected  for  the 
fifty-second  time  to  the  Colonial  legislature; 
Caleb  Strong  was  United  States  Senator  from 
1788  to  1800,  and  Governor  of  Massachusetts 
in  1800;  another  member  of  the  family,  a 
physician,  was  commissioned  by  Washington 
in  1793  as  Surgeon  in  General  Wayne's  army. 
Roger  Strong,  who  was  Paymaster  in  the  army 
in  the  War  of  181 2,  was  the  father  of  Ered- 
erick  A.,  and  grandfather  of  the  subject  of  this 
sketch.  Frederick  A.  Strong  was  a  large 
manufacturer  of  Connecticut;  and  his  wife, 
the  mother  of  Frederick  S.,  was  a  cousin  of 
General  Ulysses  Simpson  Grant. 

Frederick  Simpson  Strong  received  an  aca- 
demic education,  and  prepared  for  college, 
but,  owing  to  ill  health,  did  not  take  a  further 
course  of  study.  He  taught  school  for  a 
while,  and  was  gradually  drawn  into  me- 
chanics, for  which  he  had  a  natural  genius. 
In  the  early  fifties  he  was  engaged  in  the  man- 
ufacture of  firearms  for  the  United  States  gov- 
ernment at  Springfield;  and  he  was  subse- 
quently, as  a  member  of  a  New  York  firm, 
engaged    in    superintending    the    dressing    of 


stone  by  machinery  in  New  York,  having  two 
thousand  men  under  his  charge.  The  panic 
of  1857  made  it  necessary  for  this  firm  to  sus- 
pend business,  and  Mr.  Strong  then  obtained 
the  position  of  superintendent  of  the  East 
Carver  Cotton  Gin  Company,  now  known  as  the 
Carver  Cotton  Gin  Company  of  East  Bridge- 
water.  He  had  been  connected  but  a  short 
time  with  this  concern  when,  the  mills  were 
destroyed  by  fire;  and  in  the  re-establishing  of 
the  plant  his  mechanical  skill  and  inventive 
genius  were  of  great  service.  During  the 
war  the  manufacture  of  cotton  gins  was  sus- 
pended, and  Mr.  Strong  entered  the  employ  of 
the  national  government,  superintending  the 
manufacture  of  swords  and  rifles  at  West 
Chelmsford,  Mass.,  and  the  manufacture  of 
Remington  rifles  at  Ilion,  N.  Y.  His  knowl- 
edge of  the  manufacture  of  arms  being  of  im- 
measurable value  to  the  government,  they 
would  not  allow  him  to  go  into  the  army, 
therefore  he  furnished  a  substitute.  A  pretty 
good  record  for  an  ardent  Democrat ! 

As  the  war  neared  its  close,  he  returned 
to  East  Bridgewater,  and  purchased  one  of  the 
most  beautiful  residences  in  town,  a  house 
built  by  the  famous  Oliver  Ames,  of  North 
Easton,  for  his  daughter.  Mr.  Strong,  becom- 
ing one  of  the  partners  in  the  Carver  Cotton 
Gin  Company,  was  made  its  superintendent, 
and  remained  in  that  capacity  as  long  as 
he  lived.  Among  the  most  important  of  his 
patented  inventions  were:  the  iron  cylinder 
for  cotton  gins;  the  cotton-gin  feeder;  a 
wedge-driving  machine;  a  leather  splitting 
machine;  and  the  Acme  Leveller,  an  indis- 
pensable adjunct  now  to  shoe  machinery. 

Mr.  Strong  was  constant  and  untiring  in  his 
application  to  business;  and  when  business 
was  cared  for,  his  time  was  devoted  to  his 
home  and  family  with  great  tenderness  and 
fidelity.      After  the   loss  of    his  beloved  son, 


278 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


this  man  of  strength  and  vigor  seemed  to  be 
crushed  to  the  earth  by  his  weight  of  sorrow. 
Never  again  had  he  the  same  interest  in  life 
as  before,  and  in  a  little  over  a  year  death 
came  as  a  relief  to  restore  him  to  his  son's 
companionship. 

Mr.  Strong  was  one  of  the  incorporators  and 
a  Trustee  of  the  East  Bridgewater  Savings 
Bank.  He  was  Chairman  of  the  East  Bridge- 
water  School  Committee  for  several  years,  and 
a  member  of  the  Social  Club.  Prominent  in 
Masonic  circles,  he  was  Past  Master  Bridge- 
water  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  and  was  really 
the  founder  and  first  Master  of  Satucket 
Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A  M.,  of  East  Bridgewater. 
He  was  Commander  for  a  number  of  years 
of  the  Old  Colony  Commandery,  Knights 
Templars,  of  Abington,  and  was  a  member 
of  the  Grand  Lodge  of  Massachusetts  in  Bos- 
ton. He  was  seventeen  years  superintendent 
of  the  Sunday-school  of  the  Unitarian  church, 
to  which  he  devoted  much  time  and  money. 
He  was  popular  alike  with  those  in  his  own 
station  in  life,  and  those  subject  to  his  orders; 
and  a  thrill  of  consternation  went  through  the 
community  when  it  was  announced  that  he  had 
been  stricken  with  paralysis  in  his  office  at  the 
mills.  And  when,  a  few  days  later,  he  passed 
away,  the  mourning  for  his  loss  was  general. 
He  died  October  22,  1894,  and  his  remains 
were  interred  in  Mount  Auburn,  the  Knights 
Templars  conducting  the  obsequies. 

Mr.  Strong  was  married  l-^ebruary  15,  1853, 
to  Sarah  Frances,  daughter  of  Luke  and  Eliza 
(Sage)  Pratt.  She  was  born  May  13,  1832,  in 
Springfield,  Mass.,  where  many  generations  of 
her  family  have  lived  and  died,  and  where  the 
old  Pratt  homestead  is  still  standing.  Mrs. 
Strong's  great-grandfather,  Jonathan  Phillips, 
was  a  Revolutionary  soldier,  and  she  belongs 
to  the  Daughters  of  the  Revolution.  She  is 
an  esteemed  member  of  the  Unitarian  Society 


at  East  Bridgewater,  and  both  she  and  her 
husband  were  members  of  the  Universalist 
church  at  Springfield,  to  which,  in  companion- 
ship with  him,  she  devoted  much  of  her  time 
and  means.  For  several  years  Mrs.  Strong 
was  a  teacher  in  the  Sunday-school.  Siie  took 
part  in  the  literary  and  social  activities  of  the 
town,  and  was  a  member  of  the  Shakspere 
Club  from  the  time  of  its  organization,  nearly 
a  quarter  of  a  century  ago.  She  has  always 
been  interested  in  those  things  that  pertain  to 
intellectual  and  moral  advancement.  The 
union  of  P'rederick  Simpson  Strong  and  Sarah 
P'rances  Pratt  was  blessed  with  one  son, 
Charles  Pratt  Strong,  who  died  somewhat  over 
a  year  previous  to  his  father's  demise,  after  a 
short  and  brilliant  career  as  a  physician  and 
surgeon. 

Charles  Pratt  Strong  was  born  in  Spring- 
field, Mass.,  December  19,  1855.  He  was  a 
graduate  of  East  Bridgewater  High  School  at 
thirteen  years  of  age,  but  remained  one  year 
longer  to  study  Greek  and  Latin,  under  the 
instruction  of  Mr.  Faxon.  The  following 
year  he  entered  Phillips  Exeter  Academy  at 
Exeter,  N.  H.,  in  the  Senior  class,  v^rith  more 
knowledge  of  Greek  and  Latin  than  was  re- 
quired the  first  year  at  Harvard  College.  At 
fifteen  years  of  age  he  passed  a  successful  ex- 
amination for  Harvard  College,  with  honors  in 
Greek,   Latin,  and  mathematics. 

He  was  enrolled  in  the  class  which  was 
graduated  in  1876,  and  received  his  degree 
from  the  medical  department  in  iSSi.  In  the 
first  part  of  his  college  course  his  bent  seemed 
toward  the  natural  sciences;  but  in  his  second 
year  in  the  medical  school  his  inborn  fitness 
for  the  profession  he  had  chosen  became  evi- 
dent, and  he  threw  himself  heart  and  soul  into 
acquiring  the  knowledge  needful  for  his  life 
work.  He  gained  his  initial  practice  as  house 
officer  at   the    Boston    Lying-in    Hospital,   the 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


281 


Free  Hospital  for  Women,  and  the  Massachu- 
setts General  Hospital.  Starting  as  a  general 
practitioner  in  Boston  in  1882,  he  soon  drifted 
into  gynecology  as  a  specialty,  and  in  ten 
years  he  rose  to  the  front  rank  of  his  pro- 
fession. Unaided  by  wealth  or  influential 
friends,  his  love  of  his  profession,  his  con- 
scientious work,  his  pure  and  honorable  char- 
acter, almost  womanly  in  its  sweetness,  and 
his  manly  independence,  attached  to  him  all 
with  whom  he  came  in  contact ;  and  the 
demand  for  his  services  yearly  increased.  He 
gave  his  time  and  energies  unsparingly  to  his 
patients,  private  and  charitable,  and  accom- 
plished a  great  amount  of  hospital  work. 

He  was  a  born  surgeon.  One  of  his  older 
associates  has  said,  "  Dr.  Strong  knew  by  in- 
tuition what  it  took  others  years  to  learn"; 
and  another,  "  He  had  at  the  early  age  of 
thirty-seven  reached  the  zenith  of  his  profes- 
sion." Dr.  Strong  had  one  ambition  which 
he  hoped  to  gratify,  and  that  was  to  have  a 
private  hospital  of  his  own,  where  he  could 
expand  his  work,  and  increase  his  powers  for 
saving  life  and  preventing  suffering.  Doubt- 
less the  magnificent  estate  at  Elmwood  in  East 
Bridgewater,  charming  and  salubrious  in  its 
location,  beautiful  in  scenery,  the  delightful 
home  of  his  boyhood  days,  where  his  beloved 
mother,  now  doubly  bereft  in  loss  of  husband 
and  son,  still  resides,  would  have  been  the 
chosen  spot.  But  in  his  devotion  to  his  pro- 
fession and  suffering  humanity  his  life  was 
sacrificed  before  the  cherished  plan  could  be 
executed.  Two  of  the  Doctor's  leading  char- 
acteristics were  his  love  of  home  and  of  his 
profession.  His  office  was  in  his  dwelling, 
on  the  water  side  of  Beacon  Street,  No.  258, 
only  a  short  distance  from  the  residence  of  Dr. 
Oliver  Wendell  Holmes. 

The  charitable  institutions  with  which  Dr. 
Strong  was  connected  at  the  time  of  his  death 


were  the  Free  Hospital  for  Women,  in  which 
he  was  assistant  surgeon,  and  the  Massachu- 
setts General  Hospital,  where  he  was  acting 
as  physician  to  out-patients.  As  an  expert  in 
abdominal  surgery,  he  was  called  upon  to  per- 
form an  operation  on  a  friend  suffering  from 
an  acute  attack  of  appendicitis;  and  the  case 
was  of  such  virulence  that  the  operation  failed 
to  save  the  patient's  life,  and  led  to  the  death 
of  the  physician.  In  little  more  than  twenty- 
four  hours  after  he  had  attended  to  the  case. 
Dr.  Strong  became  conscious  of  symptoms  of 
blood-poisoning,  and   he  died  within  six  days, 


March  14,   i! 


He  was  at  that   time  assist- 


ant in  gynecology  in  the  medical  department 
of  Harvard  University;  a  fellow  of  the  Massa- 
chusetts Medical  Society,  of  the  Boston  So- 
ciety for  Medical  Improvement,  of  the  Boston 
Society  for  Medical  Observation,  of  the  Bos- 
ton Obstetrical  Society,  and  of  the  American 
Gynecological  Society.  He  was  also  an  hon- 
ored member  of  the  noted  St.  Botolph  Club. 

Miss  Sarah  Daggett,  of  Commonwealth 
Avenue,  Boston,  whose  life  Dr.  Strong  had 
saved,  conceived  the  idea  of  founding  a  schol- 
arship in  Harvard  Medical  School  to  perpetu- 
ate his  memory.  She  contributed  thereto,  as 
did  others;  and  so  pleasing  was  the  idea  to  his 
parents  that  they  forwarded  handsome  checks, 
and  the  balance  is  provided  for  in  Mrs. 
Strong's  will.  This  enables  some  worthy  stu- 
dent, whose  means  are  limited,  to  obtain  an 
education.  In  the  Art  Museum  iii  Boston,  a 
bronze  bas-relief  reminds  us  of  the  young  phy- 
sician's life.  As  here  represented,  the  Angel 
of  Death  stretches  out  his  hand,  and  stays  the 
work  but  partly  completed;  and,  looking  with 
saddened  eyes  upon  this  emblem,  comes  the 
blessed  thought  of  immortality  and  reunion. 

Dr.  Strong  was  married  October  g,  1S84, 
by  the  Rev.  Dr.  Bartol,  in  the  old  West 
Church,    Boston,   to   Miss    Mary  Baker.      The 


2»2 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


Baker  family  were  among  the  English  colo- 
nists of  Massachusetts,  coming  to  this  country 
in  1634,  and  settling  in  Lynn.  They  were 
farmers,  merchants,  soldiers,  scholars,  and 
took  part  in  the  French  and  Indian  wars,  the 
Revolution,  and  the  War  of  18 12.  One  son, 
Bryant  Strong,  born  January  29,  1889,  shares 
with  his  mother  "the  heritage  of  pride  in  the 
husband  and  father  who  died  at  the  post  of 
duty." 

4^  •»^  -  —  -- 

61  HOMAS  J.  LeBARON,  who  resides 
^1  on  the  old  homestead  in  Middleboro, 
where  his  life  has  been  spent  in  the 
time-honored  vocation  of  a  farmer,  was  born 
here,  April  i,  1848,  son  of  Thomas  M.  and 
Sarah  C.  (Morse)  LeBaron.  His  parents  had 
four  sons  and  two  daughters.  After  attending 
the  district  school  near  his  home,  Thomas  J. 
LeBaron  took  a  supplementary  course  of  study 
at  Jenks's  Academy,  Middleboro.  He  con- 
tinued to  live  with  his  parents  on  the  home 
farm,  of  which,  upon  the  death  of  his  father, 
who  departed  January  3,  1895,  aged  eighty- 
four  years,  he  became  the  owner.  The  place 
contains  about  eighty  acres;  but  in  addition  to 
this  he  owns  other  land,  the  aggregate  amount 
being  about  three  hundred  acres.  He  carries 
on  general  farming  with  fairly  profitable  re- 
sults, and  is  also  engaged  to  some  extent  in 
lumbering,  owning  a  saw-mill  in  the  town  of 
Rochester.  In  politics  he  is  a  Democrat. 
On  April  8,  1879,  Mr.  LeBaron  was  married 
to  Miss  Sylvia  Morse,  by  whom  he  has  three 
children;  namely,  Ralph  J.,  Roy  M.,  and 
William  H. 


KNRY   C.    PECKHAM,  a  well-known 
mechanic    of    Brockton,    was    born    in 
Fall  River,  Mass.,  April   28,   1835, 
son    of    Henry    Peckham,    Jr.,    and    Lydia    P. 


(Smith)  Peckham.  His  grandfather,  Henry 
Peckham,  Sr. ,  who  was  a  farmer  of  Newport, 
R.I.,  and  served  his  country  in  the  last  war 
with  England,  married  P'sther  Gould,  of  South 
Kingston.  She  was  the  mother  of  his  thir- 
teen children,  but  three  of  whom  are  now  liv- 
ing. Of  the  latter,  one  is  a  resident  of  Los 
Angeles,  Cal.,  and  the  other  two  are  living  in 
P'all  River,  Mass.  The  father  joined  the 
Baptist  church  when  he  was  sixty-five  years 
old.  He  lived  to  be  ninety,  while  his  wife 
died  at  the  age  of  eighty  years.  Henry  Peck- 
ham, Jr.,  a  native  of  Newport,  R.I.,  was  suc- 
cessively a  cabinet-maker  and  a  pattern-maker. 
He  drafted  the  first  locomotive  patterns  for 
the  car  shops  of  Taunton,  Mass.  Subse- 
quently he  was  engaged  in  the  turning  busi- 
ness at  New  Bedford.  In  religion  he  was  a 
Baptist,  and  belonged  to  the  society  of  the 
Baptist  church  in  Fall  River.  He  married 
Lydia  P.  Smith,  who  lived  in  the  vicinity  of 
Newport,  and  by  her  became  the  father  of  six- 
teen children.  She  is  still  living,  being  in 
her  ninety-first  year.  The  father  died  at  the 
age  of  sixty. 

Henry  C.  Peckham  lived  in  Fall  River  with 
his  parents  until  he  was  eight  years  old. 
Then  he  removed  with  them  to  South  Middle- 
boro, now  Lakeville,  and  there  remained  five 
years.  In  1848  the  family  removed  to  Swan- 
sea, Mass.,  where  Henry  C.  spent  his  time  for 
some  years,  working  on  his  father's  farm  in  the 
summer  and  attending  the  common  schools  in 
the  winter.  In  the  spring  of  1852,  being  then 
seventeen  years  old,  he  went  to  Fall  River  to 
learn  the  trade  of  wood-turner  of  Nelson  N. 
Brightman,  and  remained  with  him  fourteen 
months.  Subsequently  he  was  in  company 
with  his  father  in  Providence,  R.I.,  for  a 
time.  In  1854  he  returned  to  Fall  River,  and 
found  employment  at  his  trade  working  for 
A.  L.  Westgate  &  Co.      In  1858   he  removed 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


283 


to  West  Bridgewatcr,  where  he  learned  to 
make  shoes.  He  afterward  worked  in  the 
stitch ing-room  of  Sawyer,  Collaman  &  Co., 
Canipello.  In  1864  he  opened  a  meat  market 
in  Somerset,  Mass.  He  was  later  associated 
for  some  three  years  with  his  brother  in  the 
shoe  business  at  Cochesett,  this  county,  under 
the  style  of  H.  C.  &  C.  T.  Peckham.  In 
1868  he  engaged  with  H.  A.  Dean  &  Co.,  to 
run  his  stitching-room.  In  August,  1869, 
he  came  to  North  Bridgewater,  now  Brock- 
ton, and  worked  at  turning  for  George  M. 
Copeland.  On  June  29,  1874,  A.  C.  Thomp- 
son purchased  the  business  of  Mr.  Copeland, 
and  since  that  time  Mr.  Peckham  has  been 
associated  with  Mr.  Thompson.  Altogether 
he  has  been  in  the  wood-turning  business  for 
about  twenty-seven  years.  He  has  also  been 
interested  to  quite  an  extent  in  real  estate. 

On  October  15,  1855,  Mr.  Peckham  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Elizabeth  B.  Bliss,  of 
Rehoboth,  Mass.  She  has  had  five  children, 
two  of  whom  are  now  living.  These  are: 
Alton  E.  and  Julia  W.  The  latter  is  now  the 
wife  of  Mr.  Simmons.  In  politics  Mr.  Peck- 
ham is  an  Independent.  He  is  a  member 
of  Park  Revere  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of 
Satucket ;  and  is  in  the  Royal  Arch  Chapter, 
and  the  Bay  State  Commandery,  Knights 
Templars. 

^AMUEL  McLAUTHLEN,  Jr.,  a 
successful  carpenter  and  contractor 
of  Brockton,  was  born  in  Kingston, 
Plymouth  County,  November  7,  1822,  son  of 
Samuel  and  Hannah  (Weston)  McLauthlen. 
Robert,  the  founder  of  the  family,  who  came 
from  Scotland  in  1695,  and  settled  in  Dux- 
bury,  married  Mary  Miller.  His  son  Joseph, 
a  native  of  Du.xbury  and  a  farmer,  married 
Jane  West,  and  became  the  father  of  seven 
sons  and  three  daughters.      Of  these  Samuel, 


the  father  of  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  was 
the  si.xth  child.  Born  in  Pembroke,  he  subse- 
quenty  moved  to  Kingston,  where  he  was  en- 
gaged in  farming  throughout  the  rest  of  his 
life.  He  married  Hannah  (Baker)  Weston, 
a  widow  of  Marshfield.  Her  genealogy  has 
been  traced  back  to  1637,  when  one  of  her 
ancestors,  Samuel  Baker,  man  led  Eleanor 
Winslow.  She  had  one  son,  Peter,  by  her 
first  marriage.  There  were  four  children  by 
the  second  marriage;  namely,  Hannah  Baker, 
Christiana  Holmes,  Samuel,  and  Simeon 
Weston.  Of  these  Samuel  is  the  only  sur- 
vivor.     Both  parents  are  likewise  deceased. 

After  acquiring  his  education  in  the  public 
schools  of  Kingston,  Samuel  McLauthlen 
learned  the  carpenter's  trade  with  Joseph 
Holmes  of  that  place.  For  three  years  he 
worked  in  Mr.  Holmes's  shipyard.  Thence 
he  came  to  North  Bridgewater,  and  had  been 
employed  four  years  by  Dunbar  &  Soule,  car- 
penters and  contractors,  when  they  went  into 
the  lumber  business.  He  and  Cephas  Soule 
then  conducted  business  under  the  style  of 
Soule  &  McLauthlen  for  years.  After  the 
partnership  was  dissolved,  Mr.  McLauthlen 
conducted  the  business  alone  until  1868,  when 
he  began  to  work  in  Brockton,  where  he  has 
since  built  several  engine-houses  and  private 
dwellings. 

Mr.  McLauthlen  has  been  twice  married. 
The  first  wife,  Hannah  Beal  (Snell)  McLauth- 
len, who  was  a  daughter  of  Zachariah  Snell, 
of  North  Bridgewater,  bore  him  four  children. 
These  were:  Charles  Weston,  a  resident  of 
Boston;  George  W. ,  who  lives  in  Stoughton  ; 
Frank  A.,  who,  within  a  year  has  bought  out 
Mr.  Chander's  store,  and  is  now  running  it; 
and  Hattie  Emma,  now  deceased.  His  present 
wife  was  the  widow  of  George  H.  Gurney.  In 
politics  Mr.  McLauthlen  affiliates  with  the 
Republican  party.      He  has  served  as  Engineer 


284 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


of  the  Fire  Department  for  four  years.  He 
is  identified  with  Fraternal  Lodge,  No.  24, 
Independent  Order  of  Good  Templars.  In  re- 
ligion he  is  orthodo.x,  being  a  member  of  the 
First  Congregational  Church. 


■OHN  E.  ASHLEY,  a  representative 
farmer  of  the  town  of  Lakeville,  Plym- 
outh County,  was  born  here,  July  30, 
1835,  son  of  David  Ashley.  After  receiving 
a  district-school  education  he  turned  his  atten- 
tion to  agriculture,  making  his  home  with  his 
parents  until  his  marriage.  About  the  year 
1884  he  purchased  his  present  farm,  which 
contains  ninety-si.x  acres;  and  he  is  here  profit- 
ably engaged  in  carrying  on  general  farming 
and  the  raising  of  small  fruits. 

In  1875  Mr.  A.shley  was  married  to  Miss 
M.  G.  Paull,  of  Middleboro.  Mr.  Ashley  is 
a  Democrat,   politically. 


HARLE.S     VV.     SPARRELL,    a    well- 


known  resident  of  Norwell,  proprietor 
of  the  oldest  undertaking  establish- 
ment in  this  part  of  Plymouth  County,  was 
born  in  the  village  of  Norwell,  December  30, 
1835,  a  son  of  James  N.  Sparrell. 

Equipped  with  a  public  school  education, 
the  subject  of  this  sketch  at  seventeen  years  of 
age  began  life  for  himself,  taking  charge  of 
the  business  which  his  father  had  established 
in  1840,  and  which  consisted  of  general  under- 
taking and  the  manufacture  of  caskets.  In 
T862  he  enlisted  in  Compati}'  I"  of  the  I'orty- 
third  Massachusetts  Regiment,  and  was  mus- 
tered in  at  Readville  for  nine  months'  service. 
The  first  engagement  in  which  he  took  part 
was  at  Young's  Cross  Roads,  and  it  was  fol- 
lowed in  his  experience  by  the  battles  of 
Goldsborough     and      Whitehall.        For     four 


months  Mr.  Sparrell  was  confined  in  the 
Foster  Hospital  at  New  Berne,  N.C.,  on  ac- 
count of  disease  resulting  from  the  hardships 
and  privations  of  army  life.  He  received  an 
honorable  discharge  eleven  months  from  the 
time  of  his  enlistment.  On  May  25,  1859, 
Mr.  Sparrell  married  Miss  Susan  liwell,  of 
Marshfield,  Mass.  They  have  had  six  chil- 
dren; namely,  Albert,  Mary,  Walter  (de- 
ceased), Ernest,  Helen  (deceased),  and  John. 
Mr.  Sparrell  is  a  member  of  Phoenix  Lodge, 
A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Hanover;  also  of  D. 
Willard  Robinson  Post,  No.  ri2.  Grand 
Army  of  the  Republic,  and  of  Satuit  Grange, 
No.    187,  of    Norwell. 


|IIARLES  C.  ROGERS,  an  expert 
machinist  of  Brockton,  was  born  in 
Dexter,  Me.,  November  26,  1864, 
son  of  Thomas  and  Sarah  (Carleton)  Rogers. 
His  great-grandfather,  Thomas,  came  to  this 
country  from  England  about  one  hundred  and 
fifty  years  ago,  and  settled  in  Veazie,  Me., 
where  the  family  were  prominent  for  a  long 
time  as  lumber  dealers,  controlling  the  most 
of  the  water  power  and  owning  a  number  of 
mills.  Thomas  Rogers,  seaind,  the  grand- 
father, was  born  in  England,  and  came  to  this 
country  with  his  parents,  being  a  child  at  the 
time.  He  owned  a  saw-mill  for  a  while,  and 
in  the  latter  part  of  his  life  worked  as  a  mill- 
wright. He  was  over  eighty  years  of  age 
when  he  died.  Thomas  Rogers  reared  two 
sons,  Thomas  (third)  and  Richard.  Richard, 
who  was  a  '"Forty-niner,"  died  in  California. 
Thomas  Rogers,  third,  the  father  of  Charles 
C. ,  was  born  in  Veazie,  Me.  He  learned  the 
millwright's  trade,  and  became  an  expert  ma- 
chinist, equalled  by  few  in  his  line  of  work. 
Travelling  extensively  he  located  saw-mills  as 
far  west  as   Upper  Stillwater,  Minn.,  and  be- 


HENRY    B.    MAGLATHLIN. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


came  known  through  a  large  section  of  the 
country.  For  a  number  of  years  prior  to  his 
death  he  had  a  foundry  and  machine  shop  in 
Dexter,  Me.  Mr.  Rogers  served  for  some 
time  as  Constable  and  as  Deputy  Sheriff  of 
De.xter.  He  was  a  member  of  the  Universalist 
church  of  that  town.  His  wife,  who  was  a 
daughter  of  Charles  Carleton,  of  Oldtown,  a 
Revolutionary  soldier,  had  nine  children,  of 
whom  six  are  now  living. 

Charles  C.  Rogers  was  the  youngest  of  his 
parents'  children.  He  received  a  good  educa- 
tion, attending  the  De.xter  High  School  and 
the  Houlton  (Me.)  Academy,  which  was 
under  the  supervision  of  the  faculty  of  Colby 
University.  At  the  Houlton  Academy  he 
spent  four  years.  In  1881  he  entered  the 
employ  of  Goddard,  Shaw  &  Co.,  of  Brockton, 
with  whom  he  remained  until  they  went  out 
of  business.  He  worked  for  F.  L.  Stone 
from  that  time  until  1S84,  when  he  was  ap- 
pointed Superintendent  of  the  fire  alarm  and 
telegraph  departments  of  Hrockton,  a  position 
which  he  held  until  1887.  In  that  year  he  re- 
newed his  connection  with  Mr.  Stone  for  some 
time,  and  in  1SS9  he  and  Mr.  Goddard,  form- 
ing the  firm  of  Goddard  &  Rogers,  purchased 
Mr.  Stone's  business.  On  May  i,  iSg6,  he 
purchased  Mr.  Goddard's  share,  and  since  that 
time  has  conducted  the  place  without  an  asso- 
ciate. He  is  an  expert  and  reliable  workman, 
and  has  admirably  fulfilled  a  number  of  impor- 
tant contracts. 

Mr.  Rogers  was  married  in  i8gi  to  the 
eldest  daughter  of  William  H.  Wade,  the 
junior  member  of  the  Hrockton  firm  of  O.  O. 
Patten  &  Co.,  and  now  has  two  children.  In 
politics  he  favors  the  Democratic  side.  A 
resident  of  Brockton  for  fifteen  years,  Mr. 
Rogers  is  closely  identified  with  the  industrial 
life  of  the  place,  and  may  be  regarded  as  a 
representative  citizen. 


OHN  F.  SHAW,  a  highly  respected 
resident  of  Carver,  was  born  in  the 
town  of  Middleboro,  Plymouth  County, 
May  2,  1830,  son  of  Elkanah  and  Nancy 
(Freeman)  Shaw.  His  parents  had  five  chil- 
dren; namely,  Nancy,  Maria,  John  F. ,  E. 
Howard,  and  Mary  F.  During  his  early  life 
John  F.  Shaw  lived  on  a  farm  and  for  the 
usual  period  attended  the  common  school. 
He  came  to  South  Carver  when  twelve  years 
old.  At  the  age  of  fourteen  he  obtained  em- 
ployment in  the  iron  foundry  here.  A  few 
years  later  he  went  to  Jersey  City,  N.J.,  where 
he  worked  at  the  trade  of  moulder  for  about 
two  years.  Then  he  returned  to  South  Carver 
and  went  to  work  in  the  B.  Ellis  iron  foundry, 
where  he  was  employed  for  twenty  years. 
Since  that  time  he  has  been  teaming  for  the 
foundry,  the  teams  being  his  own  property. 
He  also  engaged  in  raising  cranberries.  In 
1888  he  erected  the  house  in  which  he  resides. 
Mr.  Shaw  is  a  Democrat  in  politics.  He  has 
never  sought  or  held  office. 

In  1854  Mr.  Shaw  was  married  to  Miss 
Drucilla  L.  Bolles,  daughter  of  Leonard  and 
Eveline  Bolles,  of  Marion,  Mass.  They  had 
three  children,  of  whom  Franklin  H.  is  living. 
He  married  Miss  Nancy  Griffith,  and  has  four 
children  —  Bernard  E.,  Gerard  F.,  Gertrude 
F.,  and  John  F. 


7TAAPTAIN  HENRY  B.  MAGLATH- 
l   jy        LIN,  of  Kingston,   Mass.,    who   com- 

V,i£_^^  manded  a  company  of  Massachu- 
setts Volunteers  in  the  Civil  War,  is  widely 
known  as  a  worker  in  the  cause  of  education 
and  in  the  interests  of  labor  reform.  He  was 
born  in  Duxbury,  Mass.,  May  16,  1819,  son 
of  Bartlett  and  Maria  Weston  (Chandler) 
Maglathlin.  His  great-grandfather,  John  Ma- 
glathlin,  son  of   Robert  and  Isabella  (Samson) 


288 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Maglathlin,  was  born  in  Scotland  in  1695, 
came  to  America  in  1712,  and  settled  perma- 
nently in  Duxbury  in  1741.  John,  by  descent, 
was  kin  to  Robert  Bruce,  who  became  King 
Robert  I.  of  Scotland. 

While  a  boy  on  his  father's  farm,  remote 
from  schools,  Henry  15.  Maglathlin  conceived 
the  idea  of  acquiring  a  liberal  education.  To 
obtain  the  means  of  defraying  the  e.xpenses  of 
a  more  advanced  course  of  study  than  that 
offered  by  a  country  district  school,  he  engaged 
as  operative  for  a  year  in  the  cotton  factory, 
working  fourteen  hours  a  day;  and  at  the  age 
of  si.xteen  he  began  to  earn  money  by  teaching 
school.  By  the  beginnings  thus  made,  and  by 
dint  of  perseverance  in  the  face  of  many  ob- 
stacles, he  was  able  to  meet  the  expense  of 
preparing  for  and  going  through  the  college 
course  at  Harvard  University,  where  he  was 
graduated  in  1843.  He  remained  there  three 
years  longer,  pursuing  various  studies,  and 
was  graduated  at  the  Divinity  School  in 
1846.  He  subsequently  had  charge  of  a  classi- 
cal in.stitute  in  the  State  of  Maine,  which  he 
gave  up  after  three  years  on  account  of  failing 
health. 

In  1849  a  Boston  publisher  brought  out  for 
him  an  educational  work  of  which  twenty-five 
editions  were  sold.  The  same  year  he  ac- 
cepted from  his  publisher  a  business  agency, 
with  the  view  of  regaining  his  health  by  trav- 
elling; and  he  spent  several  years  in  this  occu- 
pation, visiting  different  parts  of  the  United 
States  and  Canada  and  forming  many  acquain- 
tances. From  1856  to  1862  he  was  occupied 
largely  with  editorial  labors,  associated  with 
Benjamin  Greenleaf,  the  well-known  mathe- 
matician, in  rewriting  the  National  Arithme- 
tic, and  in  composing  the  Elementary  Alge- 
bra, Geometry,  and  Trigonometry  in  the 
Greenleaf  series.  Eater  he  edited  the  New 
Higher  Algebra;  and  he  brought  out   in    1866, 


on  his  own  account,  the  New  Elementary 
Arithmetic  and  the  New  Practical  Arithmetic, 
as  a  part  of  the  Greenleaf  series.  From  1870 
to  1873  he  was  engaged  with  the  late  Professor 
Daniel  B.  Hagar,  Principal  of  the  Massachu- 
setts State  Normal  School  at  Salem,  in  the 
preparation  of  mathematical  works,  which 
were  published  in  Philadelphia.  In  the  ex- 
tension of  the  Greenleaf  series  he  prepared, 
on  his  own  account,  in  1877,  the  Manual  of 
Intellectual  Arithmetic,  and  in  1881  the  First 
Lessons  in  Numbers,  Brief  Course  in  Arith- 
metic, and  Complete  Arithmetic.  His  arith- 
metics in  the  Greenleaf  series  have  maintained 
a  remarkable  popularity,  being  used  exten- 
sively in  different  parts  of  this  country  and 
also  in  some  of  the  English  provinces.  The 
National  Arithmetic  has  been  translated  into 
Spanish,  and  several  other  books  of  the  series 
have  been  republished  outside  of  the  United 
States.  In  1896  he  issued  revised  and  im- 
proved editions  of  the  Brief  Course  in  Arith- 
metic, and  of  the  Complete  Arithmetic.  In 
1863  he  was  honored  by  Tufts  College  with 
an  appointment  to  the  Mathematical  Examina- 
tion Committee. 

In  1 86 1  Mr.  Maglathlin  was  elected  Repre- 
sentative from  the  towns  of  Duxbury  and 
Kingston  to  the  Massachusetts  legislature; 
and  after  the  adjournment  in  1862,  at  a  town 
meeting  in  Duxbury,  he  headed  the  enlistment 
under  a  call  for  volunteers  to  serve  in  the  War 
of  the  Rebellion.  A  company  having  been 
raised,  mostly  by  his  efforts,  he,  although 
without  military  experience,  was  chosen  its 
commander.  The  company  became  a  part  of 
the  Fourth  Regiment,  Massachusetts  Volun- 
teer Infantry,  and  was  in  the  Twenty-fifth 
Army  Corps,  Department  of  the  Gulf.  At  the 
surrender  of  Port  Hudson,  which,  in  the  lan- 
guage of  President  Lincoln,  allowed  the  Mis- 
sissippi to  "run  unvexed  to  the  sea,"  Captain 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


289 


Maglathlin  had  charge  of  the  parallels  at  the 
extreme  front.  He  was  in  all  the  expeditions 
and  engagements  of  his  regiment. 

Mr.  Maglathlin  early  became  interested  in 
educational  methods  and  work.  He  was 
elected  a  member  of  the  School  Committee  of 
Waterville,  Me.,  in  1847;  of  the  School  Com- 
mittee of  Duxbury  for  three  years  in  1857;  of 
the  School  Committee  of  Kingston  for  three 
years  in  i8go,  and  again  in  1893.  On  his 
retirement  from  the  Board  at  the  close  of  his 
last  term,  the  average  attendance  in  the 
Kingston  schools  ranked  first  in  the  county  of 
Plymouth.  When  in  the  Massachusetts  legis- 
lature he  served  on  the  Joint  Committee  on 
Education.  The  town  of  Kingston  in  1S96 
chose  Captain  Maglathlin  a  member  of  the 
committee  for  carrying  out  the  will  of  Fred- 
erick C.  Adams  for  the  establishment  of  a 
public  library. 

He  was  first  publicly  identified  with  labor 
matters  in  1S70,  when,  being  urgently  so- 
licited, he  consented  to  lead  a  forlorn  hope  as 
a  Labor  Reform  candidate  for  Councillor  for 
the  First  District  of  Massachusetts.  He  was 
handsomely  supported  by  members  of  different 
parties,  receiving  about  four  thousand  five  hun- 
dred votes.  The  next  year  he  was  the  nomi- 
nee of  the  same  jiarty  for  Secretary  of  State. 
He  has  been  a  member  of  the  Sovereigns  of 
Industry,  Knights  of  Labor,  and  other  like 
associations  for  the  improvement  of  the  condi- 
tion of  the  industrial  classes.  He  has  been 
for  years  an  earnest  advocate  of  co-operation, 
distributive  and  productive.  For  several 
years  Captain  Maglathlin  served  as  President 
of  a  co-operative  foundry  company;  and  the 
Co-operative  Store  at  Silver  Lake,  Kingston, 
founded  June  14,  1875,  iiiider  his  management 
for  more  than  twenty-five  years  notably  pros- 
pered, it  being  the  longest  American  trial  of 
the  Rochdale   plan.      On    founding,    in    1895, 


the  Co-operative   Union   of    America,    he    was 
elected  a  member  of  its  Central  Board. 

He  was  married  in  1854  to  Elizabeth, 
daughter  of  Dura  and  Abigail  (Cushman) 
Wadsworth,  of  Duxbury,  and  has  three  chil- 
dren :  Abby,  who  married  George  F.  Lane,  of 
Kingston;  Arthur,  who  is  a  resident  of  Whit- 
man; and  Alice,  who  married  lulmund  Brad- 
ford, of  Kingston.  Captain  Maglathlin's 
home  until  1886,  excepting  the  years  he  was 
in  Maine,  was  on  the  ancestral  place  in  Dux- 
bury, which  had  belonged  successively  to  his 
great-grandather,  his  grandfather,  and  his 
father.  For  the  past  ten  years  he  has  resided 
at  Silver  Lake,  a  hamlet  in  Kingston. 


"]CjLIAB  LATHAM,  one  of  the  oldest  and 
JP|  most  prominent  residents  of  East 
Bridgewater,  was  born  here  Septem- 
ber 26,  1 818,  son  of  Galen  and  Susan  (Keith) 
Latham,  both  of  whom  were  also  natives  of 
this  town.  Woodward  Latham,  the  father  of 
Galen,  was  a  son  of  Charles.  The  first  of  the 
Latham  family  in  America  was  William,  an 
English  emigrant,  who  settled  in  Plymouth, 
Mass.,  some  time  in  the  seventeenth  century. 
Galen  Latham  spent  his  life  on  the  farm  now 
owned  by  Eliab.  While  giving  due  attention 
to  his  farm,  he  also  discharged  the  duties  of 
Lieutenant  in  a  company  of  State  militia. 
His  death  occurred  in  1844.  He  had  four 
sons  and  two  daughters,  of  whom  Eliab,  the 
youngest,  is  the  only  survivor.  The  education 
of  Eliab  was  obtained  in  the  public  schools 
and  at  Bridgewater  Academy.  The  active 
years  of  his  life  have  been  spent  in  farming  at 
the  homestead,  which  contains  about  one  hun- 
dred and  seventeen  acres  of  good  land.  In 
his  younger  days  he  carried  on  a  wood  and 
lumber  business.  He  is  also  interested  in  the 
East   Bridgewater  Savings  Bank,  of  which  he 


2go 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


was  an  incorporator,  and  is  now  a  Trustee. 
On  September  8,  1846,  Mr.  Latham  married 
Susan  A.  Hobart,  who  was  born  in  East 
Bridgewater,  a  daughter  of  the  late  Judge 
Aaron  Hobart.  They  had  four  sons,  of  whom 
two  are  living.  These  are:  James  W.,  who 
resides  with  his  parents;  and  Aaron  H.,  an 
attorney-at-law  doing  business  at  5  Tremont 
Street,  Boston.  The  deceased  were  George  H. 
and  Eliab  A.  Mrs.  Latham  passed  away  in 
March,  1893.  She  was  a  member  of  the  Uni- 
tarian church,  and  was  very  active  in  social 
circles. 

Up  to  1852  Mr.  Latham  was  a  Whig. 
Since  that  time  he  has  been  an  independent 
politician,  casting  his  vote  without  regard  to 
party  lines.  Possessed  of  a  laudable  amount 
of  public  spirit,  he  has  always  taken  pride  in 
the  advancement  of  the  community.  The  town 
has  had  the  benefit  of  his  services  as  Select- 
man for  nearly  a  score  of  years. 


iHARLES  T.  FIELD,  an  esteemed 
citizen  of  Brockton  engaged  in  the 
real  ,  estate  business,  having  an 
ofifice  in  Boston  on  Washington  Street,  oppo- 
site the  Globe  Building,  was  born  in  North 
Bridgewater,  Mass.,  now  Brockton,  October 
I,  1836,  a  son  of  John  and  Olive  (Thompson) 
Field." 

The  date  of  the  arrival  in  this  country  of 
John  Field,  the  first  American  ancestor  of  the 
family,  is  not  recorded ;  but  in  1677  he  came 
from  Providence,  R.  I.,  and  took  up  his  abode 
in  West  Bridgewater,  Mass.,  where  he  resided 
about  twenty  years,  his  estate  being  settled  in 
the  interest  of  his  heirs  in  1698.  He  was  the 
father  of  three  sons  and  four  daughters,  born 
as  follows:  John,  in  1671;  Elizabeth,  in 
1673;  Richard,  in  1677;  Lydia,  in  1679; 
Daniel,  in  16S1  ;   Ruth,  in  1683;  and  Hannah. 


Richard,  the  second  son,  was  the  ne.xt  lineal 
representative  of  this  branch.  He  married,  on 
January  17,  1704,  Susanna  Waldo,  and  died 
September  14,  1725.  A  brief  record  of  their 
eleven  children  is  as  follows:  Zobiah,  born 
March  28,  1705,  died  April  3,  1708;  Zebu- 
Ion,  born  August  23,  1707,  married  Anna 
Williams,  of  Taunton,  in  1749;  Mary,  born 
October  5,  1709,  was  married  in  1748  to  Sam- 
uel Noyes;  Richard  was  born  October  21, 
[711  ;  Jabez,  born  September  29,  171 3;  Ruth; 
born  August  6,  1715,  married  Israel  Packard, 
Jr.,  in  1737;  Zachariah  was  born  September 
13,  1717;  Zobiah,  born  March  4,  1719,  died 
November  26,  1722;  Susanna  was  born  Au- 
gust 6,  1721;  Mercy,  born  April  17,  1723, 
married  Archibald  Robinson  in  1747;  Su- 
sanna, born  May  18,  1725,  married  Nathan 
Hartwell   in    1746. 

Jabez  F"ield,  who  died  in  1804,  aged  ninety- 
two  years,  married  in  1746  Mary,  daughter  of 
Ephraim  Fobes.  They  were  the  parents  of 
nine  children,  as  follows:  Jabez,  born  March 
25,  1747,  who  died  unmarried;  Susanna,  born 
November  9,  1748,  who  married  on  April  13, 
1773,  Moses  Gary;  Richard,  born  July  22, 
1 75 1,  who  married  Rebecca  Harris  in  1778; 
William,  who  was  born  July  28,  1753,  and 
married  Jemima  Keith  in  1797;  Ephraim, 
born  October  19,  1755,  who  married  Ruby 
Brett,  December  14,  1786;  Daniel,  born  Sep- 
tember 20,  1758;  Barzilla,  born  December  6, 
1760;  Bethuel,  born  August  28,  1763,  who 
died  unmarried  ;  and  Waldo,  who  removed  to 
the  West. 

Daniel  Field,  the  great-uncle  of  Gharles  T. 
Field  of  this  sketch,  married  on  July  13, 
1786,  Hannah  .Sncll,  the  daughter  of  Gaptain 
Zebedee  Snell,  and  by  this  union  had  three 
children:  Martha,  born  November  19,  1786; 
Zophar,  born  January  14,  1789;  and  Waldo, 
born  March  8,    1791.      Zophar   P'ield    married 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


291 


Bernice  Howard,  February  6,  181 1,  and  they 
had  eight  children,  namely:  Harriet,  born  in 
1812;  Daniel,  born  in  1S14;  Louisa,  born  in 
1816;  George,  born  in  181S;  Louisa,  born  in 
1820;  Hannah,  born  May  4,  1823,  who  mar- 
ried Cyrus  Howard,  Jr.  ;  Charles  Copeland, 
born  March  18,  1826,  who  married  Lucy  Cobb 
Cross;  William  Lawrence,  who  was  born  Octo- 
ber 20,  1828,  and  married  Mary  Dennison 
Holmes,  of  Middleboro.  The  children  of  the 
last-named  couple  were :  William  Fobes,  born 
July  21,  1854;  Daniel  Waldo,  born  F"ebruary 
18,  1856;  Marcia  Alice,  born  November  28, 
1857;  and  Frederick  Forrest,  born  May  11, 
1861.  Zophar  Field  died  September  6,  1863, 
and  his  wife  January  28,   1833. 

Barzilla  Field,  the  grandfather  of  Charles 
T. ,  was  a  Revolutionary  patriot.  He  died  in 
1839,  aged  seventy-eight.  He  was  married 
December  25,  1794,  to  Patty,  daughter  of 
David  Packard.  Their  children  were:  John, 
horn  December  15,  1796;  Chloe,  born  Novem- 
ber 14,  1799;  Mary,  born  April  24,  1802,  who 
married  Zibeon  Cole  in  1819;  Clarissa,  born 
August  20,  1806;  and  Lucius,  born  June  11, 
iSii. 

John  Field,  son  of  Barzilla,  was  a  native  of 
North  Bridgewater.  He  was  a  stone-cutter 
by  trade,  furnishing  fine  stone  for  finishing, 
but  his  later  years  were  spent  in  farming.  In 
politics  a  Democrat,  he  was  nominated  as 
a  Representative  to  the  State  legislature,  but 
did  not  receive  the  election.  He,  however, 
served  acceptably  as  Selectman.  He  was  a 
member  of  the  Swedenborgian  church.  At 
the  time  of  his  death  in  1866  he  was  seventy 
years  old.  Although  but  sixteen  years  old  at 
the  time  of  the  War  of  18 12,  he  was  in  active 
service.  Olive  Thompson,  to  whom  he  was 
married  in  October,  181 7,  was  a  daughter  of 
James  Thompson,  of  Campello.  They  were 
the  parents  of  ten  children,  six  boys  and  four 


girls,  all  of  whom  lived  to  maturity.  Olive, 
the  eldest,  born  June  16,  1820,  married  No- 
vember 10,  1839,  J-Ilisha  B.  Bumpus;  Frank- 
lin, born  April  7,  1822,  married  October  24, 
1850,  Alice  P.  Simmons;  Eustace,  born  May 
17,  1824,  married  November  25,  1847,  Maria 
Snow;  Owen,  born  July  24,  1826,  married 
Hannah  P.  Tobey ;  Elizabeth,  born  April  11, 
1829,  married  March  2,  1856,  Francis  Brett; 
Clarissa,  born  January  5,  1832,  married  Will- 
iam W.  Allen,  of  Mansfield;  John,  born 
March  19,  1S34,  married  Carrie  Rosa  Wood- 
bury, of  Rochester,  Minn.  ;  Charles  Thomp- 
son is  the  special  subject  of  this  sketch;  Car- 
oline was  born  August  27,  1839;  and  Barzilla 
was  born  February  17,  1832.  Olive,  Frank- 
lin, Eustace,  Owen,  and  Charles  Thompson 
are  now  living. 

Charles  Thompson  F"ield  was  the  eighth 
child  in  order  of  birth.  He  received  a  com- 
mon-school education,  and  made  his  home  on 
the  farm    with    his    parents  until    their  death. 

He  afterward  went  into  the  business  of  en- 
larging pictures,  and  followed  it  successfully 
for  a  number  of  years.  When  he  was  about 
nineteen  years  of  age,  however,  and  before  his 
parental  home  was  broken  up,  he  shipped  on 
board  a  coasting  vessel;  and  he  was  later  on  a 
fishing  vessel  that  went  to  the  Grand  Banks. 
Since  he  became  older  he  has  visited  many 
countries,  among  them  England,  Scotland,  and 
France,  in  travel  for  his  health.  For  the  past 
seven  years  he  has  engaged  in  the  real  estate 
business,  and,  as  already  noted  at  the  begin-' 
ning  of  this  sketch,  now  has  an  office  in 
Boston,  besides  being  interested  in  real  estate 
here  in  Brockton.  Naturally  of  a  retiring 
and  home-loving  disposition,  he  has  taken 
but  little  interest  in  ordinary  politics  or  po- 
litical affairs  in  a  party  sense.  He  is  a 
member  of  the  New  Jerusalem,  or  Sweden- 
borgian,   church. 


292 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


Mr.  Field  married  first  Laura  Waslibiirne, 
of  Raynham,  and  by  this  union  he  had  five 
children,  three  boys  and  two  girls;  namely, 
Charles  W. ,  Albert  D.,  Kustace,  Laura  J., 
and  Helen  M.  Mrs.  Laura  W.  Field  died  in 
1887.  For  a  second  wife  Mr.  Field  married 
Martha  A.  Robbins,  of  Abington,  by  whom  he 
has  one  daughter,  Mary  Robbins. 


(JOSEPH  W.  BRIGGS  is  a  substantial 
representative  of  the  practical  and  pro- 
gressive agriculturists  of  Plymouth 
County,  owning  and  managing  a  well-ap- 
pointed farm  of  one  hundred  and  twenty-five 
acres  in  the  town  of  Marion,  his  native  place. 
He  was  born  on  February  14,  St.  Valentine's 
Day,  1837,  and  has  now  nearly  reached  his 
sixtieth  birthday. 

His  father,  Captain  Elnathan  Briggs,  fol- 
lowed the  sea  for  more  than  twoscore  years, 
being  master  of  a  vessel  the  last  fifteen  years 
of  the  time.  In  1862  he  retired  from  active 
pursuits  spending  his  last  days  with  his  son 
Joseph,  at  whose  home  he  died  in  March  last, 
1896,  aged  eighty-seven  years.  His  wife, 
whose  maiden  name  was  Rhoda  U.  Allen,  is 
still  living  with  her  son  Nathan,  being  a  bright 
and  active  woman  of  eighty-five  years.  Mrs. 
Briggs  and  her  husband  reared  five  children, 
namely:  Nathan;  Justus;  Isaac;  Betsey;  and 
Joseph  W. ,  the  direct  subject  of  this  biograph- 
ical sketch. 

Joseph  W.  Briggs  began  life  on  his  own 
account  when  a  lad  of  fourteen  years,  going 
then  to  North  Bridgewater,  now  Brockton, 
where  he  was  employed  for  some  time  in  shoe- 
making.  He  subsequently  sailed  on  a  mer- 
chant vessel,  first  as  a  common  seaman,  after- 
ward for  some  years  as  mate.  In  1861  he 
started  for  California,  going  via  Cape  Horn, 
and  serving  as  mate  on  the  bark  which  carried 


him  across  the  waters.  After  engaging  for  a 
short  time  in  mining,  he  lived  in  San  Fran- 
cisco until  1869,  when  he  returned  to  his  early 
home  and  settled  on  his  present  farm.  Mr. 
Briggs  has  since  given  his  attention  to  general 
farming  and  teaming,  carrying  on  a  successful 
business  in  both  branches  of  industry.  Polit- 
ically, he  is  a  sound  Republican,  and,  though 
not  an  aspirant  for  official  honors,  has  served 
as  Road  Commissioner.  P"raternally,  he  is  a 
member  of  the  Masonic  order,  belonging  to 
Pythagorean  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of 
Marion. 

Mr.  Briggs  was  married  November  14,  1865, 
to  Miss  Cynthia  Delano,  a  native  of  Marion, 
Mass.,  a  daughter  of  Benjamin  and  Thankful 
Delano.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Briggs  have  two  chil- 
dren —  P"rank  W.  and  Mabel  C. 


ff^Y^SON  K.  VINCENT,  of  Brockton, 
a  shoe  manufacturer  of  long  experi- 
ence, who  is  now  foreman  of  the  stitch- 
ing department  of  D.  W.  Field's  factory,  was 
born  here  July  4,  1848,  son  of  Joseph  and 
Elizabeth  (Jenkins)  Vincent.  His  great- 
grandfather, Joseph,  who  fought  in  the  Revo- 
lutionary War  under  Washington,  was  one 
of  those  who  suffered  the  privations  of  Valley 
Forge.  Samuel  Vincent,  Mr.  Vincent's 
grandfather,  a  native  of  Salem,  Mass.,  who 
was  a  rope-maker  and  followed  that  trade  for 
some  years  in  Boston,  died  in  1826,  aged 
thirty-eight  years.  He  wedded  Mercy  Willis, 
a  native  of  Edgartown,  Mass.,  and  reared  five 
children;  namely,  Joseph,  Sarah,  Anna,  Sam- 
uel, and  Daniel.  Of  these  the  only  survivor 
is  Sarah,  who  married,  and  is  now  residing  in 
Wright's,  a  town  of  Southern  California, 
named  in  honor  of  her  husband.  The  mother, 
who  attained  the  age  of  eighty-two  years,  died 
in  1871. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


293 


Joseph  Vincent  was  born   in   Boston,  Febru- 
ary 12,   1817.      While  still  young  he  came  to 
Brockton,    where    he     attended     the     common 
schools.       After     leaving     school     he     learned 
shoemaking.      Subsequently   he  was  emijloyed 
as  a  cutter  of   sole   leather   in    Emerson's   and 
Henry    Howard's   shoe   factories,    and    was  for 
many   years   identified   with   the   shoe  industry 
of   this  city.      He  died  March  25,   1894,  aged 
seventy-eight  years.      In  politics  he  was  a  Re- 
publican.     He   belonged   to   Massasoit   Lodge, 
No.    6g,    Independent    Order  of  Odd   Fellows, 
of  Brockton.      For  more   than   thirty   years   he 
was  a    member    of    the    South    Congregational 
Church.      His  wife,  Elizabeth,  was  a  daughter 
of    David    and    Annie    (Edwards)    Jenkins,    of 
Eastport,    Me.,    who   reared   seven    other   chil- 
dren—  Ann,     Martha,      Mary,     John,     David, 
Stanford,     and     Henry,     all      now     deceased. 
Mrs.     Joseph     Vincent      had      five     children, 
namely:  Joseph   Jenkins,    who   was  born    De- 
cember 17,   1839;   Elizabeth  A.,  who  was  born 
January  4,  1843;  Stanford  W. ,  who  was  born 
September  8,  1846;  Jason   K.,  the  subject  of 
this    sketch;    and    Daniel    H.,    who   was    born 
May  14,  1S52.      She  died  May   i,    1S87,    aged 
seventy-si.\  years. 

Jason  K.  Vincent  acquired  his  education  in 
the  public  schools  of  Brockton.  When  his 
studies  were  completed  he  began  work  in  the 
shoe  factory  of  A.  and  A.  B.  Keith,  where  he 
remained  three  years.  He  then  went  to  the 
factory  of  J.  O.  Emerson,  where  he  had  charge 
of  the  stitching  room  for  seven  years.  He 
ne.xt  engaged  in  business  upon  his  own  ac- 
count, establishing  a  factory  on  Market  Street, 
where  he  manufactured  shnes  for  six  years  with 
good  success.  His  plant  was  destroyed  by  fire 
April  9,  1879,  and  since  then  he  has  occupied 
his  present  responsible  position  of  foreman  of 
the  stitching  department  at  D.  W.  Field's 
factory. 


On  November  13,  1877,  Mr.  Vincent  was 
united  in  marriage  to  Harriet  O. ,  daughter  of 
Caleb  and  Julia  Nickerson,  of  Chatham,  Mass. 
Two  children  are  the  fruit  of  this  union, 
namely:  Edith  Louise,  who  was  born  October 
29,  1881;  and  Forest  Nickerson,  who  was 
born  June  9,  1887.  In  politics  Mr.  Vincent 
supports  the  Republican  [jarty.  He  is  a  mem- 
ber of  Paul  Revere  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M., 
of  Brockton.  The  friends  made  by  him  in  his 
business  and  social  relations  are  legion. 


REEMAN  HOWARD  HOLMES,  a 
dealer  in  real  estate,  and  a  representa- 
tive citizen  of  Plymouth,  had  his  birth 
June  7,  1850,  at  Manomet  Point,  this  county, 
son  of  Cromwell  W.  and  Mary  R.  (Cornish) 
Holmes.  His  father,  who  was  born  in  Plym- 
outh, there  followed  the  occupation  of  farmer. 
He  married  Mary  R.  Cornish,  a  native  of 
Plymouth,  and  a  daughter  of  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
(Freeman)  Cornish,  the  former  of  whom  was  a 
farmer.  By  her  he  became  the  father  of  four 
children — Sarah  E.,  Cromwell  F.,John  B., 
and  Freeman  Howard.  Sarah,  who  died  in 
1894,  became  the  wife  of  James  H.  Crosby, 
a  contractor  and  builder  of  Barnstable,  Mass., 
who  died  in  1892.  Cromwell,  who  was  a 
member  of  the  New  England  Volunteer  Life- 
saving  Crew  stationed  at  Manomet,  was 
drowned  in  1867,  in  attempting  to  rescue  the 
crew  of  a  wrecked  schooner. 

The  father  departed  this  life  in  1885,  at  the  ' 
age  of   seventy-nine  years.      His  wife,  now  in 
her  eightieth  year,  lives  with  her  son,  the  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch. 

Freeman  Howard  Holmes  grew  to  manhood 
on  the  home  farm,  receiving  his  education  in 
the  schools  of  his  native  town.  P"rom  1870  to 
1880  he  conducted  at  Boston  a  wholesale  busi- 
ness  in   books  and    stationery.      For   the   past 


294 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


few  years  he  has  been  engaged  in  the  poultry 
business  at  Plymouth,  and  also  carries  on  an 
extensive  trade  in  real  estate.  In  addition  to 
this,  for  the  past  twenty  years  he  has  kept 
summer  boarders,  running  at  present  three 
houses  at  Plymouth  for  their  accommodation. 
He  is  also  the  agent  of  his  district  for  the 
Walter  A.  Wood  Machine  Company  of  Hoo- 
sick  Falls;  and  is  likewise  agent  for  the 
United  States,  Halliday,  and  Gem  Wind-mills 
of  Batavia,  111. 

On  November  26,  1873,  Mr.  Holmes 
wedded  Miss  Emma  Holmes,  who  was  born  at 
Plymouth,  September  9,  1851.  They  have 
three  children,  namely:  Lizzie  M.,  who  at 
present  resides  at  home,  and  is  pursuing  a 
normal  college  course;  Angle  C.  ;  and  John 
H.  C.  Mr.  Holmes  has  served  for  several 
years  on  the  Board  of  Selectmen,  and  for  four- 
teen years  he  has  officiated  as  a  Justice  of  the 
Peace.  Mr.  Holmes  is  also  county  corre- 
spondent for  the  United  States  Department  of 
Agriculture.  He  is  affiliated  with  the  Inde- 
pendent Order  of  United  American  Mechanics, 
being  a  member  of  Alexander  M.  Harrison 
Council,  No.  16,  Plymouth;  and  he  is  also  a 
member  of  the  Old  Colony  Club.  In  politics 
he  is  identified  with  the  Republican  party. 
He  is  a  member  of  the  Second  Congregational 
Church  of  Plymouth,  where  he  has  been  Su- 
perintendent of  the  Sabbath  school  for  twenty 
years. 

iOLONEL  HAWKES  FEARING, 
Librarian  of  the  Hingham  Public 
Library,  is  a  native  of  the  town. 
He  was  born  May  20,  1826,  son  of  Hawkes 
and  Matilda  (Wilder)  Fearing,  and  is  the  de- 
scendant of  an  early  settler,  his  family  being 
of  English  extraction. 

His  immigrant  ancestor,  John  Fearing, 
came  from   Cambridge,  England,    and   settled 


in  Hingham  in  1638.  In  1652  he  was  made 
freeman,  and  in  1648,  1661,  and  1663,  he 
officiated  as  Selectman,  serving  also  as  Deacon 
of  the  church  for  many  years.  He  and  his 
wife,  Margaret,  had  four  children.  His  death 
occurred  on  May  14,  1665;  and  his  wife,  sur- 
viving him,  married  again. 

Israel  Fearing,  second  son  of  John,  was 
baptized  in  Hingham  in  1644.  He  was  a 
cooper  by  trade.  He  married  Elizabeth 
Wilder,  daughter  of  Edward  and  Elizabeth 
(Ames)  Wilder,  and  they  had  five  children. 
He  died  in  Dorchester,  Mass.,  in  1693,  at 
the  age  of  forty-eight  years,  while  his  wife 
lived  in  Hingham  until  January  27,  1730, 
attaining  the  age  of  seventy-eight.  Their 
eldest  son,  John  Fearing,  born  in  Hing- 
ham, December  29,  1674,  was  a  farmer  and 
weaver.  He  also  was  officially  prominent, 
serving  as  Constable  and  Selectman  for 
many  years.  He  married  Margaret  Hawke, 
daughter  of  James  and  Sarah  (Jacob)  Hawke, 
on  May  8,  1708,  and  by  this  union  had 
four  children.  The  father  died  November 
7,  1752,  at  the  age  of  seventy-eight;  and 
the  mother,  on  September  28,  1764,  aged 
eighty-three. 

Hawkes  Fearing,  their  third  child  and  the 
great-grandfather  of  the  subject  of  this  biog- 
raphy, was  born  in  liingham,  July  13,  1715. 
He  was  a  farmer  and  extensive  land-owner  of 
Hingham,  and  served  as  Selectman  for  three 
years.  He  married  Margrett  Lincoln,  daugh- 
ter of  David  and  Leah  (Beal)  Lincoln;  and 
they  were  the  parents  of  thirteen  children,  of 
whom  Hawkes,  second,  was  their  only  son  and 
fifth  child.  He  was  a  merchant  in  Hingham; 
and  in  1794  he  established  the  rope-walk, 
which  he  continued  to  manage  until  his  death. 
It  is  still  in  operation,  the  business  having 
grown  to  large  dimensions.  Although  his 
opportunities  were  limited,  Hawkes  P'earing, 


GEORGE    F.   WING. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


297 


second,  who  was  the  first  to  add  an  j'  to  the 
name  "Hawke, "  was  very  successful  in  accu- 
mulating property.  He  served  as  Representa- 
tive to  the  legislature  from  1806  to  1811  in- 
clusive. The  maiden  whom  he  led  to  the 
marriage  altar  was  Leah  Lincoln,  daughter  of 
Enoch  and  Rachel  (Fearing)  Lincoln.  By 
this  alliance  there  were  eleven  children. 
Grandfather  Fearing  lived  to  be  seventy-six 
years  old,  and  his  wife  attained  the  advanced 
age  of  eighty- five. 

Their  second  son,  Hawkes  Fearing,  the 
father  of  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  was  born 
on  December  10,  1781.  Following  in  the 
well-defined  footsteps  of  his  worthy  father,  he 
was  a  rope  manufacturer;  and,  being  very  in- 
dustrious and  thrifty,  he  left  a  good  property 
at  his  death.  In  politics  he  affiliated  with  the 
Whigs,  and  in  his  religious  belief  he  was  a 
Unitarian.  He  died  at  the  age  of  eighty-two 
years;  and  his  wife,  Matilda,  who  was  a 
daughter  of  Edward  and  Mary  (Hersey) 
Wilder,  died  at  eighty-six,  having  been  the 
mother  of  five  children,  three  sons  and  two 
daughters.  Hawkes  Fearing,  the  eldest  son, 
and  the  third  of  his  name,  after  acquiring  his 
education  in  the  schools  of  his  native  town, 
worked  in  the  rope-walk  for  several  years. 
He  then  went  to  Boston,  where  he  was  em- 
ployed a  few  years  in  a  bank.  Later  he 
engaged  in  the  general  merchandise  business, 
in  which  he  continued  until  the  breaking  out 
of  the  Civil  War.  He  was  at  that  time  Lieu- 
tenant-Colonel of  the  Fourth  Massachusetts 
Volunteer  Militia,  and  went  with  the  regiment 
to  Fortress  Monroe,  arriving  there  on  April 
20,  1 86 1.  He  was  subsequently  Colonel  of 
the  Eighth  New  Hampshire  Volunteers,  and 
served  in  the  Gulf  Department  until  the  close 
of  the  war.  For  a  time  thereafter  he  was  in 
Virginia.  On  his  return  to  Hingham  he  was 
appointed    Librarian,  and    in   that   capacity  he 


has  continued  to  render  efficient  service  ever 
since. 

In  politics  a  Republican,  he  has  ofificiated 
on  the  School  Committee,  as  Town  Clerk,  and 
Road  Commissioner;  and  he  was  a  Represen- 
tative to  the  General  Court  in  1871  and  1872. 
Fraternally,  he  is  a  member  of  Old  Colony 
Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M. ;  and  the  Edwin  Hum- 
phrey Post,  No.  104,  Grand  Army  of  the  Re- 
public, of  Hingham.  A  man  of  strict  integ- 
rity, courteous  and  obliging,  discharging  the 
duties  of  his  position  with  military  precision 
and  promptitude,  Colonel  Fearing  is  a  highly 
esteemed  citizen. 

On  November  20,  i860,  he  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Eliza  B.  Gushing,  daughter  of 
Brackley  and  Eliza  (Bartlett)  Gushing,  of  Ab- 
ington,  Mass.  They  _have  one  child,  a  daugh- 
ter, Anna  M.,  born  in  Manchester,  N.H.,  on 
February  16,  1865.  She  married  William  R. 
Burr,  of  Hingham.  In  their  religious  faith 
and  affiliation  Colonel  and  Mrs.  Fearing  are 
Unitarians. 


/©> 


EORGE  F.  WING,  who  has  served  on 
Vp  I  the  Wareham  Board  of  Selectmen  for 
nearly  twenty  years,  is  a  California 
"forty-niner,"  and  has  had  a  busy  and  eventful 
life.  He  was  born  in  Wareham,  Mass.,  Octo- 
ber II,  1827,  a  son  of  Benjamin  and  Delia 
(Clifton)  Wing.  His  parents  had  five  chil- 
dren, of  whom  two  are  now  living:  the  subject 
of  this  sketch;  and  Delia  A.,  who  married 
William  H.  Fearing,  and  resides  in  Wareham. 
Mr.  Wing's  early  education,  which  was 
limited,  was  acquired  in  the  public  schools  of 
his  native  town.  When  he  was  fifteen  years 
of  age  he  shipped  on  a  coasting-vessel,  and  for 
two  years  was  engaged  as  a  seaman.  He  then 
learned  the  carpenter's  trade  at  Fairhaven, 
Mass.,  where  he  worked  about  four  years,  and 
later  he  was  employed  as  a  carpenter  in  Ware- 


298 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


ham.  In  1S49  he  was  one  of  a  company  of 
sixty-six  who  purchased  and  provisioned  a 
vessel  called  the  "Mount  Vernon, "and  started 
for  the  gold  fields  of  California,  sailing  from 
Mattapoiset  around  Cape  Horn.  They  were 
five  months  and  a  half  on  the  voyage,  their 
suspense  being  sweetened  by  visions  of  the 
fortunes  awaiting  them  in  the  Golden  State. 

Arriving  in  San  Francisco,  Mr.  Wing  sold 
his  interest  in  the  vessel,  and  began  prospect- 
ing and  mining,  being  one  of  the  five  to  dig 
the  first  gold  on  the  famous  Horseshoe  Bend 
on  Merced  River.  He  experienced  all  the 
stern  realities  of  life  in  a  community  that  was 
practically  lawless,  and  discovered  that  mining 
was  not  the  easiest  way  of  making  a  fortune. 
He  remained  in  California  until  the  spring  of 
1855,  «i  P'lrt  of  the  time  working  at  his  trade, 
and  for  a  year  driving  a  pack  train.  On  his 
return  to  Wareham,  he  went  to  work  for  the 
Parker  Mills  Company  as  a  millwright.  After 
following  that  trade  for  fourteen  years,  he 
started  in  business  as  a  contractor  and  builder, 
and  he  is  now  known  as  one  of  the  most  prom- 
inent and  reliable  builders  in  the  locality. 

He  was  married  November  28,  1855,  to 
Fidelia  Johnson,  daughter  of  Samuel  and 
Sarah  Johnson,  of  Dartmouth,  Mass.  Five 
children  were  born  to  them,  as  follows:  Dora 
M.  ;  Frank  C,  now  deceased;  Mary  G. ;  Oscar 
B. ;  and  George  F.,  Jr. 

Mr.  Wing  is  active  among  the  Democrats 
of  the  town,  and  has  been  elected  to  a  number 
of  offices  of  trust.  He  has  served  continu- 
ously on  the  Board  of  Selectmen  since  the 
spring  of  1878,  and  has  also  eflficiently  filled 
the  offices  of  Assessor  and  Overseer  of  the 
Poor  for  the  same  time.  He  has  been  a 
Mason  for  many  years,  being  active  in  the  fra- 
ternity, occupying  various  chairs,  for  three 
years  serving  as  Master,  and  during  the  past 
six  years  filling  the  office  of  Treasurer. 


ALEB  T.  ROBBINS,  a  veteran  of  the 
Civil  War,  who  keeps  a  variety  .store 
in  Plymouth,  and  is  also  engaged  in 
farming,  was  born  in  Sandwich,  Mass.,  July 
16,  1 84 1,  son  of  Thomas  and  Jane  K.  (Nye) 
Robbins.  Thomas  Robbins,  who  was  a  native 
of  Harwich,  Barnstable  County,  settled  in 
Sandwich,  was  a  sailor  for  the  greater  part  of 
Ills  life,  and  died  at  sea.  He  married  Jane  K. 
Nye,  a  native  of  Troy,  N.Y.,  and  reared  a 
family  of  four  children,  of  whom  Caleb  T., 
the  subject  of  this  sketch,  was  the  first  born. 

Caleb  T.  Robbins  attended  the  common 
schools  of  Sandwich.  Beginning  at  the  age 
of  twelve,  he  worked  on  a  farm  until  he  was 
sixteen  years  old.  He  was  afterward  em- 
ployed for  two  years  by  the  Sandwich  Tack 
Company.  After,  a  season  spent  in  the  United 
States  Coast  Survey  service,  he  enlisted  as  a 
private  in  Company  D,  Third  Regiment,  Mas- 
sachusetts Volunteers,  April  9,  1S61,  being 
among  the  first  to  respond  to  President  Lin- 
coln's urgent  call  for  seventy-five  thousand 
recruits.  The  regiment  was  attached  to  the 
Irish  Brigade,  which  was  assigned  to  duty  in 
Richardson's  Division  of  the  Second  Army 
Corps,  and  stationed  first  at  Fortress  Monroe 
and  Newport  News,  being  later  ordered  to 
Norfolk  and  Suffolk,  Va.  From  Suffolk  his 
regiment  was  ordered  into  active  service,  and 
took  part  in  the  battles  of  Fair  Oaks,  the 
sieges  of  Knoxville  and  Vicksburg,  the  mem- 
orable struggle  of  the  Wilderness,  and  the  en- 
gagement at  Spottsylvania  Court-house.  He 
was  discharged  September  14,  1864,  in  poor 
health,  incapacitated  for  laborious  employ- 
ment. At  intervals,  after  the  close  of  the 
war,  he  was  engaged  for  some  time  in  the 
United  States  Coast  Survey  service.  Subse- 
quently, under  his  physician's  advice  to  seek 
some  steady  out-of-door  employment,  he  ped- 
dled with   a  team  for  about  nine  years.     He 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


299 


then  opened  a  small  store  in  Plymouth.  Two 
or  three  years  later  he  disposed  of  his  peddling 
business,  which  he  had  managed  to  continue 
up  to  then,  and  he  has  since  given  his  atten- 
tion exclusively  to  his  store.  He  carries  a 
large  miscellaneous  stock  of  goods,  such  as  is 
usually  found  in  a  general  variety  store,  mak- 
ing a  specialty  of  china  and  glass  ware,  and 
he  has  a  very  profitable  business.  For  the 
past  eight  or  nine  years  he  has  also  been  en- 
gaged in  general  farming.  At  the  present 
time  he  owns  about  forty  acres  of  valuable 
land,  which  amply  repay  their  care  and  culti- 
vation. 

In  1870  Mr.  Robbins  wedded  Anna  M. 
Baker,  daughter  of  Thomas  Raker,  of  Sand- 
wich, and  he  and  Mrs.  Robbins  have  two 
daughters.  He  is  a  comrade  of  Post  ^6, 
Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  and  a  member 
of  the  Twenty-ninth  Regiment,  Minute  Men 
of  Massachusetts.  In  politics  he  is  a  Demo- 
crat. Both  he  and  Mrs.  Robbins  attend  the 
Orthodo.x  church.  Despite. the  feeble  state  of 
his  health,  he  has  shown  remarkable  energy 
and  perseverance.  He  is  much  respected  by 
his  fellow-townsmen,  who  appreciate  his  worth 
as  a  citizen,  as  well  as  his  honorable  record  as 
a  soldier;  and  he  is  very  popular  among  the 
veterans  of  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic. 


-AMES  H.  GRIFFITH,  a  well-known 
carpenter  and  builder  of  Hull,  Plym- 
outh County,  Massachusetts,  was  born 
in  Boston  on  August  6,  1854.  He  passed  his 
early  years  in  attending  the  public  schools  of 
that  city.  On  April  15,  1865,  he  came  to 
Hull,  and  remained  here  four  years,  returning 
at  the  end  of  that  time  to  Boston  to  learn  the 
trade  of  carpenter  and  builder.  From  1872  to 
1889  he  was  located  in  Quincy,  Mass.,  and 
during  that  time  took  a  course  in  architecture, 


being  graduated  in  1885  with  honors.  He 
then  returned  to  Hull,  and  has  since  resided 
here,  engaged  in  the  pursuit  of  his  calling. 
Among  the  many  fine  residences  erected  by 
him  are  the  East  End  Hotel  and  the  Vining 
Villa,  besides  three  houses  for  himself.  He 
also  owns  real  estate  in  Quincy,  Mass.  Mr. 
Griffith  makes  his  home  in  the  Vining  family, 
having  been  brought  up  from  infancy  in  the 
home  of  the  late  Alexander  Vining.  In  poli- 
tics he  affiliates  with  the  Democrat  party,  and 
takes  an  intelligent  interest  in  town  affairs. 
He  is  industrious  and  progressive,  and  is 
highly  esteemed  personally  by  the  community. 
The  degree  of  success  he  has  attained  is 
wholly  attributable  to  his  own  efforts. 


TT^HARLES  E.  MORSE,  M.D.,  a  ris- 
I  V'^      ing     young    physician     of     Plymouth 

Vfci£__^  County,  with  an  extensive  and  in- 
creasing practice  in  the  town  of  Wareham, 
was  born  January  i,  1867,  in  the  village  of 
which  he  is  now  an  honored  resident.  The 
Doctor  is  the  only  son  of  a  family  of  five  chil- 
dren born  to  Seth  C.  and  Mary  (Swift)  Morse, 
both  of  whom  were  natives  of  Wareham. 

Charles  E.  Morse  was  reared  on  the  parental 
farm,  and  in  the  district  schools  acquired  the 
rudiments  of  his  excellent  education.  At  the 
age  of  fifteen  years  he  went  to  Quincy,  Mass., 
as  a  pupil  at  Adams  Academy,  from  which  he 
received  his  diploma  three  years  later.  He 
subsequently  took  a  full-course  of  study -at  the 
Harvard  Medical  School,  where  he  was  gradu- 
ated in  1889,  with  a  good  record  for  scholar- 
ship. The  succeeding  three  years  Dr.  Morse 
was  assistant  superintendent  of  the  Adams 
Nervine  Asylum,  a  noted  curative  institution, 
beautifully  located  in  the  Jamaica  Plain  dis- 
trict of  Boston.  He  next  engaged  in  the  prac- 
tice of  medicine  in  Boston  a  year  and  a  half, 


300 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


and  then  he  returned  to  Wareham  to  take  up 
the  practice  of  the  late  Dr.  Sawyer,  who  died 
in  1893.  Here  Dr.  Morse  has  met  with  signal 
success  in  his  professional  career,  exhibiting 
great  knowledge  and  skill  in  the  treatment  of 
his  many  patients,  winning  the  confidence  and 
good  will  of  all  with  whom  he  is  brought  in 
contact. 

Dr.  Morse  was  married  January  26,  1895,  to 
Miss  Abbie  F.  Marshall,  a  native  of  Lowell, 
Mass.,  a  daughter  of  Isaac  F.  and  Eliza  J.  (Le 
Favour)  Marshall,  of  South  Framingham. 
Politically,  the  Doctor  is  identified  with  the 
Republican  party,  and  is  a  member  of  the 
Wareham  Board  of  Health.  Fraternally,  he 
is  a  Mason  and  an  Odd  Fellow,  belonging  to 
Eliot  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Boston;  and 
to  Quinobequin  Lodge,  No.  70,  Independent 
Order  of  Odd  Fellows,  of  Boston.  He  is 
likewise  a  member  of  the  Massachusetts  Medi- 
cal Society  and  of  the  Boston  Library  Asso- 
ciation. He  was  appointed  August  18,  1896, 
by  then  Acting  Governor  Roger  Wolcott, 
Medical  Examiner  for  Plymouth  County. 


v5 


f^ENNIE  C.  LEONARD,  a  bicycle 
manufacturer  of  Brockton,  and  the 
originator  of  the  Brockton  Bicycle, 
also  known  as  the  Meteor,  was  born  in  liaston, 
Mass.,  January  16,  1861,  his  parents  being 
Otis  and  Mary  Ann  (Bryant)  Leonard,  now  of 
Brockton.  Some  of  his  ancestors  served  in 
the  Revolutionary  War.  His  grandfather, 
Hathaway  Leonard,  was  a  farmer,  and  owned 
a  number  of  different  farms.  He  also  did  a 
wheelwright  business  for  a  time,  having 
natural  mechanical  ability.  Although  a  man 
of  large  influence,  on  account  of  being  deaf 
he  would  accept  no  public  office.  Mrs.  Otis 
Leonard  was  before  marriage  a  Miss  Bryant, 
of  North  Raynham,  Mass.      She  and  her  hus- 


band are  the  parents  of  several  children; 
namely,  Peleg,  Angle,  Russell,  William, 
Bennie,    Nellie  Emery,    Maria,    and   Charles. 

Bennie  C.  Leonard  was  the  fifth  child. 
After  leaving  school,  he  served  a  three  years' 
apprenticeship  with  T.  H.  &  J.  O.  Dean,  of 
Easton,  at  the  machinist's  trade,  and  two  years 
with  Sweetser  &  Merritt.  He  then  secured 
a  position  in  the  employ  of  the  Tuck  Manu- 
facturing Company  as  tool-maker,  and  was  with 
them  for  three  years,  leaving  then  to  take 
charge  of  a  line  of  work  for  Kimball  Brothers. 
Several  years  later,  in  1888,  Mr.  Leonard 
started  in  business  for  himself,  beginning  in  a 
work-room  in  the  basement  of  his  house — in 
the  machine  repairing  business,  which  grad- 
ually resolved  itself  into  the  bicycle  business. 
He  was  soon  obliged  to  seek  larger  accommo- 
dations, and  removed  to  a  room  on  Centre 
Street,  and  finally,  about  1890,  came  to  his 
present  quarters  at  34  Franklin  Street.  Up 
to  1892  he  did  only  repairing,  but  his  work  in 
this  line  suggested  many  changes  in  construc- 
tion; and  the  result  was  the  introduction,  in 
1892,  of  the  fine  wheel  known  as  the  Brockton, 
or  Meteor,  which  has  appeared  each  succeed- 
ing year  with  added  improvements.  Mr. 
Leonard  has  also  placed  on  the  market  a 
bicycle  handle  bar,  which  was  patented  by 
him  June  2,  1896,  and  the  Brockton  cycle 
stand,  an  arrangement  for  holding  bicycles, 
intended  for  use  by  wholesale  and  retail 
dealers,  of  which  he  has  sold  hundreds  during 
the  past  year.  Nine  men  are  employed  in  his 
factory. 

In  1882  Mr.  Leonard  married  Miss  Lucy  F. 
Manley,  daughter  of  Nathaniel  Manley,  of 
Brockton,  and  a  direct  descendant  of  Governor 
William  Bradford  of  the  Plymouth  Colony. 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Leonard  have  four  children; 
namely,  Merle  C,  Vera  M.,  Elva  A.,  and 
Vernie  L. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


301 


In  political  affiliation  Mr.  Leonard  is  a 
stanch  Republican.  He  is  a  member  of  Elec- 
tric Lodge,  No.  204,  Independent  Order  of 
Odd  Fellows;  the  Knights  of  the  Essenic 
Order,  Lodge  No.  125;  and  the  Uniform 
Rank,  Brockton  Division,  No.  11,  Knights  of 
Pythias;  Shoe  City  Wheelmen;  and  the 
League  of  American  Workmen.  He  and  Mrs. 
Leonard  are  communicants  of  the  Porter  Con- 
gregational Church. 


'rp)TENRY  T.  HAMMOND,  who  is  en- 
r^l  gaged  in  general  farming  and  cran- 
-i^  V^  ^  berry  culture  in  Carver,  was  born 
in  this  town,  January  25,  1834,  son  of  Benja- 
min and  Mary  (Sherman)  Hammond,  and  a 
grandson  of  Benjamin  Hammond,  Sr.  His 
father  was  born  in  Carver,  and  sj^ent  his  whole 
life  here,  being  engaged  during  the  active 
years  of  his  life  in  farming.  Benjamin  Ham- 
mond, Jr.,  lived  to  be  eighty-four  years  of  age. 
His  wife  is  still  living,  at  the  age  of  eighty-si.\. 
He  was  a  communicant  of  the  Second  Advent 
church.  They  had  eight  children,  named 
respectively  as  follows:  Mary  A.  ;  Henry  T.  ; 
Susan  A.  ;  Maria  T.  ;  Lucy;  Sarah  A.  ;  Julia 
A.  ;  and  Cordelia,  who  died  when  si.x  years  old. 
Henry  T.  Hammond  spent  his  boyhood  in 
this  town.  He  lived  with  his  parents  until 
he  was  twenty-one  years  old,  when  he  engaged 
in  the  fishing  business,  which  he  followed  for 
seventeen  summers,  making  trips  principally 
to  the  Grand  Banks ;  and  the  last  two  seasons 
he  was  master  of  the  vessel  with  which  he 
sailed.  Subsequently  retiring  from  the  sea, 
he  spent  fourteen  years  in  the  saw-mill  busi- 
ness. Since  that  time  he  has  given  especial 
attention  to  the  raising  of  cranberries,  also 
engaging  in  general  farming.  He  owns  in  all 
about  one  hundred  and  fifty  acres  of  land,  and 
has    two    acres    set    with    cranberries.        On 


March  31,  1858,  Mr.  Hammond  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Miss  Betsey  S.  Shaw,  a  native 
of  this  town.  They  have  had  four  children: 
Walter  I-'".,  residing  in  Lakeville;  Mary  S. 
and  Arthur  L.,  both  deceased;  and  Arnold  L., 
who  resides  in  North  Carver.  From  i8go  to 
1894  Mr.  Hammond  served  as  Road  Commis- 
sioner, and  he  had  previously  been  Road  Sur- 
veyor for  one  year.  He  has  also  served  as 
Fire  Warden  eight  years.  In  politics  he  is  a 
Republican,  and  religiously  he  is  a  member 
of  the  Second  Advent  church. 


^ERNARD  C.  BEAL,  a  well-known 
^^  and  highly  respected  resident  of 
Hanson,  was  born  in  this  town  on 
May  6,  1833.  He  was  educated  in  the  com- 
mon schools,  and  at  the  age  of  fifteen  began 
to  earn  his  own  livelihood.  He  first  learned 
the  shoemaker's  trade,  to  which  he  applied 
himself  diligently  for  over  twelve  years.  He 
subsequently  learned  the  trade  of  carpenter 
and  builder,  which  he  followed  for  a  quarter 
of  a  century.  In  September,  1862,  under  a 
patriotic  impulse,  he  enlisted  for  nine  months 
in  Company  A,  Third  Regiment  Massachusetts 
Volunteer  Infantry;  and  during  his  term  of 
service  he  performed  his  duty  as  a  soldier. 
In  politics  Mr.  Beal  is  a  consistent  member  of 
the  Republican  party.  He  has  held  the  offices 
of  Selectman,  Assessor,  Overseer  of  the  Poor, 
and  Constable  for  a  number  of  years,  and  was 
Collector  of  Taxes  one  year.  He  served  as 
Moderator  at  thirty-three  town  meetings,  and 
was  Chairman  at  thirteen  State  elections. 
From  18S0  to  1891  he  was  Selectman,  receiv- 
ing in  1887  seventy-two  out  of  seventy-four 
votes.  In  1894  and  1895  he  was  re-elected  to 
the  same  office.  Fraternally,  Mr.  Beal  is  a 
member  of  the  Grand  Army  Post,  T.  L.  Bon- 
ney,    No.    127,    in   which   organization  he    has 


302 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


odflciatcd    as    Quartermaster     for    twenty-three 
years.      He  attends  the  Congregational  church. 


iM'TAIN  JAM]<:S  H.  DAWES,  of 
Kingston,  Mass.,  has  seen  much  of 
the  world,  having  circumnavigated 
the  globe  several  times,  and  having  lived  the 
adventurous  life  of  a  California  miner  in  1849. 
He  was  born  in  Duxbury,  Mass.,  July  20, 
1826,  a  son  of  Abraham  and  Deborah  (Dar- 
ling) Dawes. 

Members  of  the  Dawes  family  were  early 
settlers  in  the  Mas.sachusetts  Ray  Colony, 
though  not,  so  far  as  known,  among  the  first 
comers.  A  William  Dawes,  a  bricklayer  by 
trade,  was  living  in  Boston  in  1646.  He  had 
three  sons  —  Ambrose,  William,  and  Robert. 
It  was  a  William  Dawes  of  a  later  generation 
who  joined  Paul  Revere  at  Lexington  during 
his  memorable  ride  to  arouse  the  minute-men, 
and,  when  Revere  was  taken  by  the  British  and 
carried  back  to  Boston,  proceeded  with  Sam- 
uel Prescott  to  Concord,  arousing  the  patriots 
on  the  way. 

Captain  James  H.  Dawes's  great-grand- 
father, Ambrose,  of  Duxbury,  and  his  grand- 
father, Ebenezer  Dawes,  were  well-known 
citizens  of  this  part  of  the  State.  His  father, 
Abraham  Dawes,  who  was  born  in  Kingston, 
Mass.,  was  a  seafaring  man,  engaged  in  the 
coasting  trade  a  great  many  years.  He  died 
April  12,  1868.  His  wife  was  born  in  the 
old  town  of  Duxbury.  She  died  November  4, 
1859.  Of  their  children  the  two  now  living 
are:  Captain  Josephus  Dawes,  in  Duxbury, 
Mass.  ;  and  James  H.,  in  Kingston.  The 
others,  who  have  passed  away,  were:  Captain 
Allen  A.  Dawes  and  a  sister  Harriet. 

James  H.  Dawes  was  reared  and  educated  in 
Duxbury.  He  went  to  sea  at  the  early  age 
of   fourteen,    and   within    six    years    had    risen 


through  the  different  degrees  of  rank  to  the 
responsible  position  of  captain.  At  the  age 
of  twenty  he  commanded  the  brig  "Balize, " 
owned  by  Joseph  Holmes,  of  Kingston,  Mass., 
for  whom  he  subsequently  commanded  a  num- 
ber of  vessels  in  the  coasting  and  foreign 
trade.  He  was  in  Mr.  Holmes's  employ  for 
a  number  of  years,  his  term  of  service  being 
interrupted  by  a  season  in  California.  In 
1849,  his  ship  being  in  port  in  Boston,  he 
decided  to  join  a  party  bound  for  the  gold 
fields,  and  went  by  sailing  vessel  to  the  Isth- 
mus of  Panama,  which  he  crossed  on  foot, 
taking  a  steamer  on  the  other  side  for  San 
Francisco.  Pour  years  of  roughing  it  among 
the  mining  camps  were  sufificient  for  Captain 
Dawes;  and  in  1853  he  returned  to  his  native 
State,  taking  the  route  by  which  he  had  set 
out.  Again  assuming  charge  of  a  vessel,  he 
was  in  the  foreign  trade  for  some  time;  and  he 
was  afterward  engaged  in  superintending  the 
building  of  ships  at  East  Boston  for  himself 
and  others.  Not  content  to  leave  the  sea  alto- 
gether, however,  he  subsequently  sailed  to 
foreign  ports  as  commander  of  different  ves- 
sels, his  own  and  those  of  other  ship-owners, 
until  1881,  when  he  retired  to  his  home  in 
Kingston.  Captain  Dawes  might  write  a  very 
interesting  book  on  the  countries  he  has 
visited  and  the  sights  he  has  seen.  He  has 
sailed  in  nearly  every  oceanic  body  of  water  on 
the  globe,  and  several  times  has  doubled  the 
southern  extremities  of  the  continents,  the 
Cape  of  Good  Hope  and  Cape  Horn  ;  and  he 
has  an  inexhaustible  store  of  anecdote.  The 
captain  is  a  Trustee  of  the  Boston  Marine 
Association,  office  in  the  Chamber  of  Com- 
merce, Boston. 

He  has  been  twice  married.  His  first  wife, 
who  was  Abbie  D.  Chandler,  of  'Vermont,  left 
two  children  —  John  C.  and  Flora  L.  The 
latter  is  the   wife   of   George   D.    Bartlett,    of 


JAMES    H.    DAWES. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


305 


Plymouth,  Mass.  His  second  wife,  to  whom 
he  was  united  on  June  25,  1857,  was  Mrs. 
Lydia  J.  (Sampson)  Bradford,  daughter  of 
Rufus  and  Sally  (Gibbs)  Sampson,  of  Dux- 
bury,  Mass.,  and  widow  of  Samuel  Brad- 
ford, of  that  town.  By  her  first  marriage  she 
had  three  children,  of  whom  she  has  been 
bereft;  and  she  bore  Captain  Dawes  one 
daughter,  Laura  M.  On  many  of  Captain 
Dawes's  voyages  his  wife  accompanied  him. 
The  captain  votes  the  Republican  ticket. 
He  is  a  charter  member  of  Corner  Stone 
Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Duxbury,  and  is 
very  popular  in  the  community  in  which  he 
lives,  he  and  his  family  taking  an  active  part 
in  all  social  events  of  importance.  The  cap- 
tain and  his  wife  are  attendants  at  the  Uni- 
tarian church. 


Ji 


R.  GEORGE  V.  MORSE,  a  popular 
and  successful  physician  of  Carver, 
was  born  May  i,  1840,  at  Middle- 
boro,  this  county,  son  of  Ira  and  Betsy  (Red- 
ding) Morse.  He  represents  one  of  the  oldest 
families  in  the  country,  being  a  descendant  of 
William  Morse,  who  was  a  passenger  on  the 
"Mayflower."  Those  of  the  Morse  family 
directly  descended  from  William  Morse  have 
resided  in  this  general  section  of  the  States. 
The  great-grandfather  of  Dr.  Morse,  also 
named  William  Morse,  was  a  farmer  of  Mid- 
dleboro;  and  his  paternal  grandfather,  Jona- 
than, followed  the  same  occupation  in  Carver. 
Ira,  a  son  of  Jonathan,  and  a  native  of  Carver, 
was  engaged  in  general  farming  at  Middle- 
boro.  His  wife,  Betsy,  was  a  daughter  of  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Zaccheus  Redding,  esteemed  farming 
people  of  Taunton,  Mass.  Of  Ira's  seven 
children,  two  still  survive.  He  passed  away 
March  30,  1S56,  in  his  fiftieth  year,  and  his 
wife  on  October  17,   1863. 

Dr.  Morse  acquired   his   early  education    in 


the  common  schools.  In  Carver,  at  the  age  of 
sixteen,  he  began  working  at  the  shoemaker's 
trade,  and  thereafter  followed  it  until  his 
twenty-sixth  year.  Having  prosecuted  a 
course  of  reading  in  medicine  in  the  mean 
while,  he  then  devoted  himself  exclusively  to 
the  study  in  the  office  of  Dr.  George  F. 
Wood,  of  Plymouth.  Here  he  spent  three 
years,  during  which  he  often  came  into  con- 
tact with  homcEopathic  physicians.  At  the 
termination  of  that  period  he  established  him- 
self in  his  profession  at  Carver,  where  he  has 
practised  very  successfully  for  eighteen  years, 
giving  his  entire  time  and  attention  to  his 
chosen  calling.  The  last  winter  was  the 
busiest  season  that  he  has  experienced  in  his 
entire  career. 

On  March  15,  1870,  Dr.  Morse  married 
Mrs.  Lucinda  Maxim,  a  daughter  of  James  and 
Ruth  Dunham,  to  whom  she  was  born  at 
Carver,  January  31,  1S39.  Dr.  Morse  takes 
an  earnest  interest  in  the  town,  and  is  an 
active  promoter  of  its  social  and  civic  welfare. 
In  his  political  views  he  is  identified  with  the 
Republican  party. 


/3)eORGE  B.  SANFORD,  of  Lakeville, 
\j^  I  a  veteran  of  the  Civil  War,  was  born 
May  23,  1827,  in  Haverhill,  Essex 
County,  son  of  Fitz  William  and  Lucy  San- 
ford.  He  received  his  early  education  in 
Haverhill,  where  he  lived  until  twelve  years 
of  age.  Then,  after  spending  a  year  in  New 
Salem,  N.  H.,  he  went  to  Groveland,  Mass., 
and  there  learned  the  trade  of  tanning  and 
currying.  After  working  as  a  tanner  some 
three  years,  he  learned  boot-making,  which  he 
followed  at  intervals  in  different  places  for 
thirteen  years.  He  made  shoes  in  Atkinson, 
N.H.,  for  two  years;  and  for  a  number  of 
years  following  he  was  engaged   in  the  same 


3o6 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


line  in  Stoneham,  Mass.  His  next  place  of 
residence  was  Auburn,  N.H.,  where  he  was 
engaged  in  farming  until  President  Lincoln's 
call  for  volunteers  induced  him  to  join  the 
army. 

Enlisting  August  8,  1862,  in  Company  A, 
Tenth  Regiment,  New  Hampshire  Volunteers, 
Mr.  Sanford  was  mustered  in  as  a  private  at 
Manchester,  N.  H.  He  was  first  under  the 
rebel  fire  at  Fredericksburg,  out  of  which  he 
came  without  a  wound.  Subsequently  he 
passed  safely  through  the  siege  of  Suffolk, 
which  lasted  twenty-three  days.  Assigned 
then  to  the  engineer  corps,  he  went  to  Ports- 
mouth, Va.,  where  he  was  engaged  for  a  year 
in  work  on  the  fortifications.  After  this  he 
rejoined  his  regiment  at  Yorktown,  and  par- 
ticipated in  the  engagements  of  Drury's  Bluff 
and  Cold  Harbor,  the  siege  of  Petersburg,  and 
the  action  at  Chapin's  farm.  In  the  latter 
he  was  wounded  in  the  right  wrist  by  a  piece 
of  a  shell,  and  was  subsequently  under  the 
care  of  doctors  and  nurses  for  si.x  or  seven 
months.  In  this  period  he  was  in  the  field 
hospital,  in  the  City  Point  Hospital  at  City 
Point,  Va.,  the  hospital  at  Hampton,  and  the 
Webster  Hospital  at  Manchester,  N.H.  By 
a  telegram  received  May  18,  1865,  he  was  dis- 
charged from  military  service;  and  for  two 
years  thereafter  he  was  able  to  perform  little 
work  of  any  kind,  as  he  was  obliged  to  carry 
his  right  arm  in  a  sling.  He  lived  in 
Auburn,  N.H.,  until  1869,  when  he  moved  to 
Manchester,  and  engaged  in  farming  for  a 
while.  At  a  later  date  he  received  an 
appointment  as  night  watchman,  and  subse- 
quently followed  that  calling  in  Manchester 
for  eight  years.  In  1880  he  moved  to  Lake- 
ville,  where  he  has  since  been  engaged  in 
farming  and  poultry  raising.  Mr.  Sanford 
votes  the  Republican  ticket.  He  keeps  up  his 
connection  with  his  comrades  of  the  war  as  a 


member  of  Post  No.  3,  Grand  Army  of  the  Re- 
public, of  Manchester,  N.H.,  and  is  a  promi- 
nent memlier  of  the  Royal  Arcanum. 


^njoWARD  I.  BROWN,  of  Rockland, 
JQI  Mass.,  manufacturer  of  Goodyear  welts, 
is  a  self-made  man  who  has  climbed 
from  the  bottom  to  a  high  round  of  the  ladder 
of  success.  A  son  of  George  V.  and  Sarah  M. 
(Nerburt)  Brown,  of  Nantucket,  he  was  born 
on  that  island,  January  17,   i860. 

George  F.  Brown,  the  father,  sailed  from 
Nantucket  on  a  whaling  vessel  in  1849  fo*" 
California,  doubling  Cape  Horn,  and  making 
a  long  tedious  journey.  His  brother,  who 
accompanied  him,  died  in  1895,  leaving  a  fort- 
une of  a  million  and  a  half;  but  he  himself 
was  not  so  favored.  He  served  in  the  Union 
army  throughout  the  Civil  War,  receiving  a 
serious  wound,  and,  after  peace  was  declared, 
returned  to  California,  where  he  died  at  the 
age  of  forty-one.  His  death  seemed  the  more 
untimely  from  the  fact  that  the  Browns  are  a 
long-lived  family,  many  nearly  attaining  the 
century  mark.  Mrs.  Sarah  Nerburt  Brown  is 
now  living  in  Nantucket.  She  has  reared 
three  children  —  Mary  M.,  Elliott  M.,  and 
Edward  I. 

Edward  I.  Brown  was  given  scant  educa- 
tional opportunities,  being  obliged  to  go  to 
work  at  the  early  age  of  nine  years.  He  was 
first  employed  on  a  farm  at  Newton  Upper 
Falls,  and  subsequently  in  a  cotton-mill  in 
Rhode  Island  two  years,  later  in  Vineyard 
Haven,  where  he  served  a  three  years'  appren- 
ticeship to  the  harness-making  trade,  in  Marl- 
boro, Mass.,  one  year,  and  in  Boston  one  year. 
On  his  removal  to  Rockland  he  worked  at 
harness-making,  and  afterward  for  si,\-  months 
engaged  in  stitching  and  sewing  on  welts  in 
a  shoe  shop  in    Rockland.      Being    naturally 


^  -^-r./ 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


3°7 


something  of  an  inventive  genius,  he  patented 
a  thread  for  shoe  sewing-machines,  which  has 
been  of  great  value  to  the  trade.  After  spend- 
ing some  time  as  a  travelling  salesman  for 
J.  R.  Leeson  &  Co.,  of  Boston,  he  returned  to 
the  shop;  and  some  time  later  he  started  his 
present  business,  in  which  he  has  been  very 
successful.  Mr.  Brown  manages  the  welt  fac- 
tory, and  at  the  same  time  he  sells  his  own 
goods  on  the  road.  Some  idea  of  his  business 
ability  may  be  gained  from  the  fact  that  his 
sales  last  year  amounted  to  over  one  hundred 
and  fifty-three  thousand  dollars.  He  has 
never  felt  the  lack  of  educational  training;  for 
he  has  the  natural  gift  of  adapting  himself  to 
circumstances,  and  by  observation  and  experi- 
ence he  has  qualified  himself  as  a  business 
man,  learning  by  practice  alone  without 
studying  theory.  Having  travelled  exten- 
sively, he  has  a  broad  knowledge  of  men  and 
affairs.  He  is  well  informed  on  all  matters 
of  current  interest,  and  is  a  self-made  man  in 
more  than  a  business  sense. 

Mr.  Brown  was  married  November  23,  1S81, 
to  Alice  G.  Baker,  of  Rockland,  and  has  been 
blessed  with  four  children  :  Carroll  Winslow, 
aged  fourteen;  Esther  Lyle  (deceased);  and 
Chester  Nerburt  and  Bessie  Linwood,  aged  re- 
spectively ten  and  seven  years.  He  has  a 
pleasant  home  at  26  Vernon  Street.  In  poli- 
tics he  is  a  Republican.  He  belongs  to  three 
social  organizations  —  the  Sons  of  Veterans, 
the  Narragansett  Boot  and  Shoe  Club,  and  the 
Norfolk  Club  of  Boston. 


)UCIUS  H.  DOTEN,  until  recently  the 
foreman  of  the  granite  yards  of  Rox- 
bury.  Conn.,  was  born  in  Plymouth, 
this  county,  May  10,  1832,  son  of  Joseph  and 
Jerusha  (Bartlett)  Doten.  The  family  de- 
scends from  colonists  who  came  in   the  "May- 


flower." Joseph  Doten,  who  was  born  near 
the  birthplace  of  his  son,  the  subject  of  this 
article,  made  his  home  in  Plymouth  County 
until  185 1,  when  he  migrated  to  California 
by  the  isthmus  route.  He  died  in  California 
a  few  months  after  his  arrival.  His  wife, 
Jerusha,  who  was  a  native  of  Manomet,  and  a 
daughter  of  George  and  Sylvina  Bartlett,  bore 
him  six  children,  namely:  Joseph  M.,  who 
now  resides  on  Water  Street;  Frances  B.,  who 
died  in  1S94  in  California,  whither  she  went 
in  1850;  William  W.,  who  passed  away  in 
1856;  Lucius  H.,  the  subject  of  this  article; 
Abbie  M.,  who  died  in  1855;  and  Andrew  J., 
whose  death  happened  in  California  in  1854. 
The  mother  died  in  1840. 

Lucius  H.  Doten  passed  his  boyhood  on  the 
paternal  farm.  At  the  age  of  eight  years  he 
was  left  motherless.  In  his  seventeenth  year  he 
started  out  for  himself  by  engaging  in  fishing, 
which  calling  he  followed  during  the  seven 
successive  summers.  He  then  served  an  ap- 
prenticeship of  one  year  in  Ouincy,  Mass.,  at 
granite-cutting,  and  afterward  followed  that 
trade  in  different  cities  throughout  the  Eastern 
States.  In  1884  he  received  the  appointment 
as  foreman  of  the  granite  yards  at  Roxbury, 
Conn.,  in  which  capacity  he  served  efficiently 
until  February,  1896.  He  is  now  engaged  in 
trout  raising  at  Plymouth. 

On  November  12,  1862,  Mr.  Doten  married 
Miss  Mary  A.  Holmes,  who  was  born  in 
Plymouth,  daughter  of  Galen  R.  and  Juline  E. 
(Valler)  Holmes.  Mr.  Doten  and  his  wife 
became  the  parents  of  four  children,  namely: 
Frank  W.,  born  October  20,  1864,  who  died 
on  November  21,  1864;  Lucia  N.,  born  March 
6,  1868;  Abbie  A.,  born  July  18,  1870;  and 
Charles  R.,  born  August  15,  1873.  Lucia 
became  the  wife  of  Nathaniel  F.  Hoxie,  a 
native  of  Plymouth,  to  whom  she  bore  three 
children,    namely:     Fanny   A.,    born    January 


3o8 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


1 8,  1 888;  Mary  F. ,  born  P^ebruary  2,  1892; 
and  Lucius  H.,  now  deceased.  Abbie  became 
Mrs.  George  J.  Sampson,  and  has  a  son, 
William  S.,  who  was  born  November  i,  1893. 
Mrs.  Doten  passed  away  April  12,  1890.  Mr. 
Doten  is  a  Mason  of  Plymouth  Lodge.  In 
]:)olitics  he  supports  the  Republican  party. 
His  religious  principles  arc  those  of  a  free 
thinker.  He  has  always  made  historic  Plym- 
outh his  home,  and  he  has  resided  on  his 
present  estate  for  thirty-four  years. 


LONZO  GUSHING,  a  well-known 
business  man  of  Hingham,  and  a 
Director  of  the  Savings  Bank,  is  a 
native  of  the  town.  He  was  born  on  Decem- 
ber 15,  1827,  son  of  David  and  Mary  S.  (Lap- 
ham)  Gushing,  and  is  a  representative  of  the 
eighth  generation  in  descent  from  Matthew 
Gushing,  a  native  of  Old  England,  who 
settled  in  Hingham,  Mass.,  in  1638.  He 
mingled  prominently  in  town  affairs,  and  also 
officiated  as  Deacon  of  the  church.  His  wife, 
whose  maiden  name  was  Nazareth  Pitcher, 
was  a  daughter  of  Henry  Pitcher.  They  were 
married  in  161 3,  and  had  five  children,  of 
whom  Daniel  was  the  eldest  child.  He  was 
born  in  Hingham,  England,  in  161 9,  and  was 
twice  married,  his  first  wife  being  Lydia  Gil- 
man,  a  native  of  England,  by  whom  he  had 
six  children.  By  his  second  marriage  with 
Elizabeth  (Jacob)  Tha.xter,  of  England,  there 
were  no  children. 

Theophilus,  the  fifth  child  of  David  and 
Lydia  (Gilman)  Gushing,  was  born  in  1657. 
He  married  Mary  Tha.xter,  of  Hingham;  and 
eleven  children  were  the  fruit  of  their  union. 
Abel,  the  fifth  child,  was  born  in  Hingham  in 
1696.  He  was  a  farmer  and  miller,  and 
served  as  Selectman  for  many  years.  He  mar- 
ried  Mary  Jacob,    of    Hingham,    and   was    the 


father  of  ten  children,  the  third  a  son,  David. 
He  was  born  here  in  1727,  was  twice  married, 
and  by  his  first  wife,  Ruth  Lincoln,  had  five 
children.  By  his  second  marriage  with  Mabel 
Gardner  there  were  twelve  children,  Gharles 
W.  Gushing  being  the  third  child,  and  the 
grandfather   of   the   subject  of   this   biography. 

He  was  born  in  Hingham  in  1766,  became 
a  sailor,  and  eventually  a  sea  captain,  but  sub- 
sequently settled  on  a  farm  in  South  Hingham. 
He  married  Deborah  R.  Jacob,  of  South  Scitu- 
ate,  Mass.  ;  and  they  had  eleven  children. 
David,  their  fourth  child,  was  born  in  Hing- 
ham on  October  2,  1801,  and  carried  on  farm- 
ing all  his  life.  He  married  Mary  S.  Lap- 
ham  ;  and  they  had  eleven  children,  eight  of 
whom  are  now  living — David,  Alonzo, 
Michael  L.,  Otis,  .Sidney,  George,  Ferdinand, 
and  Isabella. 

David  Gushing,  the  eldest  son,  married 
Mary  J.  Sherman,  and  by  this  union  had  five 
children,  one  of  whom  is  now  living,  Marshall 
Henry.  Michael  L.  married  Josephine  Kim- 
ball, of  South  Scituate;  and  they  had  nine 
children,  seven  of  whom  are  now  living  — 
Herbert  K.,  Minnie  J.,  Susie  J.,  Charles  E., 
Jessie  L. ,  Bertram,  and  Nellie  F.  Otis  mar- 
ried Garoline  F.  Hersey,  of  Hingham,  and 
became  the  father  of  five  children,  four  of 
whom  are  now  living  —  Flora  G.,  Anna  F. , 
Abbie  R.,  and  Lewis  H.  Sidney  married 
Sarah  E.  Gorbett,  of  this  town  ;  and  they  were 
the  parents  of  two  children  —  Albert  L.  and 
Waldo.  George  married  Deborah  E.  Gushing, 
daughter  of  John  Gushing  (a  descendant  of 
Matthew  by  a  different  line)  ;  and  they  had 
two  children  —  Wallace  G.  and  Ralph  E. 
David  Gushing,  the  father,  was  a  Democrat 
in  politics  and  a  Universalist  in  his  religious 
belief.  He  died  at  the  age  ofeighty-six,  and 
his  wife  passed  away  at  the  age  of  eighty  years. 

Alonzo  Gushing,  the    second  son   of   David, 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


3°9 


after  completing  his  education  in  the  schools 
of  his  native  town,  went  to  Boston  to  learn 
the  carpenter's  trade,  and  remained  there 
five  years.  Returning  to  Hingham,  he  con- 
tinued to  follow  his  trade  until  i860,  when 
he  opened  a  general  merchandise  store,  utiliz- 
ing his  carpenter  shop  for  that  purpose  for 
twenty-nine  years  thereafter.  Many  fine  resi- 
dences here  bear  witness  to  his  ability  as  a 
builder.  Later  Mr.  Gushing  became  identified 
with  the  Hingham  Insurance  Company,  which 
he  has  served  as  Director  for  twenty  years, 
during  the  last  five  of  which  he  has  also  offici- 
ated as  adjuster.  He  has  also  been  a  Director 
of  the  Hingham  Savings  l^ank  since  1891. 
In  politics  he  affiliates  with  the  Republican 
party.  Fraternally,  he  belongs  to  Old  Colony 
Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Hingham. 

On  January  15,  1852,  he  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Martha  A.  Gushing,  daughter 
of  Loring  and  Martha  (Hersey)  Gushing,  of 
Hingham.  By  this  union  there  are  two  chil- 
dren :  Alonzo  F.,  born  November  29,  1857; 
and  Lizzie  H.,  who  was  born  on  July  1 1,  i860. 
Mr.  Gushing  is  a  man  of  estimable  qualities 
and  a  prominent  citizen.  He  built  his  present 
residence  in  185 1.  In  their  religious  belief 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Gushing  are  Unitarians. 


LTOREST  WILLIAM  SWIFT,  a  mem- 
rij  ber  of  the  well-known  firm  Edgar  & 
Co.,  of  Brockton,  was  born  in  Ware- 
ham,  Mass.,  in  1865,  son  of  James  R.  and 
Lydia  C.  (Burgess)  Swift.  James  R.  Swift, 
who  was  mate  of  a  ship,  for  the  last  three 
years  of  his  life  kept  a  grocery  store  in  Ware- 
ham,  Mass.  In  1852  he  was  united  in  mar- 
riage with  Lydia  C.,  daughter  of  Govil  and 
Lorena  Burgess,  of  Sandwich,  Mass.  They 
had  two  sons:  Edgar  Francis,  who  is  em- 
ployed  in  a  shoe  shop;  and   Forest   William 


the  subject  of  this  sketch.  The  father  died 
in  1866.  Five  years  later  the  mother  married 
Asahel  Southworth,  of  Stoughton,  Mass. 

After  acquiring  his  education  in  the  com- 
mon and  high  schools  of  Stoughton,  F'orest 
William  Swift  attended  the  Bryant  &  Stratton 
Commercial  College  in  Boston.  In  18S1  he 
entered  the  employ  of  FIdgar  &  Co.  as  clerk. 
Subsequently  he  was  put  in  charge  of  their 
hosiery  and  underwear  department,  which 
position  he  filled  for  ten  years.  On  February 
I,  1895,  he  was  admitted  to  the  firm  as  part- 
ner. In  politics  Mr.  Swift  is  a  Republican. 
He  belongs  to  Paul  Revere  Lodge,  A.  F.  & 
A.  M.  ;  Satucket  Royal  Arch  Chapter;  Bay 
State  Gommandery,  Knights  Templars;  and 
Aleppo  Shrine  of  Boston.  He  is  also  a  mem- 
ber of  Harmony  Lodge,  Knights  of  Pythias, 
and  of  Massasoit  Lodge,  Independent  Order  of 
Odd  Fellows.  In  1886  he  was  married  to 
Nellie,  daughter  of  George  and  Sarah  F'aulk- 
ner,  of  this  city.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Swift  have 
two  children;  William  Arnold,  aged  five;  and 
Miriam  Burgess,  who  is  seven. 


(sfXSAHEL  SOUTHWORTH,  a  former 
resident  and  manufacturer  of  Stough- 
ton, Mass.,  was  born  there  in  181 3, 
son  of  Consider,  also  a  native  of  that  town, 
and  a  manufacturer  of  spool  cotton  and  cotton 
yarn.  He,  who  was  familiarly  known  as 
"Colonel  Southworth,"  resided  in  Stoughton 
all  his  life.  Besides  Asahel  he  had  four  other 
children  —  Lyman,  Jedediah,  Amasa,  and  Al- 
mira.  Asahel,  the  eldest  child,  attended  the 
common  schools  of  Stoughton,  and  then  sewed 
cotton  in  his  father's  mill.  Subsequently  he 
became  a  manufacturer  of  woollen  yarn  in 
West  Stoughton,  where  he  carried  on  the  in- 
dustry for  several  years.  In  politics  he  was 
a    Republican.      Fie    was    affiliated    with    the 


3IO 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Independent  Order  of  Odd  Fellows.  In  his 
religious  opinions  he  was  a  liberal,  and  he 
attended  the  Universalist  church.  Mr.  South- 
worth  was  twice  married,  the  first  time  to 
Louisa  Kinsley,  who  had  four  children. 
These  were:  Consider  (deceased),  Consider 
(second),  Mary  Anna,  and  Mattie.  His  sec- 
ond marriage  was  contracted  in  1871  with 
Lydia  C.  (Burgess)  Swift,  as  already  stated. 
Mr.  Southworth  died  in  1S79.  By  the  second 
marriage  there  was  one  child  —  Elmer  Kins- 
ley, who  resides  in  Lynn,  Mass. 


|D\VARD  G.  KNIGHT,  a  well-known 
carpenter  and  builder,  the  only  con- 
tractor in  Hull,  Plymouth  County, 
Mass.,  was  born  in  Troy,  N.H.,  November  7, 
1840,  son  of  Martin  and  Hitha  B.  (Gould) 
Knight.  His  paternal  grandfather,  Elbridge 
Knight,  was  a  farmer  and  miller  who  lived  to 
a  good  old  age.  He  and  his  wife,  Betsy 
Knight,  had  fourteen  children. 

Martin  was  the  third  son  of  his  parents. 
He  was  born  in  Sudbury,  Mass.  ;  and,  after 
acquiring  his  education,  he  became  a  teacher 
in  Troy,  N.  H.  He  subsequently  removed  to 
Hull,  where  he  was  engaged  in  teaching  for 
a  year,  and  where  he  bought  a  farm  and  estab- 
lished his  home.  He  officiated  as  a  member 
of  the  School  Committee  for  several  years. 
On  April  16,  1837,  he  was  married  to  Bitha 
B.  Gould,  daughter  of  John  and  Bitha  (Bin- 
ney)  Gould,  of  Hingham,  Mass.  By  this 
alliance  there  were  five  children:  Albert  L., 
born  December  i,  1838;  Edward  G.  ;  Eliza  J., 
born  January  29,  1843;  Charles  H.,  born 
February  19,  1845;  and  Winthrop,  who  was 
born  June  29,  1851.  The  father  and  mother 
were  both  highly  respected  members  of  the 
Methodist  Episcopal  church.  Martin  Knight 
died  on  January  8,   1894. 


Edward  G.  Knight  at  the  early  age  of  two 
years  removed  with  his  parents  to  Hull,  and 
there  acquired  his  education.  Having  a  nat- 
ural aptitude  for  mechanics,  he  learned  the 
carpenter's  trade  without  serving  an  appren- 
ticeship, and  at  the  age  of  twenty-two  bought 
a  chest  of  tools  and  started  in  business.  His 
first  contract  was  for  a  four-hundred-dollar 
house,  which  is  still  standing.  For  fifteen 
years  he  was  the  only  carpenter  in  town,  and 
he  is  now  the  only  contractor.  He  has  contin- 
ued building  with  gratifying  success  for 
thirty-four  years,  and  among  the  many  fine 
residences  erected  here  by  him  is  the  one 
that  was  owned  by  the  late  John  Boyle 
O'Reilly.  Mr.  Knight  has  also  built  many 
sail-boats,  and  now  has  many  contracts  to 
build  houses.  In  1872  he  established 
Knight's  Express  between  Hull  and  Boston, 
which  he  continued  until  the  spring  of  1895, 
when  he  sold  out. 

In  politics  Mr.  Knight  is  a  Prohibitionist. 
In  the  year  1892  he  cast  the  only  vote  in  the 
town  on  that  ticket,  but  in  1895  there  were 
twenty-three  Prohibition  votes  in  Hull.  Offi- 
cially, Mr.  Knight  has  been  prominent,  having 
been  Town  Treasurer  for  twenty-four  consecu- 
tive years,  Overseer  of  the  Poor  and  Selectman 
for  nineteen  years,  Assessor  and  Constable  for 
several  years,  also  Highway  Surveyor,  and 
from  1 86 1  to  1887,  with  the  exception  of  three 
years.  Collector  of  Taxes.  In  1894  he  was 
nominated  on  the  Prohibition  ticket  as  Repre- 
sentative, and  had  a  j)lurality  in  his  own  town, 
which  speaks  well  for  his  popularity  here. 
He  was,  however,  defeated  at  that  time. 
Fraternally,  he  is  identified  with  Old  Colony 
Lodge,  No.  108,  Independent  Order  of  Odd 
Fellows,  of  Hingham,  and  the  Rising  Star 
Division,  Sons  of  Temperance. 

On    December    8,     1868,    Mr.    Knight    was 
married    to    Miss    Elizabeth     A.    R.    Adams, 


EDWARD    C.    KNIGHT. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


313 


a  native  of  Koyalton,  Vt.  They  have  two 
children  —  Grace  W.  and  Albert  E.  Grace 
W.  Knight  married  Francis  Haseltine,  Princi- 
pal of  the  Whiting  School,  Lynn,  Mass.,  and 
they  have  one  child,  Ruth  Haseltine.  Albert 
E.  Knight  married  Lizzie  Follansbee,  of  Prov- 
idence, R.  L  ;  and  they  have  one  son,  Harold. 
In  religious  belief  Mr.  Knight  is  a  Methodist, 
having  been  converted  to  that  faith  in  January, 
1887.  P'or  two  years  he  officiated  as  Superin- 
tendent of  the  Sunday-school,  and  he  is  now  a 
devoted  Christian  and  church  member. 


^•^YLVANUS  BOURNE,  a  highly  es- 
teemed citizen  of  Halifa.x',  was  born 
in  this  town,  April  4,  1839.  His 
parents  were  Abram  and  Mary  A.  (Harlow) 
Hourne,  both  natives  of  Halifa.x.  They  had 
eight  children  —  William,  Sylvanus,  Daniel 
W.,  Mary  W. ,  Francis,  Eliza,  Eunice,  and 
Hittie.  Sylvanus,  who  was  their  second  son, 
was  educated  in  the  common  schools.  On 
reaching  the  age  of  nineteen  years,  he  went  to 
California;  but,  finding  no  better  chance  to 
make  money  there  than  at  home,  he  returned 
the  same  year.  Choosing  the  occupation  of  a 
farmer,  he  began  actively  to  till  the  soil,  and 
also  engaged  quite  largely  in  charcoal  burning. 
With  the  e.xceptidu  of  si.x  years  spent  in 
Bridgew^ater  and  the  short  period  in  Califor- 
nia, he  has  resided  since  birth  in  Halifa.x, 
where  he  owns  and  conducts  a  farm  of  about 
seventy  acres.  At  the  breaking  out  of  the 
Civil  War  he  responded  to  the  first  call  for 
militia,  and  served  three  months,  during 
which  he  was  at  Fortress  Monroe  and  Hamp- 
ton, and  took  part  in  the  expedition  to  Nor- 
folk, Va.  Mr.  Bourne  has  served  si.x  years  as 
Selectman  of  the  town.  He  belongs  to  Post 
124,  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  of  East 
Bridgewater,    and    also   to   the   Association    of 


Minute-men  of  Massachusetts.  In  i860  Mr. 
Bourne  married  Miss  Emily  P.  Wade,  by 
whom  he  has  two  children  —  Abram  and  Aus- 
tin F.,  both  of  whom  reside  in  Bridgewater, 
Mass. 


^^•^» 


ILAS  P.  ASHLEY,  a  respected  citi- 
zen and  farmer  of  Lakeville,  Plym- 
outh County,  Mass.,  was  born  in 
this  town,  April  4,  181 3,  son  of  Noah  and 
Ruth  (Pickens)  Ashley.  His  paternal  grand- 
father also  bore  the  name  of  Noah.  Noah 
Ashley  (second),  and  his  wife,  Ruth,  became 
the  parents  of  a  large  family  of  children; 
namely,  Jephthah,  Silas  P.,  Noah,  Abiel  W., 
Susan  P.,  Elizabeth  M.,  Earl  S.,  Sarah,  Jose- 
phus  P.,  Levi  L.,  and  Abbie,  all  of  whom  are 
still  living,  with  the  exception  of  Abiel. 

Silas  P.  Ashley,  who  was  the  second-born 
child  of  his  parents,  was  educated  in  the  dis- 
trict schools.  He  remained  beneath  the 
parental  roof  until  his  twenty-fifth  year,  when 
he  began  life  for  himself,  turning  his  atten- 
tion to  agriculture  as  his  main  occupation. 
His  present  farm,  which  consists  of  about 
sixty  acres,  has  been  his  home  since  1844,  ami 
is  endeared  to  him  by  many  associations  of  his 
younger  days.  In  addition  to  farming  he  has 
also  dealt  to  some  extent  in  wood  and  lumber. 
In  1835  Mr.  Ashley  wedded  Miss  Phrebe  E. 
Davis,  of  Tiverton,  R.I.  Seven  children 
were  born  to  them,  and  were  named  respec- 
tively Phcebe  J.,  Mary  B.,  Clementina  L., 
Noah,  Isaiah,  Silas  Edmund,  and  Abiel 
Davis,  of  whom  Noah  and  Isaiah  have  passed 
away.  His  first  wife  dying,  Mr.  Ashley  con- 
tracted a  second  marriage  in  1857,  Miss 
Almira  F.  Dean,  a  native  of  Taunton,  becom- 
ing his  wife.  Mr.  Ashley  is  a  Republican  in 
politics,  having  been  a  Whig  in  the  days  of 
that  earlier  party.  He  has  lived  to  see  many 
political   and    other  changes   during   his   four- 


314 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


score  and  three  years  of  experience,  and  he 
has  always  been  numbered  among  the  reliable 
and  trustworthy  citizens  of  his  town. 


kAHUM  A.  BATTLES,  a  well-to-do 
farmer  of  Brockton,  Mass.,  was  born 
L^  X^  ^  on  September  i6,  1835,  in  what 
was  then  North  Bridgewater,  his  parents  be- 
ing Nahum  and  Mary  (Brett)  Battles.  He  is 
a  descendant  of  one  of  the  founders  of  the 
town,  as  shown  by  the  following  taken  from 
Mitchell's  History  of  Bridgewater. 

John  Battles  (from  Plymouth)  settled  in 
Stoughton  Corner,  within  the  North  Parish, 
of  Bridgewater,  and  married  Hannah,  daughter 
of  Edward  Curtis,  and  had  John,  Jonathan, 
Samuel,  Asa,  Uriah,  Edward,  Curtis,  Han- 
nah, Rebecca,  and  Susanna.  Hannah  married 
a  Jordan,  Rebecca  married  a  Billings,  Susanna 
married  a  Lord.  Jonathan  married  Hannah, 
daughter  of  Joseph  Porter,  and  settled  in 
Stoughton.  Edward  and  Curtis  went  to  Ver- 
mont. Susanna  Battles  married  l^enjamin 
Washburn  in  1742. 

Samuel  Battles,  the  third  son  of  John, 
settled  in  North  Bridgewater,  and  married 
Dorothy,  daughter  of  Christopher  Dyer,  in 
1786,  and  had:  Sybil,  born  1786;  Lucinda, 
born  1788;  Daniel  Dyer,  born  1790;  David 
H.,  born  1792;  Dorothy,  born  1796;  Samuel, 
born  1798;  Jason  Dyer,  born  1800;  Nahum, 
born  1802;  Mary  Dyer,  born  1806;  Anson, 
born  1810;  Mary  Dyer,  second,  born  18 14. 
Sybil  married  Ruel  Fobes  in  1S06,  Lucinda 
married  Captain  Luke  Packard  in  1806,  David 
married  Jerusha  Adams  in  1816,  Dorothy 
married  Ansel  Perkins  in  1819,  Jason  D.  re- 
moved to  Boston. 

Asa  Battles,  fourth  son  of  John,  also  settled 
in  North  Bridgewater.  He  married  Mary, 
daughter  of  John  Pratt,  and   by  this  union  had 


nine  children.  Samuel  Battles,  grandfather 
of  Nahum  A.,  the  special  subject  of  this 
sketch,  was  appointed  First  Lieutenant  of 
militia  by  Samuel  Adams^  then  Governor  of 
Massachusetts,  August  14,  1794. 

Nahum  Battles,  the  father  of  Nahum  A., 
was  born  on  what  is  now  Battles  Street,  Brock- 
ton, which  derived  its  name  from  the  family. 
He  was  a  mason  by  trade,  and  resided  here  all 
his  life.  Both  he  and  his  wife,  whose  maiden 
name  was  Mary  Brett,  to  whom  he  was  married 
on  March  30,  1826,  are  now  deceased. 

They  had  four  children,  three  sons  and  one 
daughter.  Hiram,  who  was  a  mason  by  trade, 
is  deceased  ;  Joseph  is  a  night  watchman  for 
the  Herbert  &  Rapp  Hub  Goring  Company; 
and  Mary  died  July  3,  1867.  Born  on  the  old 
homestead  where  he  now  resides,  Nahum  A. 
Battles,  the  youngest-born  of  the  three  sons, 
received  his  education  in  the  common  schools 
of  North  Bridgewater.  During  his  father's 
lifetime  he  assisted  in  the  work  of  the  farm, 
of  which  he  afterward  became  the  owner;  and 
he  is  still  actively  engaged  in  its  management. 

For  several  years  he  was  a  regular  attendant 
of  the  Methodist  Episco]3al  church.  Mr. 
Battles  is  a  cheery,  benevolent  gentleman,  and 
highly  respected  by  a  large  circle  of  friends 
and  acquaintances. 


lAPTAIN  S.  NELSON  HOWARD, 
of  West  Bridgewater,  belongs  to  the 
sixth  generation  of  the  Howards 
who  have  resided  on  the  farm  which  is  now  his 
home.  He  was  born  here,  March  14,  1813, 
son  of  Lloyd  and  Abigail  (Snell)  Howard, 
both  of  whom  were  also  natives  of  this  place. 
Jesse  Howard,  the  father  of  Lloyd,  was  a  son 
of  Seth.  A  more  complete  account  of  the 
family  ancestry  appears  in  the  sketch  of  Fran- 
cis   E.  Howard.      Lloyd    Howard,    who    was   a 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


315 


farmer  by  occupation,  died  in  1838.  He  was 
a  cousin  of  the  father  of  General  Oliver  Otis 
Howard,  the  hero  of  Cemetery  Ridge  at  the 
battle  of  Gettysburg.  General  Howard's 
grandfather  was  born  on  the  old  homestead. 

S.  Nelson  Howard  grew  to  manhood  on  the 
ancestral  farm,  receiving  a  common-school 
education,  and  for  a  brief  time  attending  the 
Bridgewater  Academy.  Shortly  after  reach- 
ing his  majority,  he  went  to  Randolph,  Mass., 
and  for  several  years  was  profitably  engaged 
in  keeping  a  public  house.  He  was  Post- 
master of  Randolph  for  six  years  of  the  ten 
spent  there.  He  then  returned  to  the  old 
homestead,  which  has  been  his  home  ever 
since.  The  farm  contains  about  one  hundred 
acres  of  well-improved  land. 

In  1833  Captain  Howard  married  Miss  Mary 
A.  Dunbar,  who  was  born  in  West  Bridge- 
water,  daughter  of  Samuel  Dunbar.  Her 
father,  now  deceased,  was  an  influential  citizen 
of  this  town,  which  he  served  as  a  Representa- 
tive in  the  Massachusetts  legislature.  Of  the 
nine  children  born  to  Captain  and  Mrs.  How- 
ard, si.\  are  living;  namely,  Margaret,  Mary 
N.,  George  F. ,  Lucy  B.,  Frank  L.,  and  An- 
toinette. Margaret  is  the  wife  of  Osman 
Dalton,  of  New  York;  Mary  N.  is  the  widow 
of  Charles  B.  Edgerley,  late  of  Boston,  Mass. ; 
Lucy  B.  is  the  wife  of  Marcus  Reynolds,  of 
Brockton,  this  county;  and  Antoinette  married 
Walter  Edson,  of  Brockton.  The  deceased 
were  Samuel  D.,  Caroline  J.,  and  Stephen  D. 

Captain  Howard  has  been  a  Republican 
since  1852.  He  has  served  as  Selectman  of 
West  Bridgewater.  Prior  to  the  Civil  War 
he  was  a  member  of  an  independent  company 
of  State  militia,  by  whom,  before  he  was 
twenty  years  old,  he  was  chosen  Cajjtain. 
Thereafter  he  held  that  rank  until  the  com- 
pany disbaniled,  a  period  of  si.x  years;  and  his 
many  friends  have  since  addressed  him  as  Cap- 


tain Howard.      He  is  a  member  of   the  Unita- 
rian church. 


LBI>:RT0  W.  LUMBERT,  the  efficient 
superintendent  of  D.  W.  Field's  Shoe 
P'actory  of  Brockton,  was  born  in 
Hyannis,  Barnstable  County,  Mass.,  Sep- 
tember 5,  1871,  son  of  Henry  C.  and  Sophia 
(Howes)  Lumbert.  The  family  has  resided 
in  that  vicinity  for  a  century  past.  Zimri 
Lumbert,  grandfather  of  Alberto  W.,  was  a 
native  of  that  town,  and  became  a  farmer  in 
Hyannisport.  He  married  Mary  Ames,  of 
Cotuit,  Mass. ;  and  they  had  eight  children, 
four  sons  and  four  daughters,  all  but  one  of 
whom  are  living,  nearly  all  being  residents  of 
Cape  Cod.  Zimri  Lumbert  died  at  the  age 
of  seventy-five  years.  His  son,  Henry  C. 
Lumbert,  who  was  educated  in  the  common 
schools,  subsequently  became  a  carpenter  and 
boat-builder,  carrying  on  those  trades  for  sev- 
eral years.  His  wife,  Sophia  G.,  is  a  daugh- 
ter of  Philip  Howes,  of  Barnstable,  Mass. 
Four  children  are  the  result  of  their  union. 
Both  parents  are  living,  the  father  being  fifty- 
eight  years  old.  He  is  a  member  of  Hyannis 
Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M. 

Alberto  W.  Lumbert  was  the  third  child  of 
his  parents.  After  spending  two  years  in  the 
Hyannis  High  School,  he  took  a  course  in  the 
Bryant  &  Stratton  Commercial  College  in 
Boston.  In  May,  1886,  he  entered  D.  W. 
Field's  Shoe  Factory  as  book-keeper.  Six 
years  thereafter,  in  1893,  he  was  appointed 
superintendent,  which  position  he  now  holds. 
In  October,  1894,  Mr.  Lumbert  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Elizabeth  Kelley,  daughter  of 
Alexander  Kelley,  of  San  Francisco,  Cal. 
They  have  one  daughter,  Lorna.  In  politics 
Mr.  Lumbert  is  independent,  but  favors  the 
Republican  party.  Fraternally,  he  is  a  mem- 
ber of  Paul  Revere  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M. 


3i6 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


'OHN  M.  ALLEIN,  an  esteemed  resi- 
dent of  Marion,  was  born  June  24, 
1842,  in  the  village  of  Sippican,  son 
of  Captain  Henry  M.  Allen.  He  comes  of 
old  pioneer  stock.  The  first  of  the  name  in 
this  town  was  John  Allen,  who  came  to  Mar- 
ion from  Connecticut  in  i737-  Previous  to 
that  time  the  said  John  Allen,  assisted  by  six- 
teen other  brave  men,  had  seized  an  Indian 
fort  in  Connecticut,  where  he  lived  for  a  time, 
having  received  a  grant  of  land  near  Wood- 
stock from  the  government.  After  coming  to 
this  town,  he  made  a  trip  to  Rochester  to  have 
his  will  drawn  up;  and,  as  he  was  returning, 
his  boat  was  capsized  in  Sippican  Harbor,  and 
he  was  drowned.  Of  his  five  children,  two 
sons  were  in  the  Revolutionary  War.  One  of 
these,  John,  Jr.,  was  a  Sergeant.  His  son 
Weston  became  the  father  of  Joseph,  who  was 
a  sea  captain,  and  the  grandfather  of  John  M. 
Allen. 

Captain  Henry  M.  Allen  was  born  in  Mar- 
ion in  1809.  Nine  years  later  he  began  to 
go  to  sea  with  his  father,  who  was  a  ship- 
owner. After  sailing  with  his  father  for  sev- 
eral years,  he  became  master  of  a  vessel,  in 
which  calling  he  met  with  great  success. 
His  last  years  were  passed  at  his  home  in 
Marion,  where  his  death  occurred  in  1887, 
his  body  being  laid  to  rest  in  Evergreen 
Cemetery.  He  was  a  public-spirited  man, 
and  did  much  to  advance  the  interests  of  the 
town  and  of  his  church.  He  married  Matilda 
E.  Clark,  who  was  born  in  New  Rochelle, 
N.Y.,  in  1807.  She  died  in  J882  at  the 
house  of  her  son  in  New  Bedford,  where  she 
was  then  visiting.  They  had  three  children, 
as  follows:  Mary  E.,  who  has  been  librarian 
at  the  Marion  Library  since  1874;  John  M., 
the  subject  of  this  sketch;  and  Nathan  H., 
an  organist  and  teacher,  residing  in  Hartford, 
Conn. 


After  having  been  a  pupil  of  the  public  and 
private  schools  of  his  native  village,  John  M. 
Allen,  at  the  age  of  fifteen  years,  entered 
Phillips  Academy  at  Andover,  Mass.,  where 
he  pursued  his  studies  three  years.  He  then 
took  a  course  at  Harvard  University  in  Cam- 
bridge, Mass.,  and  in  1864  was  graduated  in 
civil  engineering.  He  subsequently  spent 
three  years  in  the  office  of  Ware  &  Van  Brunt, 
architects  in  ]5oston,  and  then  went  to  New 
I^edford,  where  he  was  engaged  as  an  architect 
for  ten  years.  After  the  death  of  his  father, 
Mr.  Allen  returned  to  Marion,  and  has  lived 
there  since.  He  is  the  owner  of  considerable 
shore  property  in  this  vicinity,  and  carries  on 
a  substantial  business  in  conveyancing,  sur- 
veying, and  other  work  connected  with  real 
estate.  He  has  been  a  Justice  of  the  Peace 
for  three  years,  was  Superintendent  of  Schools 
in  1877,  and  he  has  served  in  the  capacities 
of  Town  Auditor  and  Chairman  of  the  School 
Committee. 

On  April  15,  1878,  Mr.  Allen  married 
Lizzie  W.  Allen,  a  native  of  Pittsburg,  Pa., 
and  a  daughter  of  Charles  W.  Rickctson. 
Their  only  child  is  Matilda,  now  a  student  at 
Tabor  Academy.  Both  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Allen 
are  members  of  the  Episcopal  church.  Mr. 
Allen  is  President  of  the  Marion  Library 
Association  and  of  the  Natural  History  So- 
ciety of  this  place.  Through  his  efforts  the 
fire  department  of  Marion  was  organized  in 
1 89 1,  and  he  has  been  among  the  foremost  in 
aiding  all  other  projects  beneficial  to  the 
town. 


KJRY  LYMAN  ELETCHER, 
ormerly  a  prosperous  business  man, 
is  now  living  in  retirement  in 
Hingham.  He  was  born  October  11,  1825, 
in  Boston,  Mass.,  son  of  Lyman  and  Clarissa 
(Caldwell)    Eletcher.      His  great-grandfather, 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


317 


Joshua  Fletcher,  who  was  born  November  20, 
1731,  married  Elizabeth  Raymond,  and  settled 
in  Westford,  Mass.,  about  two  miles  from  the 
place  of  his  birth.  They  had  nine  children, 
of  whom  Lyman,  the  grandfather,  was  the 
second  child.  Lyman  was  born  in  Ashburn- 
ham,  Mass.,  June  12,  1758,  and  died  in  1834. 
His  wife,  Louisa  (Gates)  Fletcher,  who  was  a 
native  of  Ashburnham,  and  lived  to  the  ad- 
vanced age  of  eighty-seven  years,  bore  him 
nine  children.  Lyman,  their  eldest  child, 
born  in  Ashburnham,  May  30,  1796,  was  the 
head  tanner  in  Westford,  having  served  seven 
years  as  apprentice.  He  afterward  went  to 
Ro.xbury,  Mass.,  where  he  followed  the  same 
business  until  his  death  on  February  26, 
1835,  at  the  age  of  thirty-eight  years.  His 
wife,  Clarissa,  lived  to  be  eighty-five  years 
old.  In  their  religious  belief  both  were  lib- 
eral.    They  were  the  parents  of  six  children. 

After  acquiring  his  education  in  the  Ro.x- 
bury schools,  Henry  Lyman  Fletcher  went  to 
Westford,  where  he  was  employed  on  a  farm 
for  four  years.  He  subsequently  returned  to 
Roxbury,  and  learned  the  nailer's  trade  with 
the  Boston  Iron  Company,  with  whom  he  re- 
mained until  1846.  In  the  spring  of  the 
same  year  he  located  in  East  Weymouth, 
Mass.,  and  was  there  engaged  in  his  business 
until  June  2,  1851,  when  he  came  to  Hing- 
ham,  where  he  has  since  remained.  He  re- 
tired from  business  in  18S5.  In  politics  he 
affiliates  with  the  Republican  party,  while  in 
his  religious  belief  he  is  a  Universalist. 

On  March  26,  1848,  he  was  united  in  mar- 
riage with  Isabella  Our,  a  lady  of  Scotch 
ancestry.  Tliey  have  had  four  children,  one 
of  whom  is  living.  This  is  William  Our 
Fletcher,  born  October  19,  1863,  who,  on  Sep- 
tember 27,  1887,  married  Hattie  L.  Dunbar, 
daughter  of  Martin  Dunbar,  of  Hingham,  and 
has  one  child,  Carlton  Dunbar   Fletcher,  born 


March  14,  1893.  Charles  H.  Fletcher,  an- 
other son  of  Henry  Lyman,  born  October  13, 
1848,  married  Hannah  L.  Bicknell,  and  died 
June  I,  1876.  By  this  union  there  were  three 
children,  namely:  Grace  Carlton,  born  Novem- 
ber 27,  1870;  Olive  Barnes,  born  March  13, 
1872;  and  Arthur  Lincoln,  born  April  21, 
1875.  Thomas  L.  Fletcher,  son  of  Henry  L. 
Fletcher,  born  August  11,  1853,  died  Decem- 
ber 13,  1857.  Thomas  L.  Fletcher  (second), 
born  November  25,  1861,  died  August  7, 
1864.  Mrs.  H.  L.  Fletcher's  death  occurred 
on  November  11,  1892,  sharing  the  belief  in 
universal  salvation  with  her  husband.  Mr. 
Fletcher  has  the  sincere  esteem  of  the  com- 
munity. The  ease  and  rest  he  now  enjoys 
were  well  earned  by  his  previous  life  of 
industry. 


E WATSON  SHAW,  of  Carver,  was 
born  September  i,  1838,  on  the  farm 
which  he  now  occupies.  His  fa- 
ther, Nathaniel  Shaw,  married  Betsey  S. 
Shurtliff,  and  by  her  became  the  father  of 
eleven  children,  named  respectively  as  fol- 
lows: Lucy,  Gilbert,  Betsey,  Nathaniel,  E. 
Watson,  Elbridge,  Malinda,  Wilson,  Mary, 
Sabie,  and  Joseph.  Nathaniel,  Elbridge, 
and  E.  Watson  served  in  the  Civil  War. 
Elbridge,  who  was  a  private  in  Company  C, 
of  the  Eighteenth  Massachusetts  Infantry, 
died  in  service  near  Gaines  Mills,  June  14, 
1862. 

E.  Watson  Shaw  learned  the  carpenteris 
trade  in  his  youth,  and  was  engaged  in  that 
employment  when  the  war  broke  out.  In  1862 
he  enlisted  as  a  private  in  Company  B,  Third 
Massachusetts  Regiment.  The  company  mus- 
tered at  Camp  Joe  Hooker,  and  saw  its  first 
hard  service  at  Kingston.  After  nine  months' 
service  he  received  an  honorable  discharge, 
and  returned  to  Carver.      At  that  time  he  set- 


3i8 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


tied  down  upon  the  old  homestead,  where  he 
has  continued  to  reside  since.  A  large  part 
of  his  farm,  which  contains  two  hundred  and 
fifty  acres,  is  devoted  to  the  culture  of  cran- 
berries and  strawberries. 

He  has  been  twice  married.  His  first  mar- 
riage was  contracted  in  1861  with  Miss  Mary 
Crowell,  daughter  of  Jeremiah  Crowell,  of 
North  Dennis.  Born  of  the  union  were  four 
children  — Elbridge,  Sarah  M.,  William  M., 
and  Delphenia.  Elbridge  was  named  after 
his  uncle,  who  died  during  the  Civil  War. 
Left  a  widower  by  the  death  of  his  first  wife, 
Mr.  Shaw  entered  a  second  marriage  with  Miss 
Mary  Whidden,  daughter  of  Simeon  and  Sarah 
Mcintosh,  who  became  the  mother  of  five  chil- 
dren —  Helen,  Lucy,  Carrie,  Elbridge,  and 
Edward.  Edward  is  now  deceased.  Mr.  Shaw 
is  an  esteemed  member  of  the  Baptist  church 
of  Carver.  He  is  a  comrade  of  Post  No.  8, 
Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  of  Middleboro 


fff^OB  P.  OTIS,  a  native  resident  of  Scit- 
uate,  is  a  scion  of  one  of  the  old 
Colonial  families  which  have  flour- 
ished for  two  centuries  or  more  on  this  soil. 
He  was  born  on  May  30,  1831,  a  son  of  Cap- 
tain Job  P.  and  Lydia  (Clapp)  Otis. 

P'rom  Deane's  History  of  Scituate  we 
learn  that  the  first  of  the  family  to  dwell  in 
this  town  was  John  Otis,  who  was  born  in 
England  in  1620,  came  to  Hingham,  Mass., 
with  his  father,  John,  Sr.,  in  1635,  settled  in 
Scituate  in  1661,  and  died  here  in  1683,  mean- 
time having  spent  a  few  years  in  Barnstable. 
He  left  several  children,  one  a  son  Job,  born 
in  1667.  The  house  in  which  the  subject  of 
this  sketch  formerly  lived,  the  one  adjoining 
his  present  residence,  is  said  to  be  two  hun- 
dred years  old  or  more.  It  has  been  repaired 
and  modernized,  and  has  always  been  occupied 


by  an  Otis.  The  Christian  name  Job  is  a 
favorite  in  the  family,  and  was  borne  by  the 
great -great-grandfather  and  the  great-grand- 
father of  the  subject  of  the  present  sketch,  as 
well  as  by  his  father  and  himself.  The  first 
Job  was  a  native  of  Scituate,  like  all  those 
who  succeeded  him.  Abijah  Otis,  our  sub- 
ject's grandfather,  was  both  a  competent 
farmer  and  a  skilled  and  enterprising 
mechanic,  being  a  cabinet-maker,  carriage- 
maker,  and  an  expert  in  other  trades.  He 
was  a  very  prominent  citizen  of  Scituate. 

Captain  Job  P.  Otis  followed  the  sea  for  a 
number  of  years,  in  command  of  different 
vessels.  He  died  in  a  foreign  port.  His 
wife,  too,  was  a  member  of  an  old  Scituate 
family.  Two  of  their  children  are  living: 
Job  P.,  his  father's  namesake;  and  Lydia  C, 
wife  of  Stephen  D.  Webb,  of  Weymoutli, 
Mass. 

Job  P.  Otis,  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  was 
born  in  the  old  Otis  house,  and  acquired  his 
education  in  the  common  schools  of  Scituate. 
He  went  to  work  at  the  age  of  fourteen  in  a 
ship-yard  at  Scituate  Harbor,  and,  after  serv- 
ing an  apprenticeship  of  three  years,  started 
out  as  a  journeyman  ship-carpenter.  He  was 
employed  for  a  number  of  years  in  Medford, 
Mass.,  and  in  East  and  South  Boston,  retain- 
ing his  residence  in  Scituate.  When  ship- 
building as  an  industry  began  to  decline  in 
Massachusetts,  early  in  the  sixties,  he  engaged 
in  butchering,  which  he  followed  until  about 
1882,  when  he  sold  his  business,  and  retired; 
and  since  that  time  he  has  been  engaged  to 
some  extent  in  general  farming  on  the  home- 
stead. Mr.  Otis  has  been  very  successful  in 
business,  and  has  carved  his  fortune  with  his 
own  hands. 

He  was  first  married  to  Deborah  T.  Webb, 
who  bore  him  one  son,  Charles  H.,  who  is  de- 
ceased.     The    present    Mrs.    Otis    was    Miss 


JOB     P.    OTIS. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


32t 


Annie  M.  Anderson,  of  Cape  Breton,  N.S. 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Otis  have  one  son,  Job  A.,  also 
an  adopted  daughter,  Gracie  L.  Mr.  Otis 
votes  the  Republican  ticket.  He  is  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Unitarian  society,  while  his  wife 
belongs  to  the  Presbyterian  church.  He 
is  well  known  in  this  section  of  Plymouth 
County,  and  as  an  intelligent,  upright,  and 
useful  citizen  is  highly  esteemed. 


"ON.  HORACE  REED,  the  able 
manager  of  the  Whitman  Savings 
1'^  *  Bank,  of  which  he  has  been  Treas- 

urer since  its  incorporation,  is  a  member  of 
one  of  the  old  and  influential  families  of  this 
part  of  Plymouth  County.  He  was  born  in 
Whitman,  November  26,  1820,  a  son  of  Isaac 
and  Nancy  (Lincoln)  Reed. 

Nearly  all  the  Reeds  of  this  vicinity  and  of 
Bristol  County  are  descended  from  William 
Reade,  who  was  born  in  England  in  1605, 
sailed  from  Gravesend  in  1635,  and  settled 
in  Weymouth,  Mass.,  then  a  new  plantation, 
where  he  was  made  a  freeman  in  the  same 
year.  William  Reade  represented  Weymouth 
in  the  General  Court  in  1636  and  1638.  His 
wife's  name  was  Ivis.  Their  children  were: 
William,  born  October  15,  1639;  Esther,  born 
May  8,  1641  ;  Thomas;  John,  born  in  1649; 
Mary;  and  Margaret.  John  was  the  direct 
ancestor  of  Chester  I.  Reed,  of  Taunton,  who 
was  Attorney-general  of  the  Commonwealth 
in    1866. 

Most  of  the  Reeds  of  Whitman  and  Abing- 
ton  are  descended  from  Thomas,  above  named, 
who  was  a  prominent  man,  and  held  a  number 
of  civil  and  military  offices.  He  died  Novem- 
ber 14,  1719.  By  his  first  wife,  Sarah,  he 
had  the  following  children:  Thomas,  second, 
born  September  12,  1671  ;  Sarah  S. ;  John,  born 
December  30,  1679;  Samuel,   born  April    12, 


168 1  ;  Mary  L. ;  Ruth  White,  born  February 
20,  1684;  William,  born  February  4,  1687;  and 
Hannah  Hart,  born  September  25,  1689.  His 
second  wife,  Mary,  died  August  21,  17 19. 
Thomas,  second,  the  eldest  child  of  Thomas 
and  Sarah,  resided  in  Abington.  He  died 
October  2,  17 19.  He  was  married  January 
14,  1701,  to  Hannah  Randall,  who  bore  him 
the  following  children:  Thomas,  born  October 
18,  1701  ;  Daniel,  born  September  10,  1704; 
Hannah,  born  March  14,  1706;  and  Sarah, 
born  August  i,   171  5. 

Daniel,  the  second  child  of  Thomas  and 
Hannah  (Randall)  Reed,  lived  on  the  place 
subsequently  occupied  by  Ezekiel  Reed  near 
the  Centre  Depot  in  Abington.  He  was  mar- 
ried February  22,  1728,  to  Ruth  Torrey,  and 
was  the  father  of  the  following  children : 
Daniel,  born  November  10,  1729;  Thomas, 
April  17,   1732;  and  Ruth,  April  3,   1735. 

Thomas,  the  second  son  and  the  grandfather 
of  our  subject,  was  a  man  of  large  frame,  more 
than  six  feet  in  height,  of  great  physical  en- 
durance and  energy  of  character.  He  was 
possessed  of  large  landed  estates.  He  married 
first  on  July  10,  1755,  Widow  Mary  Hobart 
White;  and,  second.  Widow  Sarah  Thaxter 
Pulling,  sister  of  Dr.  Gridley  Thaxter,  and 
widow  of  John  Pulling,  of  Boston.  The  chil- 
dren of  this  Thomas  Reed  were:  Mary,  born 
June  7,  1758,  who  married  Simeon  Gannett, 
of  East  Bridgewater,  in  1775;  Hannah,  born 
October  24,  1759,  who  married  Daniel  Bick- 
nell,  October  25,  1780,  ajui  removed  to  tlie 
State  of  Maine;  Thomas,  born  December  12, 
1761;  Samuel,  born  March  11,  1766;  Huldah, 
born  April  27,  1768,  who  married  Dr.  Richard 
Briggs,  August  12,  1784,  and  removed  to 
Worthington,  this  State;  and  Isaac,  commonly 
called  Deacon  Isaac  Reed,  father  of  the  Hon. 
Horace  Reed. 

Thomas  Reed,    the   third  child  of   Thomas 


322 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


and  Mary,  was  a  prominent  man,  known  as 
Captain  Reed.  He  married  on  January  24, 
1783,  Joanna  Shaw,  and  their  children  — 
Elizabeth,  Thomas,  Goddard,  Joanna,  Ebene- 
zer,  Simeon  Gannett,  Albert,  Amos  S.,  Ada- 
line,  Martha,  Clarissa,  and  Theodore — -all 
lived  to  be  married.  The  following  is  a  brief 
record  of  the  family:  Elizabeth  Reed,  born 
March  12,  1784,  married  John  Lane.  Thomas 
married  Lydia  Jenkins,  and  reared  Thomas, 
Lydia  J.,  and  Henry  Watson.  Goddard 
Reed,  who  died  August  29,  1865,  was  married 
November  13,  18 14,  to  Marcia  Reed,  and  had 
the  following  children:  Hannah,  born  Feb- 
ruary 18,  1816,  who  died  young;  Diana,  born 
February  27,  18 17,  who  married  Isaac  Keen, 
June  14,  1835,  and  died  January  21,  1838; 
Washington,  born  July  6,  1820,  who  married 
Harriet  Corthell,  June  2,  1839,  '^•'"^^  had  four 
children  (Henry  Harrison,  born  August  12, 
1840;  Joanna,  May  7,  1846;  Charles  God- 
dard, April  28,  1852;  and  Marcia,  November 
26,  1853);  Charles  Goddard,  born  January  18, 
1823,  who  died  September  22,  the  same  year; 
and  Marcia,  born  July  22,  1S28,  who  died 
September  4,  1848.  Joanna,  born  December 
3,  179s,  married  Samuel  Wales.  Ebenezer, 
born  July  4,  1790,  who  died  in  July,  1864, 
married  Lucy  Jenkins,  November  30,  18 15, 
and  reared  Cleora,  Lorenzo,  Egbert,  and 
Lucy.  Simeon  Gannett,  born  September  29, 
1793,  who  died  in  1830,  married  Rachael 
Burgess,  October  11,  1829,  and  reared  one 
child,  Simeon  Gannett,  Jr.,  who  went  to  Ore- 
gon to  live.  Albert,  born  in  1802,  married 
Mary  Colburn,  and  reared  one  child,  Samuel 
C,  who  became  a  resident  of  New  York. 
Amos  S. ,  born  May  22,  1804,  married  Novem- 
ber g,  1826,  Huldah  B.  Loud,  who  bore  him 
Sarah  Ann  and  Amos  Newton;  and  married 
for  his  second  wife  Rachel  B.  Reed,  Simeon 
G.  Reed's  widow,  who  bore  him  Edward  Pay- 


son,  Elizabeth  Waldo,  and  Miranda.  Adaline 
Reed,  born  April  22,  1806,  married  Brackley 
Shaw.  Martha  married  Michael  Sylvester,  of 
Hanover,  Mass.  Clarissa  married  David 
Hunt.  Theodore,  the  youngest  child  of  Cap- 
tain Thomas  and  Joanna  (Shaw)  Reed,  was 
three  times  married:  first,  December  26, 
1830,  to  Clarissa  Jenkins,  by  whom  he  had 
Martha  and  Theodore  W. ;  second,  December 
31,  1840,  to  Abigail  Wilder,  of  Hingham,  by 
whom  he  had  Abigail  and  Frances;  and, 
third,  to  Lydia,  widow  of  Melvin  Gurney,  by 
whom  he  had  Lydia,  Maria,  Thomas,  and 
Henry.  Amos  Newton  Reed,  son  of  Ainos  S., 
married  Sarah  Boynton,  and  had  one  child, 
Harry  D.,   born  May  22,    1854. 

Lieutenant  Samuel  Reed,  brother  of  Cap- 
tain Thomas,  was  also  a  man  of  great  energy 
and  physical  power,  and  was  a  large  land- 
owner. He  died  in  1805,  aged  thirty-nine 
years.  On  August  28,  1787,  he  married  Mary 
Pool,  who  died  in  September,  1839,  having 
been  the  mother  of  the  following  children: 
Mary,  born  March  3,  1789,  who  married  Peter 
Ford,  lived  in  Windsor,  Mass.,  and  died  Sep- 
tember 21,  1864;  Samuel,  born  December  18, 
1790,  mentioned  at  length  below;  Abiah,  who 
was  born  May  19,  1793;  Hannah,  born  March 
24,  1795,  who  was  blind,  and  died  young; 
Marcia,  born  January  19,  179S,  who  married 
Goddard  Reed;  Joseph,  born  October  28, 
1799;  Ruth,  who  was  born  July  16,  1801,  and 
died  young;  Charles,  born  November  2,  1802, 
who  went  to  Ohio  to  live;  and  Elias,  born  in 
1804,  who  died  young.  Samuel,  the  eldest 
son  of  Lieutenant  Reed,  was  a  well-known  and 
influential  citizen.  The  care  of  the  home 
farm  devolved  upon  him  on  the  death  of  his 
father. 

On  April  21,  i8ro,  he  married  Polly  Cor- 
thell, who  died  June  10,  1832.  Their  eldest 
son,    Samuel,    born    May    26,    181 1,    married 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


323 


January  17,  1833,  Eliza  Wilkes,  who  died 
July  8,  1862;  and  on  December  13,  1863,  he 
was  united  to  Betsey  B.  Gardner.  Mary, 
eldest  daughter  of  Samuel  and  Polly  Reed, 
born  January  i6,  181 3,  was  a  successful 
teacher.  She  was  married  April  20,  1837,  to 
John  Burrill,  and  had  two  children,  a  son  and 
a  daughter.  Levi  Reed,  born  December  31, 
1 8 14,  was  educated  at  Phillips  Academy,  An- 
dover,  and  taught  school  for  three  years  in 
Dedham,  Mass.,  and  for  thirteen  years  in  the 
Washington  School  in  Roxbury,  Mass.  Re- 
turning to  Abington,  he  was  elected  to  the 
State  Senate,, and  the  following  year  was  made 
Auditor  of  the  Commonwealth.  He  was  mar- 
ried April  20,  1837,  to  Louisa  C.  Drake,  and 
had  the  following  children:  Louisa  Maria, 
born  January  10,  1838;  Samuel  Bryant,  born 
September  10,  1841  ;  May  Emily, -born  July 
27,  1850;  and  Alfred  Levi,  born  October  9, 
1855.  The  other  children  of  Samuel  and 
Polly  (Corthell)  Reed  were:  Dexter,  born  No- 
vember 10,  1 8 16;  Mehitable,  born  September 
14,  18 18;  and  Mehitable,  born  March  31, 
1S22.  Samuel  Reed's  second  wife,  whom  he 
married  September  5,  1833,  was  Serissa 
(Litchfield)  Bailey,  widow  of  Rowland  Bai- 
ley, of  Scituate.  The  children  by  this  union 
were:  Serissa,  born  June  27,  1834;  Rowland, 
October  13,  1836;  Martha,  November  13, 
1838;  Sophia,  October  3,  1840;  and  Anna, 
November   13,    1844. 

Isaac  Reed,  the  youngest  child  of  Thomas 
and  Mary  (Hobart -White)  Reed,  was  born 
August  4,  1770,  was  a  well-to-do  farmer,  and 
lived  to  be  seventy-seven  years  old.  He  was 
first  married  on  May  5,  1793,  to  Sarah  Pull- 
ing, daughter  of  his  father's  second  wife,  and 
by  that  union  had  the  following  children: 
John  Pulling,  born  September  15,  1795; 
Sarah  Pulling,  born  September  19,  1797,  who 
married    Charles    Lane;    Lucy  Johnson,  born 


May  29,  1800,  who  married  Jesse  Reed;  Mar- 
tha Pulling,  born  March  16,  1802,  who  mar- 
ried Seth  Pratt;  Mary  Hobart,  born  April  1, 
1804,  who  married  Greenwood  Gushing;  Isaac, 
born  January  21,  1806;  Betsey  Gannett,  born 
August  25,  1807,  who  married  Merritt  Jen- 
kins; Ruth  Torrey,  born  July  31,  1809,  who 
married  John  Woodbridge  Jenkins;  and  Annis 
Jenks,  born  December  13,  181 1,  who  died  in 
December,  1817. 

Deacon  Isaac  Reed  married  second  on  Feb- 
ruary 3,  1819,  Nancy  Lincoln,  who  lived  to 
be  eighty-five  years  old.  Her  children  were: 
Horace,  the  subject  of  the  present  sketch; 
William  Lincoln,  born  October  5,  1825,  a 
notice  of  whom  appears  elsewhere  in  this 
work;  and  Annis,  born  September  3,  1828, 
now  the  wife  of  Charles  H.  Cooke. 

Horace  Reed  was  educated  in  the  common 
schools  of  this  vicinity  and  at  Abington  Acad- 
emy. He  had  little  time  for  play  in  his  boy- 
hood, being  required  to  work  on  the  farm 
when  quite  young.  In  early  manhood  he  be- 
came interested  in  the  shoe  business,  and  with 
his  brother,  William  L.  Reed,  engaged  in  the 
manufacture  of  shoes  until  1883,  winning  the 
confidence  of  the  business  community  by  his 
probity  and  good  judgment  in  financial  mat- 
ters. Elected  Treasurer  of  the  Whitman  Sav- 
ings Bank  in  1888,  at  the  time  of  its  incor- 
poration, he  has  had  the  management  of  the 
institution  ever  since;  and  it  has  prospered 
increasingly  under  his  charge.  He  is  also  a 
Trustee  of  the  bank. 

Mr.  Reed  was  married  in  1840  to  Lurana  H. 
Bates,  daughter  of  Christopher  Bates.  Mrs. 
Reed  died  December  3,  1896,  at  the  age  of 
seventy-seven  years,  six  months,  and  ten  days. 
Mr.  Bates  was  a  native  of  Plymouth  County. 
He  was  a  large  contractor  and  builder;  and  his 
daughter  was  born  in  Richmond,  Va.,  where 
he  was  engaged   in  the  erection   of  factories. 


324 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


Mr.  Reed  has  two  living  children  —  Helen 
Augusta  and  Arthur  Ellsworth.  The  former 
is  the  wife  of  J.  P.  Bates,  of  the  firm  of  Cobb, 
Bates  &  Yerxa,  Boston,  and  mother  of  two 
living  children  —  Carrie  Almera  and  Mabel 
Frances.  The  latter,  who  resides  in  Hyde 
Park,  Mass.,  is  married,  and  has  three  children 
—  Helen,  William,  and  Olive  Augusta  Reed. 
A  stanch  Republican,  Mr.  Reed  was  in  the 
Massachusetts  House  of  Representatives  in 
1862-63,  during  the  administration  of  Gover- 
nor Andrew.  In  1884-85,  during  Governor 
Robinson's  administration,  he  was  in  the  Sen- 
ate; and  in  1886-87  he  was  on  the  Board  of 
Census  Knumeration,  under  Colonel  Wright, 
travelling  through  the  State,  collecting  statis- 
tics relative  to  the  manufacturing  interests  of 
the  country.  In  the  old  town  of  Abington  he 
was  a  member  of  the  School  Board;  and  he  is 
the  present  Secretary  and  Treasurer  of  the 
Whitman  School  Board,  and  has  been  on  the 
School  Committee  for  ten  years.  Mr.  Reed  is 
a  member  of  the  Masonic  order.  He  is  active 
in  the  Congregational  church,  and  was  super- 
intendent of  the  Sunday-school  for  sixteen 
years. 

'earing  BURR  is  known  to  the  pub- 
'[^  lie  as  a  writer  on  horticultural  subjects 
and  on  the  history  of  Hingham,  his 
native  town,  where  he  has  made  his  home  dur- 
ing the  greater  part  of  his  life.  He  was 
born  December  11,  1815,  the  eldest  child  of 
his  parents,  Fearing  and  Emma  (Jacobs)  Burr. 
The  progenitor  of  this  branch  of  the  Burr 
family  was  Simon  Burr,  who  came  to  Hing- 
ham in  1647,  but  whose  birthplace  and  de- 
scent arc  open  questions.  It  is  thought  by 
some  that  he  was  an  original  settler;  by 
others,  that  he  was  son  of  the  Rev.  Jonathan 
Burr,  who  was  settled  as  colleague  of  the  Rev. 
Cotton  Mather  in  Dorchester  in  1640,  and  died 


in  August,  1 64 1.  (See  "History  of  the  Burr 
Family,"  by  Charles  Burr  Todd,  published 
in  i8gi.)  Simon  Burr,  of  Hingham,  was  a 
farmer,  a  man  of  some  prominence,  living  on 
what  is  now  School  Street,  Hingham  Centre. 
He  died  February  7,  1692,  in  his  seventy-fifth 
year,  having  lived  through  the  height  of  the 
witchcraft  excitement,  in  which  Dr.  Mather 
took  such  an  active  part.  He  was  twice  mar- 
ried, and  had  two  children  by  his  first  wife, 
and  four  by  his  second. 

John,  born  January  6,  1660,  in  Hingham, 
was  the  third  child  of  the  second  marriage. 
He,  too,  was  a  farmer,  living  in  Hingham 
Centre,  and  was  a  man  of  considerable  influ- 
ence in  the  town.  It  is  recorded  that  he  was 
Constable  in  1698,  and  he  seems  to  have  had 
much  to  do  with  town  affairs.  He  died  De- 
cember 7,  1 7 16.  His  estate  was  a  large  one, 
valued  at  that  day  at  nine  hundred  and 
twenty-one  pounds,  sixteen  shillings,  and  five 
pence.  John  Burr  was  married  December  24, 
1685,  to  Mary,  daughter  of  John  and  Deborah 
(Wilson)  Warren,  of  Boston.  She  died  in 
Hingham,  July  26,  1742.  This  couple  were 
the  parents  of  ten  children.  The  sixth  child, 
Jonathan,  the  next  in  the  line  now  being 
traced,  was  born  in  Hingham,  February  3, 
169S.  He  was  a  cooper  by  trade  and  occupa- 
tion, living  at  the  junction  of  Turkey  Hill 
Road  and  Leavitt  Street.  He  died  June  23, 
1762.  Jonathan  Burr  was  married  in  Boston, 
April  19,  1720,  to  Mary,  daughter  of  Thomas 
and  Sarah  (Lewis)  Lincoln.  She  was  born  in 
Hingham,  January  14,  1696,  and  died  in  the 
same  town,  October  26,  1784. 

They,  too,  were  the  parents  of  ten  children; 
and  the  seventh  child  was  Thomas,  who  was 
born  in  Hingham,  August  17,  1735.  A 
cooper  by  trade  like  his  father,  he  was  also  a 
farmer,  and  was  a  very  industrious  man.  His 
home  was  on  Main  Street,   Hingham  Centre. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


325 


Thomas  Burr  served  in  the  F'rench  and  Indian 
War,  and  was  present  at  the  capitulation  of 
Fort  William  Henry  in  1757,  and  at  the 
taking  of  Fort  Frontenac  (which  stood  on  the 
present  site  of  Kingston,  at  the  outlet  of  Lake 
Ontario)  in  1758.  During  the  Revolution  he 
held  a  commission  in  the  Continental  army  as 
Lieutenant  in  Captain  Peter  Cushing's  Com- 
pany. He  died  September  23,  1812,  On 
August  22,  1759,  he  was  married  to  Margaret, 
daughter  of  Hawkes  and  Margaret  (Lincoln) 
Fearing.  She  was  born  in  Hingham,  Septem- 
ber 25,  1742,  and  died  April  i,  1821.  Her 
children  were  five  in  number,  and  Fearing, 
first,  father  of  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  was 
the  youngest. 

Fearing  Burr,  Sr.,  was  born  in  Hingham, 
June  12,  1778.  Besides  keeping  a  general 
store,  he  was  interested  in  the  practical  study 
of  horticulture,  to  which  he  devoted  much 
time;  and  he  was  noted  for  liis  knowledge  of 
plants,  shrubs,  and  trees.  He  died  January 
13,  1866.  He  was  married  March  25,  1S12, 
to  Emma,  daughter  of  Peter  and  Kmma  (Fear- 
ing) Jacobs.  She  was  born  in  Hingham,  Oc- 
tober I,  1792,  and  died  February  18,  1 831. 
She  was  the  mother  of  si,\  children,  the 
father's  namesake  being  the  eldest  of  the 
family. 

Fearing  Burr,  Jr.,  was  given  good  educa- 
tional privileges  in  the  common  schools  of 
his  native  town  and  Derby  Academy.  While 
pursuing  his  studies,  and  for  some  time  after- 
ward, he  helped  his  father  on  the  farm,  and 
imbibed  from  him  a  love  for  horticulture, 
learning  much  from  his  father,  and  reading 
all  the  publications  on  the  subject  that  came 
within  his  reach.  He  was  for  twelve  years 
in  the  seed  business  in  the  house  of  M.  &  F. 
Burr,  Boston,  and  during  the  rest  of  his  active 
life  has  been  occupied  on  the  home  farm,  and 
in  the  store  established  by  his  father.      After 


the  death  of  their  father.  Fearing  Burr  and 
his  brother  succeeded  him  as  managers  of  the 
business,  which  was  conducted  uninterruptedly 
for  fifty  years.  The  brothers  then  practically 
retired  from  trade.  Fearing  Burr  has  accom- 
plished considerable  literary  labor.  He  is 
the  author  of  a  valuable  work,  entitled  "The 
Field  and  Garden  Vegetables  of  America," 
published  in  1865,  and  co-author  with  George 
Lincoln  of  an  octavo  volume  of  four  hundred 
and  fifty  pages,  published  in  1876,  entitled 
"The  Town  of  Hingham  in  the  Civil  War," 
which  gives  an  exhaustive  history  of  the  part 
Hingham  took  in  the  national  crisis.  Mr. 
Burr  later  rendered  valuable  service  in  the 
preparation  of  "The  History  of  the  Town  of 
Hingham,"  issued  in  1893,  in  four  large  oc- 
tavo volumes,  to  which  he  contributed  the 
interesting  chapter  on  "Publications,"  treat- 
ing of  authors  and  literary  works  connected 
with  the  town.  He  has  also  been  engaged 
in  various  business  enterprises,  and  has  proved 
himself  to  be  a  man  of  unusual  ability. 

Mr.  Burr  cast  his  maiden  vote  in  the  ranks 
of  the  Whigs.  He  is  interested  in  public 
affairs,  but  has  avoided  political  preferment. 
A  friend  and  helper  of  the  cause  of  education, 
he  has  served  on  the  .School  Committee,  and 
is  now  a  Trustee  of  the  Hingham  Public 
I^ibrary.  In  religious  matters  he  is  liberal, 
though  holding  well-established  views  of  his 
own.  He  is  a  member  of  the  First  Church, 
with  which  his  ancestors  worshipped  for  many 
generations,  a  Unitarian-church  now,  though 
originally  Trinitarian.  The  edifice,  the 
"Old  Meeting-house,"  as  it  is  called,  was 
built  in  168 1,  and  has  been  so  well  cared  for 
that  it  is  in  a  good  state  of  preservation, 
having  been  twice  enlarged. 

Mr.  Burr's  brother  Peter,  born  February  26, 
1820,  and  a  sister  Margaret,  born  February  6, 
1825,  live  with  him  at  the  old  homestead,  the 


326 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


three  forming  a  harmonious  and  happy  house- 
hold. Another  sister,  Meriel,  born  in  1818, 
also  unmarried,  was  with  them  up  to  the  time 
of  her  death,  a  short  time  since,  the  four  hav- 
ing lived  under  the  same  roof  as  members  of 
one  family  for  more  than  seventy  years. 


ILLIAM  H.  SANDP:RS0N,  super- 
intendent of  the  Bridgewater  and 
Abington  public  schools,  has  dis- 
tinguished himself  as  an  educator  in  Vermont 
and  Massachusetts.  A  native  of  Shrewsbury, 
Rutland  County,  Vt.,  he  was  born  October  23, 
1855,  son  of  Thatcher  and  Mary  (Harkness) 
Sanderson.  His  earlier  ancestors  on  the  pa- 
ternal side  resided  in  New  York  State.  The 
first  representative  of  the  family  to  locate 
in  Vermont  was  his  grandfather,  Amos  San- 
derson, who  settled  in  Rutland  County. 
Thatcher  Sanderson,  who  was  a  native  and 
lifelong  resident  of  the  Green  Mountain  State, 
followed  the  occupation  of  farmer  up  to  the 
time  of  his  death,  which  occurred  in  1878. 
His  wife,  also  deceased,  was  born  in  Scotland. 
William  H.  Sanderson  obtained  his  early 
education  in  the  public  schools  of  his  native 
town.  Thrown  practically  on  his  own  re- 
sources at  the  age  of  fourteen,  he  worked  at 
whatever  offered,  in  order  to  obtain  funds  to 
complete  his  education.  In  this  effort  he  was 
successful.  He  graduated  frc^m  the  Green 
Mountain  Academy  at  South  Woodstock,  Vt. 
At  the  age  of  twenty-one  he  entered  Vermont 
University  at  liurlington,  where  he  studied  for 
two  years.  Gifted  with  the  character  and  the 
insight  into  human  nature  which  make  the 
successful  teacher,  he  further  qualified  himself 
for  the  profession  by  making  a  close  study  of 
the  principles  and  practice  of  pedagogy.  For 
ten  years  he  was  principal  of  the  high  school 
at  Woodstock,  Vt.,  and  for  five  years  of  that 


time  he  was  superintendent  of  the  Woodstock 
schools.  Also  for  a  number  of  years  he 
served  in  the  capacity  of  examiner  of  candi- 
dates for  teachers'  long-term  certificates  in 
Windsor  County;  and  for  three  years,  by  the 
appointment  of  the  governor,  he  was  examiner 
for  the  Vermont  State  Normal  Schools.  He 
became  a  resident  of  Bridgewater  in  1891, 
since  which  time  his  earnest  and  disinterested 
work  as  an  educator  has  won  recognition.  By 
his  thoroughness  and  administrative  ability 
he  has  noticeably  raised  the  standard  of  the 
schools  now  under  his  charge. 

In  1876  Mr.  Sanderson  was  united  in  mar- 
riage with  Gertrude  Maxham,  of  Montpelier, 
Vt.  His  children  are:  Ernest  J.,  who  is  a 
student  at  Harvard  College;  Ruth  G. ;  and 
Mary  B.  While  in  Vermont,  he  was  for  some 
time  President  of  the  State  Teachers'  Associa- 
tion, and  a  member  of  its  E.'cecutive  Commit- 
tee. In  politics  Mr.  Sanderson  is  a  Repub- 
lican; 


T^APTAIN  CHARLES  BRYANT,  who 
I  St^  is  now  living  in  retirement  in  Matta- 
^i^  ^  poisett,  Mass.,  has  spent  a  number 
of  years  in  the  whale  fishery,  and  has  twice 
held  important  governmental  positions  in  the 
Behring  Sea  district.  He  was  born  in 
Rochester,  Plymouth  County,  May  9,  1820,  a 
son  of  William  and  Mary  (Johnson)  Bryant. 
Reared  in  Rochester,  he  acquired  his  early 
knowledge  of  books  in  a  district  school,  but  is 
mainly  self-educated.  He  began  to  learn  the 
sail-maker's  trade  in  New  Bedford  when  si.x- 
teen  years  of  age,  and  worked  at  it  for  four 
years  and  a  half,  shipping  then  as  sail-maker 
on  the  whaling  brig  "Montezuma,"  which 
cruised  in  the  Atlantic  Ocean,  and  was  out 
eighteen  months.  His  next  engagement  was 
as  boat  steerer  on  the  ship  "Julian,"  also  a 
whaling  vessel,    which    was    two    and    a    half 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


327 


years  out  from  the  home  port,  cruising  in  the 
North  Pacific.  He  was  subsequently  engaged 
as  third  mate  of  the  ship  "Nimrod,"  which 
was  out  thirty-four  months  in  the  Pacific 
Ocean,  returning  as  second  mate;  as  second 
mate  of  the  "Ohio,"  which  was  gone  three 
years  in  the  same  waters;  as  mate  of  the  ship 
"Euphrates,"  which  was  out  from  port  nearly 
three  years;  and,  lastly,  as  mate  of  the  whaling 
ship  "John  Rowland,"  which  cruised  in  the 
Okhotsk  Sea  and  the  Arctic  Seas,  being  gone 
forty-four  months.  Deciding  then  to  retire 
from  the  sea,  Mr.  Bryant  purchased  a  farm  at 
East  Fairhaven,  where  he  resided  some  twelve 
years;  but  fortune  had  not  willed  that  he 
should  retire  to  private  life  so  soon,  and  he 
was  called  from  his  farm  to  undertake  a  mis- 
sion to  Alaska  to  report  on  the  fur-seal  in- 
terest in  that  vicinity.  He  was  given  charge 
of  the  islands  in  the  Behring  Sea,  receiving 
his  appointment  from  Hugh  McCulloch,  then 
Secretary  of  the  United  States  Treasury,  and 
spent  the  winter  of  1868  at  Sitka,  returning  to 
his  home  in  September,  1869.  In  March, 
1870,  he  was  sent  again  to  the  islands  in  the 
seal  region,  and  given  authority  to  act  as  gov- 
ernor of  the  natives,  receiving  his  appointment 
from  George  S.  Boutwell,  Secretary  of  the 
Treasury.  There  he  remained  until  1S77, 
when  he  returned  to  the  old  Bay  State,  and 
settled  in  Mattapoisett,  his  home  up  to  the 
present  time. 

Captain  Bryant  was  married  in  1S51  to  Miss 
Hannah  Eldridge,  daughter  of  Peleg  and  Han- 
nah (Briggs)  Eldridge,  of  Taunton,  Mass. 
He  has  no  children.  He  has  long  been  inter- 
ested in  public  affairs,  and  has  held  a  number 
of  offices  of  trust.  In  1867  and  1868,  while 
a  resident  of  Fairhaven,  he  occupied  a  seat  in 
the  State  legislature;  and  in  Mattapoisett  he 
has  served  as  a  member  of  the  Board  of 
Health,  and  as  a  member  of  the  School  Board 


for  four  years.     He  is  a  man  of  ability,  who 
efficiently  performs  all  duties  intrusted  to  him. 


■t^'TENRY  C.  HARDING,  the  esteemed 
r^4  Treasurer  of  the  Plingham  Institution 
-m}P  V  ^  for  Savings,  was  born  here  April 
27,  1832,  son  of  David  and  Betsy  T.  (Tilden) 
Harding.  Thomas  Harding,  the  grandfather, 
who  was  born  at  Chatham,  Mass.,  in  1774, 
settled  in  Hingham  in  1802.  He  was  a  sea 
captain,  and  lived  near  the  harbor  on  North 
Street  in  this  town.  In  1795  he  married 
Patience,  daughter  of  Joshua  Mayo,  of  East- 
ham,  Barnstable  County,  and  they  had  eight 
children — David,  Eliza  Willis,  Josiah  Mayo, 
Sarah  Doane,  Mary,  Thomas,  Rebecca,  and 
Seaman  Harding.  David  was  born  at  East- 
ham,  June  4,  1796.  Eliza  Willis,  born  at 
Eastham,  November  20,  1797,  married  Ben- 
jamin Chamberlain,  of  Boston,  December  4, 
1817,  and  died  August  10,  181S,  at  the  age 
of  twenty-one  years.  Josiah  Mayo,  born  in 
Chatham,  June  11,  1800,  married  Nancy  Jen- 
nings, and  resided  in  Boston.  Sarah  Doane, 
born  in  Hingham,  May  28,  1803,  married 
Cornelius  Nye  on  June  13,  1826,  and  died 
September  11,  1828.  Mary,  born  November 
13,  1804,  died  July  21,  1827.  Thomas,  also 
deceased,  was  born  February  iS,  1S07.  Re- 
becca, born  February  16,  iSii,  married  Cap- 
tain Samuel  Easterbrook.  .Seaman,  who  was 
born  March  17,  18 12,  removed  to  Boston,  and 
was  married  October  7r  J  S3  3,  to  EmeHne 
Ruggles.  He  died  in  Melrose,  Mass.,  January 
29,  1872.  The  father  died  July  24,  1S21,  at 
the  age  of  forty-seven  years;  and  the  mother, 
in  Hingham,  November  4,  1823,  at  the  age  of 
forty-eight. 

David  Harding,  the  eldest  son  of  Thomas, 
was  .Secretary  of  the  Hingham  Mutual  F"ire 
Insurance  Company  for  many  years,  Treasurer 


328 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


of  the  Hingham  Institution  for  Savings,  and 
one  of  the  founders  of  both  institutions.  He 
was  twice  married,  the  first  time  on  March  7, 
1824,  to  Lydia  Lane,  daughter  of  Rufus  and 
Hannah  (Marsh)  Lane.  She  was  born  in 
Hingham,  March  12,  1796,  and  died  October 
10,  1S24.  His  second  marriage  was  con- 
tracted June  I,  1829,  with  Betsy  T.  Tilden, 
daughter  of  Jotham  and  Betsy  (Turner)  Til- 
den, of  Marshfield,  Mass.  She  was  born  there 
October  2,  1799,  and  died  in  Hingham,  March 
14,  1873.  David  died  on  February  14,  1874. 
They  resided  on  Main  Street,  opposite  Derby 
Academy,  and  had  two  children  —  Sarah 
Mayo  and  Henry  Clay.  Sarah  Mayo,  who 
was  born  September  [4,  1830,  on  October  5, 
1852,  married  Robert  W.  Oliphant,  M.D.,  of 
St.  Louis,  Mo.  She  died  there  July  10,  1875, 
while  her  husband  lived  until  October  9,  1883. 
They  had  one  son,  Robert  Henry,  born  Sep- 
tember 9,  1854,  who  died  in  Hingham,  Feb- 
ruary 8,  1873,  being  then  a  Freshman  of 
Harvard  College. 

Henry  C.  Harding,  the  second  child  of 
his  parents,  after  attending  the  public  schools 
and  Derby  Academy,  entered  the  employment 
of  the  bank  in  which  he  has  grown  up  with  the 
business.  The  Hingham  Institution  for  Sav- 
ings was  incorporated  April  2,  1834.  David 
Harding  was  elected  its  first  Treasurer  on  No- 
vember 8,  1834.  The  first  deposit  was  re- 
ceived December  24,  1834,  and  the  amount  of 
deposits  at  the  end  of  the  fir.st  year,  January  i, 
1836,  was  thirty  thousand,  one  hundred  and 
thirteen  dollars  and  fifty-four  cents.  The 
growth  of  this  institution  has  been  healthy, 
owing  in  a  great  measure  to  the  faithful  ser- 
vices rendered  by  David  Harding  in  the  capa- 
city of  Treasurer,  and  his  son,  Henry  C,  who 
succeeded  his  father  in  1863.  According  to  a 
tabular  statement  of  the  Treasurer  made  Jan- 
uary I,    1896,  the   amount   now   on   deposit   at 


this  bank  is  over  two  million  dollars.  Mr. 
Harding  is  a  Director  of  the  Hingham  Mutual 
Fire  Insurance  Company,  a  Trustee  and  the 
Treasurer  of  Derby  Academy,  and  President 
of  the  Proprietors  of  Hingham  Cemetery.  In 
politics  he  was  formerly  a  Whig,  and  now 
affiliates  with  the   Republican   party. 

Mr.  Harding  has  been  twice  married.  The 
first  time  was  October  11,  1859,  when  he  was 
united  to  Elizabeth  A.  Lincoln,  daughter  of 
Calvin  and  Elizabeth  (Andrews)  Lincoln,  of 
Hingham.  She  died  in  St.  Louis  on  Decem- 
ber 31,  1S64.  His  second  marriage,  per- 
formed June  2,  1874,  wedded  him  to  Helen  M. 
Stowell,  daughter  of  Hersey  and  Crissey 
(Hersey)  Stowell.  In  religion  Mr.  Harding 
is  a  Unitarian,  and  he  is  Treasurer  of  the 
First  Parish  Church,  the  old  meeting-house. 
Mr.  Harding  commands  the  entire  respect 
and  confidence  of  his  fellow-townsmen,  who 
regard  him  as  a  most  worthy  son  of  a  most 
worthy  father. 


RTHUR  B.  MARSTON,  merchant,  a 
member  of  the  firm  of  Howard  &  Cald- 
well, Brockton,  was  born  March  13, 
1857,  in  Chatham,  Mass.,  of  which  place  his 
mother's  family  have  long  been  residents. 
His  parents  were  Zenas  L.  ant!  Rhoda  C. 
(Young)  Marston. 

Zenas  L.  Marston  was  born  at  Marston's 
Mills,  which  received  its  name  from  the 
family,  woollen  goods  being  manufactured 
there.  He  came  to  Brockton,  then  North 
Bridgewater,  in  i860,  and  for  many  years 
was  engaged  in  business  in  that  part  of  the 
town  known  as  Campello,  where  he  is  still 
living,  at  the  age  of  seventy-four  years.  He 
was  formerly  an  engineer  in  the  Brockton  fire 
department,  in  which  he  has  always  taken 
much   interest.      While  at  Chatham,  he  owned 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


329 


and  conducted  a  store  several  years.  He  was 
sexton  of  the  South  Congregational  Church 
of  Brockton.  He  married  Rhoda  C,  a  daugh- 
ter of  Joseph  and  Bethiah  Young,  of  Chat- 
ham, where  her  father  was  a  large  land- 
owner. Mr.  and  Mrs.  Zenas  L.  Marston  are 
the  parents  of  six  children,  four  sons  and 
two  daughters,  all  of  whom  are  living  in 
Brockton,  Harry  being  chief  of  the  fire  de- 
partment. Russell  Marston,  proprietor  of 
the  famous  restaurant  which  bears  his  name 
on  Brattle  and  Hanover  Streets,  Boston,  is  a 
cousin  of  Zenas  L.  Marston. 

Arthur  B.  Marston  received  his  education  in 
the  Brockton  schools.  As  a  boy,  ambitious 
and  energetic,  with  a  natural  bent  for  trade, 
he  peddled  apples  in  Brockton,  becoming  well 
known  on  the  street.  At  sixteen  he  entered 
the  clothing  store  of  Howard  &  Caldwell,  with 
whom  he  has  since  remained,  having  applied 
himself  sedulously  and  faithfully  to  business. 
He  was  admitted  to  partnership  in  1886,  the 
firm  name,  however,  continuing  unchanged. 

Mr.  Marston  was  united  in  marriage  with 
Miss  Abbie  H.  Eldredge,  daughter  of  Charles 
H.  and  Abigail  Eldredge,  of  Brockton,  on 
June  II,  1879,  and  they  now  have  two  chil- 
dren, a  boy  of  ten   and  a  girl  of   twelve  years. 

Mr.  Marston  votes  the  Republican  ticket, 
but  further  than  that  does  not  participate  in 
political  matters.  Fraternally,  he  is  a  mem- 
ber of  St.  George  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of 
Campello;  Satucket  Chapter,  Royal  Arch 
Masons;  and  the  Bay  State  Commandery, 
Knights  Templars,  of  Brockton;-  Electric 
Lodge,  No.  204,  Independent  Order  of  Odd 
Fellows;  the  Ancient  Order  of  United  Work- 
men, Campello  Lodge,  No.  30;  and  Garfield 
Commandery,  No.  158,  United  Order  of  Gol- 
den Cross.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Congrega- 
tional church,  and  Chairman  of  Music  Com- 
mittee of  that  society. 


Y^Vp^INOT  S.  CURTIS,  the  Chief  of 
W=  I  =/  the  East  Bridgewater  fire  depart- 
fl  ejjs  ^  ^  ment,  and  a  contracting  painter 
and  decorator,  was  born  in  this  town.  May  g, 
1843.  He  is  a  son  of  Elbridge  and  Matilda 
W.  (Horton)  Curtis,  both  natives  of  Massa- 
chusetts. Elbridge  Curtis,  who  was  a  cutter 
by  trade,  and  was  employed  for  a  great  many 
years  in  the  manufacture  of  hand-made  custom 
shoes,  died  some  years  ago.  His  widow  is 
now  in  her  eighty-third  year.  Of  their  chil- 
dren Elbridge  R.,  Edward  B.,  Lucius  J.,  and 
Minot  S.  are  living. 

Minot  S.  Curtis  was  educated  in  the  com- 
mon schools  and  at  East  Bridgewater  Acad- 
emy. At  the  age  of  seventeen  he  began  to 
learn  the  painter's  trade.  After  finishing  a 
three  years'  apprenticeship  with  Braman 
Brothers,  of  Bridgewater,  he  became  one  of 
their  regular  employees,  and  remained  with 
them  for  several  years.  When  the  men  of 
Plymouth  County  were  mustering  for  the  de- 
fence of  the  Union  he  was  one  of  them.  He 
enlisted  May  9,  1861,  in  Company  C,  Twenty- 
ninth  Massachusetts  Volunteer  Infantry,  which 
afterward  served  with  the  Second  Brigade  in 
the  Army  of  the  Potomac,  under  McClellan 
and  other  leaders,  finishing  his  term  under  the 
command  of  General  Grant.  In  action  most 
of  the  time,  he  took  part  in  twenty-four 
battles,  including  the  second  Bull  Run,  Antie- 
tam,  the  siege  of  Vicksburg,  the  Wilderness, 
and  Spottsylvania  Court-house.  During  the 
Peninsular  Campaign,  at  t+ie  battle  of  White 
Oak  Swamp,  he  was  wounded  in  the  left  arm. 
Receiving  his  discharge  in  September,  1864, 
he  returned  to  his  native  State,  and  resumed 
his  trade.  For  the  past  twenty  years  he  has 
been  in  business  for  himself  as  contracting 
painter  and  decorator.  His  admirable  taste, 
and  his  promptness  and  accuracy  in  filling  con- 
tracts have  made  him  a  favorite  in  his   line, 


33° 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


and  brought  him  a  large  and  lucrative  busi- 
ness. He  keeps  ten  men  employed  almost 
constantly,  while  in  the  busy  season  he  is 
obliged  to  double  the  number. 

Married  in  November,  1864,  to  Miss  Ada- 
line  Thompson,  Mr.  Curtis  has  one  child, 
Henry  M.  In  politics  he  favors  the  Repub- 
lican side.  For  the  past  si.\  years  he  has 
been  the  Chief  of  the  Fire  Department,  in 
which  capacity  he  has  given  eminent  satisfac- 
tion. He  is  a  member  of  Satucket  Masonic 
Lodge,  of  East  Bridgewater,  and  was  thir- 
teen years  Quartermaster  of  Justin  Dimick 
Grand  Army  Post.  Mr.  Curtis  is  well  known 
in  the  Bridgewaters,  and  enjoys  the  esteem  of 
all  with  whom  he  has  dealings. 


-f^ENJAMIN  S.  ATWOOD,  a  well- 
known  business  man  of  Whitman, 
Plymouth  County,  Mass.,  owner 
and  manager  of  one  of  the  best-equipped  box 
factories  in  America,  was  born  in  the  town  of 
Carver,  Mass.,  June  25,  1840.  His  parents 
were  Reuel  and  Abigail  S.  (Tilson)  Atwood. 

The  first  progenitor  of  the  family  in  Amer- 
ica was  John,  a  native  of  England,  who  came 
to  our  shores  and  settled  in  Plj'mouth  more 
than  two  hundred  and  fifty  years  ago,  less  than 
a  quarter  of  a  century  after  the  landing  of  the 
Pilgrims.  He  married,  and  had  several  chil- 
dren, including  three  or  four  sons,  one  of 
whom  died  in  Plymouth;  while  tradition  says 
that  another  dropped  the  first  two  letters  of 
his  surname,  his  posterity  being  thereafter 
known  under  the  name  of  Wood.  Stephen 
Atwood  settled  on  Cape  Cod.  Mr.  Benjamin 
S.  A.twood  traces  his  descent  from  Nathaniel 
Atwood,  who  settled  in  that  part  of  Plymouth 
which  in  1709  was  set  off  as  Plympton,  and  in 
1790  was  incorporated  as  Carver,  and  whose 
son  Nathaniel  was  a  Deacon   in  the  Plymouth 


church.  He  married  Mary,  daughter  of  Jona- 
than Morey;  and  their  son,  Lieutenant  Na- 
thaniel Atwood,  married  Mary  Adams,  of 
Kingston. 

The  ne.xt  representative  of  the  ancestral  line 
was  Ichabod  Atwood,  the  great-grandfather  of 
the  subject  of  this  sketch.  He  was  a  farmer, 
who  also  dealt  in  wood,  lumber,  and  charcoal. 
His  wife,  Hannah  Shaw,  was  a  daughter  of 
Captain  Nathaniel  Shaw,  who  commanded  a 
company  during  the  Revolutionary  War.  Na- 
thaniel Atwood,  son  of  Ichabod  and  Hannah, 
inherited  the  paternal  acres,  and,  following  in 
the  footsteps  of  his  father,  became  a  farmer 
and  a  dealer  in  wood,  lumber,  and  charcoal. 
His  entire  life  was  spent  in  Middleboro, 
Mass.  The  maiden  name  of  his  wife  was 
Zilpha  Shurtleff. 

Their  son,  Reuel  Atwood,  was  trained  to 
agricultural  pursuits;  but,  when  he  attained 
his  majority,  he  was  engaged  in  teaming,  and 
for  a  number  of  years  drove  the  stage,  meeting 
his  death  by  accident  at  the  age  of  fifty-six. 
Abigail  S.  Tilson  was  the  name  of  the  fair 
maid  whom  he  led  to  the  marriage  altar.  She 
was  a  native  of  Carver,  being  a  daughter  of 
Ichabod  Tilson,  who  was  born  in  the  same 
town.  Mrs.  Abigail  S.  Atwood  lived  to  be 
sixty-five  years  of  age,  and  was  the  mother  of 
seven  children. 

Benjamin  S.  Atwood  attended  public  schools 
in  Carver  and  Middleboro,  and  at  the  age  of 
sixteen  commenced  to  earn  his  own  living. 
Until  the  breaking  out  of  the  Civil  War  he 
was  employed  in  a  lumber-mill.  In  April, 
1861,  at  the  first  call  for  troops,  he  enlisted 
for  three  months  in  Company  H,  Third  Massa- 
chusetts Volunteer  Infantry,  and  went  to  Fort- 
ress Monroe.  At  the  expiration  of  his  term  of 
service  he  was  discharged,  and  returned  home. 
Soon  after,  however,  he  was  commissioned 
First    Lieutenant    by   Governor    Andrew,    and 


dZ 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


333 


later  enlisted  for  nine  months  in  Company  B, 
Third  Massachusetts  Volunteer  Infantry.  He 
then  went  to  New  Berne,  N.  C,  and  served  in 
that  State  until  Jiis  period  of  service  expired. 
Receiving  honorable  discharge,  he  returned 
home,  and  for  a  time  thereafter  was  employed 
in  a  box  factory.  In  October,  1866,  he  went 
into  business  for  himself,  becoming  a  box 
manufacturer  in  North  Abington.  Two  years 
after  he  went  to  Abington,  coming  in  1873  to 
Whitman.  His  present  plant  was  built  in 
1894.  The  main  building  is  two  hundred 
and  fifty  feet  long,  the  storehouse  being  two 
hundred  feet.  This  factory  has  every  kind 
of  the  most  improved  machinery  which  can 
be  utilized  in  the  manufacture  of  boxes,  being 
one  of  the  best  in  the  country. 

In  politics  Mr.  Atwood  affiliates  with  the 
Republican  party.  Fraternally,  he  is  a  mem- 
ber of  Puritan  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M. ;  Old 
Commandery,  Knights  Templars,  Aleppo 
Temple,  of  Boston;  and  Post  7^,  Grand 
Army  of  the  Republic.  In  religion  he  sym- 
pathizes with  the  L^nitarians.  On  September 
24,  1862,  he  was  united  in  marriage  with 
Angle   F.  W.  Weston,  of   Plympton,  Mass. 


|.\PTAIN  GEORGE  H.  BROWN,  a 
master  mariner  of  proved  courage  and 
capability,  with  a  worthy  personal 
record,  was  born  in  Rochester,  now  the  town 
of  Marion,  Plymouth  County,  October  12, 
1 841.  His  father,  for  many  years  a  resident 
of  this  place,  married  Miss  Hannah  Blanken- 
ship,  who  bore  him  five  children;  namely, 
George  H.,  Addie,  Jared,  Mary  E.,  and 
Maria  L. 

George  H.,  the  elder  of  the  two  sons,  was 
reared  and  educated  in  Marion,  attending  both 
public  and  private  schools.  At  the  age  of 
sixteen,    fascinated   by   the   thrilling    tales    of 


sea  life  so  frequently  spun  in  his  hearing,  he 
went  on  board  the  whaling  vessel  "Admiral 
Blake"  as  a  common  sailor,  and  for  fifteen 
months  cruised  on  the  Atlantic  Ocean.  The 
following  five  months  he  spent  on  the  coaster 
"Simpson  Hart,"  being  afterward  on  the  brig 
"Samoset  "  ;  and  later  he  was  in  the  merchant 
marine  service,  sailing  on  the  Black  Diamond 
Line  to  London.  In  1871  he  shipped  as 
quartermaster  on  the  steamer  "Alhambra, " 
plying  between  Boston  and  the  British  prov- 
inces, being  away  two  months,  and  continued 
in  that  service  for  five  years  as  second  mate 
and  mate.  In  1881  he  was  given  charge  of  the 
steamer  "Carroll,"  which  he  commanded  until 
1893,  carrying  passengers  and  freight  from 
Boston  to  the  British  domains.  For  thirty-six 
years  Captain  Brown  followed  the  sea,  visiting 
many  foreign  ports  and  once  doubling  Cape 
Horn.  He  met  with  few  accidents  in  his 
various  ocean  trips,  his  most  serious  disaster 
being  in  the  fall  of  18S8,  when  the  good  ship 
"Carroll"  narrowly  escaped  wrecking,  the 
pilot  house  being  torn  away.  One  mate  was 
lost  overboard,  and  the  vessel  came  into 
Boston  Harbor  with  its  flag  at  half-mast. 
.Since  his  retirement  from  the  sea  Captain 
Brown  has  not  been  engaged  in  active  busi- 
ness pursuits. 

On  March  29,  1871,  he  was  united  in  mar- 
riage with  Miss  Mary  L.  Handy,  daughter  of 
Noah  D.  and  Cynthia  E.  Handy,  of  Marion. 
Of  the  three  children  born  to  captain  and 
Mrs.  Brown,  one,  P'rankltii- C,  died  Mari^i 
18,  1895;  and  two  promising  sons — William 
C.  and  George  H.  T.  — are  now  living.  Po- 
litically, the  captain  has  the  courage  of  his 
convictions,  and  votes  independent  of  party 
strictures.  Socially,  he  is  a  member  of  two 
prominent  organizations  of  Marion,  belonging 
to  Pythagorean  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  and 
to  the  Sons  of  Temperance. 


334 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


ILLIAM  H.  FEARINE,  a  well- 
to-do  and  highly  respected  agricult- 
urist of  Wareham,  Mass. ,  was  born 
December  22,  1835,  i"  '^''"-'  house  that  he  now 
occupies.  Here  also  his  father,  William  S. 
l^'earine,  and  his  grandfather,  Benjamin  B. 
Fearine,  first  opened  their  eyes  to  the  light  of 
this  world,  the  former  having  been  born  De- 
cember 6,  1804,  and  the  latter  October  31, 
1755.  This  house  has  been  built  more  than 
two  hundred  years, -and  has  been  occupied  by 
several  generations  of  the  Fearine  family,  the 
first  having  been  Isaiah  Fearine,  the  great- 
great-grandfather  of  William  H.,  and  the  next, 
Benjamin  Fearine,  his  great-grandfather. 

William  S.  Fearine,  son  of  Benjamin  B., 
succeeded  to  the  ownership  of  the  paternal 
homestead,  on  which  he  resided  during  his 
entire  life,  being  engaged  in  farming  until  his 
demise  in  1861.  His  wife,  whose  maiden 
name  was  Hannah  C.  Barrows,  bore  him  five 
children,  namely:  Elisha;  William  H.  ; 
Charles  W.  ;  Mary,  the  wife  of  William  B. 
Goodall;  and  one  who  died  in  infancy.  Will- 
iam H.  and  his  sister  Mary  are  the  only  sur- 
vivors. The  father  was  active  in  the  manage- 
ment of  town  affairs,  and  served  as  Treasurer 
and  Collector  several  years. 

William  H.  Fearine,  the  second  son,  re- 
ceived his  preliminary  education  in  the  dis- 
trict schools  of  Wareham,  after  which  he  at- 
tended a  private  school  for  a  while,  and  then 
took  a  course  of  study  at  the  academy  in  Meri- 
den,  N.H.  He  remained  on  the  home  farm, 
becoming  practically  acquainted  with  its 
labors  until  twenty-four  years  old,  when  he 
established  himself  here  in  the  mercantile 
business  Disposing  of  his  goods  a  few  years 
later,  Mr.  Fearine  returned  for  a  while  to  the 
home  farm,  but  was  subsequently  employed  as 
a  clerk  for  nine  years  by  the  Parker  Mill  Com- 
pany.     He  has  since  devoted   his  time  to  the 


cultivation  of  his  land,  owning  a  farm  of  about 
one  hundred  acres,  on  which  he  is  engaged  in 
the  various  branches  of  general  agriculture. 

Mr.  Fearine  was  married  September,  1859, 
to  Miss  Delia  A.  Wing,  daughter  of  Captain 
Benjamin  Wing,  and  sister  of  George  F. 
Wing,  of  Wareham.  Of  this  union  six  chil- 
dren have  been  born,  three  of  whom  —  Charles 
VV.,  Flora  M.,  and  George  C— have  passed 
to  the  life  immortal.  Those  living  are:  An- 
janette  D.,  William  H.,  Jr.,  and  Mary.  In 
politics  Mr.  Fearine  is  identified  with  the 
Democratic  party.  He  has  served  his  fellow- 
townsmen  as  Clerk,  Treasurer,  and  Collector 
since  1884,  besides  holding  other  positions  of 
minor  importance.  He  is  likewise  Justice  of 
the  Peace  and  Notary  Public,  and  is  a  member 
of  the  American  Legion  of  Honor. 


"ir^EMERICK  MARBLE,  a  retired  car- 
I  1  riage  manufacturer  of  Hingham 
<-— 4««i^  Centre,  Mass.,  was  born  October  7, 
1819,  son  of  Demerick  and  Olive  Allen 
(Easterbrook)  Marble.  Gershom  Marble, 
"the  progenitor  of  all  who  have  borne  this 
surname  by  birth  in  Hingham  and  vicinity, 
was  in  early  life  a  mariner,  and  a  temporary 
resident  of  Charlestown,  Mass.,  where  his  first 
wife,  Mary,  died  December  30,  1694."  He 
subsequently  removed  to  Hingham,  where  he 
resided  on  Beechwood  Street;  and  in  1697  at 
Scituate  he  married  Waitstill  Ingle.  He  died 
August  6,  1725,  aged  sixty,  survived  by  his 
second  wife,  who  died  in  Hingham,  November 
14,  1728.  David,  their  fourth  child,  was 
born  in  1706,  and  married  December  27,  1732, 
Abigail  Joy,  who  was  born  here  March  22, 
1713,  daughter  of  Prince  and  Abigail  (Tower) 
Joy.  By  this  union  there  were  four  children, 
the  second,  Luther,  born  in  1735.  He  mar- 
ried Priscilla  James,  the  date  of  whose  baptism 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


335 


was  May  lo,  1741.  Her  parents  were  Thomas 
and  Hannah  (Holbrook)  James.  Luther  Mar- 
ble was  a  mariner,  and  was  lost  at  sea. 

James,  the  eldest  of  his  four  children,  was 
born  in  Hingham,  November  3,  1760,  and 
married  June  7,  1785,  to  I-'annie  .Stodder, 
daughter  of  Reuben  and  Elizabeth  (Glover) 
Stodder.  She  was  born  here  June  10,  1766, 
and  survived  him,  subsequently  marrying, 
April  24,  1802,  Reuben  Thurston,  who  also 
died.  June  12,  180S,  she  married  John  Bras- 
lin  for  her  third  husband.  She  died  August  3, 
1833-  James  Marble  died  April  26,  1801,  at 
the  age  of  forty.  He  was  also  a  mariner,  and 
resided  on  South  Street.  From  his  union 
with  Elizabeth  G.  Stodder  there  were  seven 
children. 

Demerick,  first,  the  fifth  child,  was  born 
here,  July  18,  1794;  and  on  December  7, 
1818,  he  formed  a  matrimonial  alliance  with 
Olive  Allen  Easterbrook,  daughter  of  Gorham 
and  Susanna  (Gorham)  Easterbrook.  She  was 
born  at  Barnstable,  Mass.,  October  28,  1798, 
and  died  December  24,  1868,  aged  seventy 
years.  Demerick  Marble,  first,  was  lost  at 
sea  in  the  schooner  "Globe,"  of  which  he 
was  Master,  March  30,  1823.  He  left  one 
child,  his  namesake,  Demerick,  the  subject 
of  this  biography. 

Demerick  Marble  availed  himself  of  the 
educational  facilities  afforded  by  the  common 
schools,  although  he  was  not  permitted  to 
attend  many  seasons.  At  the  age  of  fourteen 
and  a  half  years  he  went  to  Boston  to  learn  the 
painter's  trade,  remaining  one  year.  He  then 
returned  home,  and  in  1835  went  to  work  at 
the  carriage  maker's  trade.  He  was  industri- 
ous, and  had  a  successful  business  career  in 
this  enterprise  for  fifty-si-\  years,  during 
forty-two  of  which  he  was  in  partnership  with 
Bela  H.  Whiten.  In  1891  he  retired  from  the 
arena  of  business,  but  he  is  by  no  means  idle. 


On  July  31,  1842,  Mr.  Marble  was  united 
in  marriage  with  Deborah  H.  Gross,  a  daugh- 
ter of  Jacob  and  Olive  F.  (Burr)  Gross.  Mrs. 
Marble  was  born  in  this  town,  June  25,  1823. 
She  has  had  four  children  —  William  D., 
Thomas  Burr,  Artiiur  I).,  and  Charles  Hawkes. 
William  D.  Marble  was  born  in  Weymouth, 
Mass.,  March  15,  1845,  and  died  in  Hingham, 
May  8,  1850.  Thomas  Burr  Marble,  born 
here  November  2,  1S48,  died  October  30, 
185 1.  Arthur  Demerick  Marble,  born  here 
April  10,  1853,  is  a  civil  engineer,  and 
resides  in  Lawrence,  Mass.  He  married 
Mary  A.  Richardson,  and  they  have  a  bright 
young  daughter,  Marion  Wright  Marble.  He 
is  a  natural  artist,  as  his  works  bear  evidence. 
He  is  likewise  much  interested  in  biographical 
work,  and  has  compiled  a  number  of  interest- 
ing family  sketches.  Charles  Hawkes,  born 
in  Hingham,  July  11,  1858,  married  on  July 
17,  1884,  Estella  L.,  daughter  of  Reuben  and 
Sarah  J.   (Dyer)  Sprague. 

In  politics  Mr.  Marble  formerly  affiliated 
with  the  Free  Soil  party,  but  since  the  Re- 
publican party  was  organized  he  has  voted 
continuously  with  that  body.  Officially,  he 
has  long  been  prominent,  serving  as  Select- 
man and  Assessor  nine  years,  as  Representa- 
tive in  1859  and  i860,  and  now  as  Auditor. 
He  has  been  a  Trustee  of  the  Hingham  Insti- 
tution for  Savings  since  1877,  and  a  Director 
of  the  Hingham  Mutual  F"ire  Insurance  Com- 
pany for  a  quarter  of  a  century;  and  he  also 
served  as  Overseer  of  the  Poor  and  on  the 
School  Board  for  a  number  of  years.  I'Vater- 
nally,  he  is  a  member  of  Old  Colony  Lodge, 
A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  having  taken  the  third  degree 
in  March,  1859.  He  joined  the  Old  Colony 
Lodge,  Independent  Order  of  Odd  Fellows, 
about  fifty  years  ago,  and  was  an  active  mem- 
ber thereof  until  the  surrender  of  the  charter 
to  the  Grand  Lodge  in  1853. 


336 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Personally,  Mr.  Marble  is  a  man  of  strong 
convictions,  and  is  very  outspoken  ;  but  be  has 
respect  for  the  opinions  of  others,  and  is  highly 
esteemed  in  this  community.  I-'inancially,  he 
has  acquired  sufficient  means  to  live  comfort- 
ably, owning  a  fine  residence  besides  other 
property.  He  was  reared  by  a  Baptist  mother, 
but  he  is  a  man  of  liberal  views,  in  religion 
being  a  Universalist  who  is  inspired  by  the 
faith,  which  he  is  able  and  willing  to  discuss 
at  all  times.  He  now  attends  the  First  Uni- 
tarian Church,  where  his  father  and  ancestors 
formerly  worshipped,  and  affiliates  cordially 
with  the  society. 


M 


AVID  H.  CANNON,  M.D.,  a  pop- 
ular physician  of  Mattapoisett,  was 
born  in  this  town,  October  ig,  1843. 
His  parents  were  James  and  Elizabeth  (Cobb) 
Cannon.  The  father  was  a  native  of  Matta- 
poisett, the  mother  of  Marion  ;  and  David  was 
their  only  child. 

He  acquired  his  early  education  in  the  pub- 
lic schools  of  his  native  town  and  in  Peirce 
Academy  at  Middleboro.  Before  settling 
down  to  the  serious  preparation  necessary  for 
his  professional  career,  he  travelled  consider- 
ably, and  engaged  in  different  lines  of  industry, 
his  experience  giving  him  a  broad  acquaint- 
ance with  human  life  and  character.  When 
he  was  nineteen  years  of  age,  he  shipped  as 
a  seaman  on  a  whaling  vessel,  which  was  out 
thirteen  months  cruising  in  the  Atlantic 
Ocean.  In  1866  he  taught  school  in  Jackson 
County,  Ohio;  and,  returning  to  Mattapoisett 
in  the  spring  of  1867,  in  the  fall  of  the  same 
year  he  shipped  as  a  sailor  on  a  merchant 
vessel  bound  for  Holland  and  England.  This 
trip  consumed  almost  a  year,  and  after  his 
return  he  was  in  the  mercantile  business  for  a 
year.      He  then  took  up  the  study  of  medicine 


with  Dr.  William  W.  Sweat,  of  Mattapoisett, 
with  whom  he  was  associated  some  three  years; 
and  he  was  graduated  at  Harvard  in  1873. 
Opening  an  office  at  Acushnet,  or  Long 
Plain,  he  practised  there  until  the  autumn  of 
1882;  and  for  three  years  following  he  was  in 
practice  at  Harwich.  In  the  autumn  of  1885 
he  settled  in  Mattapoisett,  where  he  has  a 
large  and  successful  practice. 

Dr.  Cannon  was  married  in  1875  to  Miss 
Elizabeth  I*".  Gibbs  Hoyt,  and  has  three  chil- 
dren—  Ethel  F.,  Susan  B.,  and  Celia  G.  A 
Republican  in  politics,  he  is  popular  with 
both  parties,  and  has  been  elected  to  a  number 
of  public  offices.  He  is  at  present  Inspector 
of  Horses  and  Cattle  for  the  town  of  Matta- 
poisett. He  has  been  a  member  of  the  Board 
of  Health  for  seven  years,  and  a  member  of  the 
School  Board  for  eight  years.  He  is  affiliated 
with  the  Masonic  order,  belonging  to  Pytha- 
gorean Lodge  of  Marion,  and  with  the  Har- 
vard Club  of  New  Bedford.  Dr.  Cannon  is  a 
member  of  the  Methodist  church. 


,EV.  DAVID  B.  FORD,  a  retired 
clergyman  of  Hanover,  Plymouth 
-!P  V^^  County,  Mass.,  was  born  in  Scitu- 
ate,  Mass.,  sen  of  Michael  and  Sarah  (Jacobs) 
Ford.  He  was  reared  on  a  farm  in  his  native 
town,  and,  after  attending  the  district  school, 
fitted  for  college  at  Hanover  Academy,  subse- 
quently, in  1841,  going  to  Brown  University, 
Providence,  R.I.  Four  years  later  he  was 
graduated  from  that  institution,  and  entered 
Newton  Theological  School,  being  graduated 
therefrom  three  years  afterward.  In  1848  and 
1849  he  was  assistant  instructor  of  Hebrew  in 
Newton.  Being  ordained  pastor  of  the  Can- 
ton Baptist  church,  he  was  settled  there  for 
three  years,  returning  in  1854  to  the  old 
homestead,  where  he  lived  until    1885.      Dur- 


JEREMIAH    T.    RICHMOND. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


339 


ing  the  mean  time  he  had  preached  at  Marsh- 
field,  Mass.  ;  and  he  has  resided  in  Hanover 
since  that  time.  Mr.  Ford  is  a  man  of 
literary  ability,  having  been  the  author  of  sev- 
eral books  and  pamphlets,  among  which  are: 
"Studies  on  the  Baptismal  Question,"  pub- 
lished in  1S79;  "Centennial  History  of  the 
First  Baptist  Church  of  Marshfield,"  in  1888; 
and  in  conjunction  with  A.  N.  Arnold  he 
issued  in  i88g  a  "Commentary  on  Romans." 
"The  Life-work  of  Isaac  Backus"  and  "New 
England's  Struggles  for  Religious  Liberty," 
the  former  published  in  1893  and  the  latter  in 
1896,  are  also  among  his  works.  He  has 
given  up  preaching,  and  now  devotes  his  time 
mostly  to  denominational  publications.  In 
1859  Mr.  Ford  was  united  in  marriage  with 
Lavina  Sherman,  of  Marshfield,  by  whom  he 
has  had  five  children:  Thomas  A.,  who  died 
in  infancy;  Angela  B.  ;  Chauncy  D.  ;  Edith 
G.  ;  and  Howard  I. 


"ON.  JEREMIAH  TINKHAM  RICH- 
MOND, who  was  in  the  Massachu- 
setts legislature  in  1892-93,  is  one 
of  the  foremost  citizens  of  Abington,  actively 
interested  in  business,  political,  and  social 
affairs.  He  was  born  in  Taunton,  Mass., 
March  24,  1829,  a  son  of  Ruel  and  Reliance 
(Tinkham)  Richmond.  The  father  was  a 
well-to-do  farmer  on  the  banks  of  the  Taunton 
River.  He  died  September  8,  1879,  in  his 
seventy-sixth  year.  The  mother  died  April  3, 
1844,  in  her  thirty-fifth  year.  They  had  eight 
children.  The  four  now  living  are  as  follows: 
Jeremiah  Tinkham,  of  Abington;  Charles  Ev- 
erett, born  June  17,  1833;  Zeruah  Frances, 
born  September  6,  1835;  Mary  Ann,  born 
June  28,   1842,  all  natives  of  Taunton. 

Jeremiah  Tinkham  Richmond,  the  eldest  of 
the  four,  and  the  special  subject  of  this  bio- 


graphical sketch,  was  educated  in  public  and 
private  schools  in  Taunton.  At  about  the  age 
of  twenty-two  he  entered  into  the  retail  shoe 
business  in  Taunton.  In  1864  he  removed  to 
Abington,  where  he  entered  the  employ  of 
Nash  &  Jones,  shoe  manufacturers,  having 
charge  of  the  machinery.  He  set  up  and 
operated  the  first  New  Era  pegging  machine 
in  this  county.  The  firm  soon  after  changed 
to  Nash  &  Beal,  Mr.  Richmond  remaining  in 
their  employ  for  a  period  of  si.xteen  years. 
He  invariably  transacted  all  business  in- 
trusted to  his  care  in  such  a  way  as  to  win  the 
confidence  of  those  by  whom  he  was  employed. 
He  is  now  Trustee  and  Auditor  of  the  Abing- 
ton Savings  Bank,  and  a  Director  of  the  Elec- 
tric Light  and  Power  Company  of  Abington 
and  Rockland. 

Mr.  Richmond  was  married  May  26,  185 1, 
to  Miss  Almira  H.  Dean,  of  Raynham,  Mass., 
daughter  of  O.  S.  and  Lodicea  (Hall)  Dean. 
Her  grandfather,  Seth  Dean,  was  an  officer  in 
the  Revolutionary  army.  To  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Richmond  six  children  were  born,  five  of 
whom  are  living:  Frank  R. ;  Alice  D.,  wife 
of  H.  A.  Beal;  Clara  M.,  wife  of  W.  C.  Lean; 
Charles  O.  ;  and  George  T.  The  youngest, 
Jesse  H.,  was  born  November  6,  1865,  and 
died  January,  1884.  Mr.  Richmond  has  eight 
grandchildren,  as  follows:  Walter  Tinkham 
Richmond,  born  November  9,  1888,  son  of 
P^rank  R. ;  Helen  Reed  Beal,  born  March  13, 
1885:  and  Mira  Dean  Beal,  born  June  25, 
1887 —children  of  H.  At- Beal;  Jessie  br 
Richmond,  born  March  26,  1883;  and  Grace 
Evelyn  Richmond,  born  May  30,  1891  — chil- 
dren of  Charles  O.  Richmond;  Alice  R. 
Lean,  born  October  10,  18S4;  Edith  Moulton 
Lean,  born  September  3,  1889- — children  of 
William  C.  Lean;  Louis  Hall  Richmond, 
born  August  30,  1885,  son  of  George  T. 
Richmond  —  all    living   in   Abington    except- 


34° 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


ing    the    children    of    Charles  O.    Richmond, 
who   live   in   Whitman. 

In  politics  Mr.  Richmond  is  a  Republican. 
He  has  efficiently  served  the  public  in  a 
number  of  important  offices.  While  in  the 
legislature,  he  was  on  the  Committee  on 
Prisons,  in  1892  and  1893  he  was  a  member 
of  the  Town  Board  of  Registrars,  and  he  has 
been  for  some  time  on  the  School  Committee 
of  Abington.  As  a  Mason,  he  is  a  member 
of  John  Cutler  Lodge  and  Pilgrim  Royal  Arch 
Chapter;  and  he  is  Past  Commander  of  Old 
Colony  Commandery,  Knights  Templars.  An 
active  member  of  the  Congregational  church, 
he  was  for  ten  years  superintendent  of  the 
Sunday-school. 


'AMUEL  C.  STETSON,  of  Marsh- 
field,  is  one  of  the  most  highly  re- 
spected citizens  of  the  place,  a  self- 
made  man,  who  has  accumulated  a  com- 
petency, and  is  spending  his  declining  years 
in  quiet  retirement.  He  was  born  March  30, 
1823,  in  Hanover,  Mass.,  which  was  aLso  the 
birthplace  of  his  parents,  Samuel  and  Lydia 
(Thayer)  Stetson. 

The  founder  of  the  family  in  Plymouth 
County  was  Cornet  Robert  Stetson,  an  English- 
man from  Kent,  who  received  a  grant  of  land 
on  the  North  River  in  the  town  of  Scituate  in 
1634.  He  became  a  noted  Indian  fighter,  and 
it  was  in  military  service  in  the  colonies  that 
he  earned  the  title  of  cornet.  Samuel  C. 
Stetson's  grandfather,  Nathaniel  Stetson,  was 
a  native  of  Hanover,  Mass.,  and  lived  for  a 
number  of  years  in  that  town.  Two  of  his 
sons,  uncles  of  Samuel  C,  served  in  the  War 
of  1812. 

Samuel  Stetson  was  a  farmer;  and,  besides 
tilling  the  soil,  he  followed  mechanical  pur- 
suits.    He  lived  for  some  time   in   Kennebec 


County,  Maine,  and  moved  from  there  to  Pem- 
broke, Mass.,  and  thence  to  Marshfield,  where 
he  died  in  1876.  In  politics  he  was  an  old- 
line  Democrat.  Of  his  children,  two  are  dead 
—  Lydia  T.  and  Catherine  A. ;  and  three  are 
living,  namely:  Julia  A.,  widow  of  Alfred 
Belcher,  of  Randolph,  Mass.  ;  Samuel  C,  tlie 
only  son;  and  Eliza  T.,  widow  of  Henry  T. 
Crossley,  an  English  gentleman. 

Samuel  C.  Stetson  was  about  six  years  old 
when  his  parents  removed  to  the  State  of 
Maine.  As  they  remained  there  and  subse- 
quently in  Hanover  but  a  short  time,  he 
acquired  his  education  mainly  in  Pembroke, 
Mass.,  where  he  grew  to  maturity.  He  at- 
tended the  common  schools  in  the  winter  sea- 
son until  about  fourteen  years  of  age,  and  the 
knowledge  gained  in  boyhood  has  been  supple- 
mented by  extensive  reading  and  practical 
business  experience.  He  remained  on  the 
farm  until  about  eighteen  years  of  age,  and 
then  learned  boot  and  shoe  making.  This 
trade  he  followed  for  over  thirty-five  years,  at 
the  same  time  managing  a  farm;  but  he  event- 
ually gave  his  whole  time  and  attention  lo  the 
pursuit  of  agriculture.  In  the  fall  of  1S92, 
retiring  from  active  work,  he  left  the  farm, 
and  moved  to  the  village  of  Marshfield,  where 
he  has  since  lived,  enjoying  the  leisure  earned 
through  long  years  of  industry  and  prudent 
management. 

Mr.  Stetson  was  married  November  3,  1850, 
to  Susan  W.  Sprague,  a  native  of  Marshfield, 
daughter  of  Luther  and  Lydia  (Lewis) 
Sprague,  both  of  this  town.  Mr.  Sprague, 
who  was  a  carjienter,  died  in  1842.  Mrs. 
Stetson  has  a  sister  and  brother  living, 
namely:  Mary  E.,  widow  of  Jeremiah  Estey, 
of  Sharon,  Mass. ;  and  L.  Edward  Sprague,  in 
Marshfield.  She  is  the  mother  of  two  chil- 
dren: Susan  A.,  wife  of  E.  Melvin  Sampson, 
of  Brockton,  Mass.  ;    and   Lydia  E.,  deceased. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


341 


Mr.  Stetson,  like  his  father,  is  a  member  of 
the  Democratic  party.  He  is  a  Mason,  be- 
longing to  Corner  Stone  Lodge  of  Duxbury, 
Mass.  His  circle  of  acquaintance  is  a  wide 
one,  and  among  the  residents  of  Marshfield 
none  are  more  highly  esteemed  than  he  and 
his  wife. 


ARREN  B.  SMITH,  Cashier  of  the 
Home  National  Bank  of  Brockton, 
Mass.,  was  born  in  Provincetown, 
Barnstable  County,  February  10,  1859,  a  son 
of  William  W.  and  Mary  C.  (Johnson)  Smith. 
His  father  was  a  native  of  Barnstable,  Mass., 
his  mother,  of  Provincetown.  His  family  is 
well  known  on  the  Cape,  his  maternal  grand- 
father, Timothy  B.  Johnson,  having  settled  in 
Provincetown  at  an  early  date.  This  worthy 
citizen,  who  was  a  sail -maker,  followed  his 
trade  there  for  many  years,  also  dealing  in 
ship  stores,  and  was  prominent  among  the 
business  men  of  the  place.  He  died  at  the 
age  of  sixty  years.  His  wife,  formerly  a  Miss 
Betsey  Hager,  of  Waltham,  Mass.,  bore  him 
eleven  children,  six  of  whom  are  now  living. 

William  W.  Smith,  son  of  Timothy,  and 
father  of  Warren  B.,  was  a  boat-builder,  and 
followed  his  trade  in  Provincetown  for  forty- 
five  years.  He  was  a  first-class  workman, 
and,  besides  building  many  whale  boats  and 
seine  boats,  he  built  a  number  of  life-boats  for 
the  government.  He  died  in  1895,  at  the  age 
of  sixty-six.  He  and  his  wife  reared  but  two 
children:  Warren  B.,  the  subject  of  this 
sketch;  and  Willie  M.,  who  lives  in  Salem, 
Mass. 

Warren  B.  Smith  obtained  his  education  in 
Provincetown,  leaving  the  high  school  at  the 
age  of  seventeen,  to  accept  the  position  of 
clerk  in  the  Seaman's  Savings  Bank  in  his 
native  place.  After  five  years  of  competent 
service  there  he  resigned  in  1881,  to   take   the 


place  of  book-keeper  in  the  Home  National 
Bank  of  Brockton,  with  which  he  has  now  been 
connected  some  fifteen  years,  winning  the  con- 
fidence of  all  with  whom  he  has  had  dealings. 
He  was  promoted  from  the  office  of  book- 
keeper to  that  of  receiving  and  paying  teller 
of  the  bank,  and  in  1894  he  assumed  the  duties 
of  cashier,  to  which  he  has  since  given  his  at- 
tention. He  is  a  man  of  ability  and  integrity, 
eminently  fitted  for  the  responsible  position 
which  he  holds. 

On  March  12,  1884,  Mr.  Smith  married 
Stella  Fish,  daughter  of  Silas  D.  Fish,  of 
Provincetown.  Mrs.  Smith  was  born  in  Hy- 
annis,  Mass.  She  is  the  mother  of  two  chil- 
dren —  Minnie  Warren  and  Rosamond  Grey. 
Mr.  Smith  takes  no  active  interest  in  politics, 
preferring  to  devote  his  best  energies  to  busi- 
ness. He  is  a  member  of  the  Commercial 
Club  of  Brockton,  and  belongs  also  to  Paul 
Revere  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  and  Satucket 
Chapter,  Royal  Arch  Masons.  He  attends 
Unity  Church  (Unitarian)  of  Brockton. 


NUREW  M.  WOOD,  Treasurer  of  the 
Middleboro  Savings  Bank,  was  born 
in  Middleboro,  Plymouth  County, 
Mass.,  May  22,  1853,  son  of  Andrew  Cobb 
and  Lucy  Ann  (Miller)  Wood,  and  comes  of 
old  Colonial  stock,  numbering  among  his 
remote  ancestors  Captain  Miles  Standish,  the 
famous  military  leader  of  the  Pilgrims;  also 
John  and  Priscilla  Alden,  whose  daughter 
.Sarah  was  the  wife  of  Alexander  Standish, 
son  of  Miles.  The  line  was  thus  continued: 
p;benezer,  son  of  Alexander  and  Sarah  Stan- 
dish, was  the  father  of  Moses  Standish,  whose 
daughter  Sarah  married  Ephraim  Tinkham ; 
and  Sarah  Tinkham,  their  daughter,  married 
Peter  Wood,  and  was  the  mother  of  David 
Wood,    who   married    Olive    Cobb.      The   last- 


342 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


named  couple  were  the  parents  of  Andrew 
Cobb  Wood,  the  father  of  the  subject  of  this 
sketch.      Their  home  was  in  Middleboro. 

Andrew  Cobb  Wood,  who  was  a  man  of 
much  practical  ability  and  force  of  character, 
was  in  trade  for  a  number  of  years,  dealing  in 
wood  and  lumber,  and  was  quite  successful 
financially.  A  very  popular  citizen,  he  was 
elected  to  several  offices  of  trust  on  the  Re- 
publican ticket.  For  many  years  he  was 
Chairman  of  the  Board  of  Overseers  of  the 
Poor;  and  he  represented  the  town  in  the 
State  legislature  in  1865  and  1866.  He  died 
in  February,  1896,  nine  days  before  his 
eighty-second  birthday.  His  wife,  who  is 
now  seventy-nine  years  of  age,  is  living  with 
her  son  Andrew  M.  Her  parents  were  Alden 
and  Millison  (Lovell)    Miller,    of    Middleboro. 

Andrew  M.  Wood  acquired  his  education  in 
the  schools  of  his  native  town,  including  the 
high  school  and  Peirce  Academy.  He  earned 
his  first  wages  in  a  store,  was  next  employed 
for  thirteen  years  in  the  Bay  State  Straw 
Works,  and  then  assumed  the  duties  of  his 
present  position.  Treasurer  of  Middleboro 
Savings  Bank,  to  which  he  was  appointed  in 
1885.  Mr.  Wood  is  an  able  accountant,  and 
his  character  and  social  qualities  are  such  that 
his  relations  with  all  are  pleasant,  wherefore 
it  is  deemed  desirable  to  keep  him  in  the  posi- 
tion he  now  occupies. 

Mr.  Wood  was  married  November  30,  1875, 
to  Miss  L.  Ardelle  Perkins,  daughter  of  Lsaac 
and  Betsy  (Pratt)  Perkins,  both  of  whom  be- 
longed to  old  representative  families  of  North 
Middleboro.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Wood  have  one 
child  — Theodore  N.,  born  March  9,   1881. 

In  political  preference  Mr.  Wood  is  a  Re- 
publican. He  is  a  member  of  the  Board  of 
Overseers  of  the  Poor,  and  is  at  present  act- 
ing as  clerk  of  that  body,  having  been  elected 
to  fill  a  vacancy.      He  has  also  been   clerk  of 


the  Middleboro  Fire  District  for  seven  years. 
In  all  his  official  duties  he  displays  keenness 
of  perception,  soundness  of  judgment,  and 
strict  integrity  of  purpose. 


fHEODORE  LILLEY,  a  skilled  shoe 
worker  of  Brockton,  was  born  in  18 19, 
son  of  Joseph  and  Arathusia  (Lovejoy) 
Lilley.  He  is  a  descendant  of  a  family  whose 
members  were  distinguished  for  bravery  during 
the  Revolutionary  War.  His  grandfather  lost 
a  leg  at  Bunker  Hill,  afterward  fought  under 
command  of  the  renowned  Paul  Jones,  and 
continued  to  serve  until  the  close  of  the  war. 
His  wife  lived  to  be  eighty-si.x  years  of  age. 
They  had  five  children,  all  of  whom  lived  to 
be  old  but  Joseph,  the  father  of  the  subject  of 
this  sketch.  He  was  a  ship-carpenter  by 
trade,  and  had  some  military  experience,  being 
taken  prisoner  by  the  Indians  during  the  War 
of  1812.  He  married  Miss  Lovejoy,  an  Eng- 
lishwoman, by  whom  he  had  two  children: 
Thomas,  who  is  now  eighty  years  old,  and  a 
resident  of  Somerville,  Mass. ;  and  Theodore. 
Joseph  Lilley  died  in  1822,  and  his  wife  about 
eight  years  later.  He  had  a  brother,  John 
Lilley,  who  was  in  the  cane  and  umbrella 
business  in  Boston  for  half  a  century,  his  sign 
being  one  of  the  oldest  in  the  business  sec- 
tion. His  sons  now  continue  the  enterprise. 
Theodore  Lilley,  direct  subject  of  this  sketch, 
was  educated  in  the  public  schools  of  Brock- 
ton and  Boston.  Left  an  orphan  at  the  age  of 
eleven  by  his  mother's  death,  he  began  to  seek 
means  of  self-support,  and  applied  himself  to 
learn  shoemaking,  which  he  mastered  in  all 
its  details.  He  has  followed  his  trade  for  over 
si.\ty  years,  and  has  been  a  resident  of  this 
city  since  1831.  During  all  this  period  he 
has  never  had  occasion  to  strike  for  higher 
wages.     In   politics   he  was  at  first  affiliated 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


343 


with  the  Whigs,  but   later  became  a  member 
of  the   Republican   party. 

Mr.  Lilley  has  been  twice  married,  his  first 
wife  having  been  Annie  R.,  daughter  of 
Charles  Keith,  of  Campello.  She  died  Janu- 
ary 2  1,  1882.  She  had  three  children,  two  of 
whom  are  now  living  in  the  West  —  Clara 
Anna,  at  Blue  Mound,  111.;  and  Mary  Alice, 
who  lives  in  Decatur,  111.  Clara  Anna 
married  F"rederick  H.  Henshie,  February  i, 
1S70,  and  has  two  adopted  children.  Mr. 
Henshie  has  served  as  Postmaster,  Alder- 
man, Town  Treasurer,  and  has  held  other 
positions  of  trust  and  responsibility.  Mary 
Alice  married  John  G.  Harvey,  of  Kentucky, 
October  29,  1866.  Mrs.  Harvey  has  three 
living  children  —  Ellis  T.,  born  January  19, 
1S70;  William  Keith,  born  December  26, 
1871  ;  and  Albert  G.,  born  September  5, 
1874.  Mr.  Lilley's  second  matrimonial  alli- 
ance was  formed  December  10,  1884,  with 
Mrs.  Frances  A.  Prescott,  of  Wakefield,  who 
was  born  in  Washington,  Me.,  daughter  of 
Andrew  and  Mary  Sukeworth,  of  Washing- 
ton, Me.  Her  first  husband  died  December 
21,  1881.  Mr.  Lilley  is  now  practically  re- 
tired from  business,  but  still  continues  to 
look  after  his  real  estate. 


C^": 


APTAIN     ELISHA     P.     SPRAGUE;, 


a  retired  ship-master  of  Marshfield, 
^^y*  ^  has  visited  nearly  every  known 
quarter  of  the  globe;  and  his  mind  is  richly 
stored  with  general  information  and  interest- 
ing anecdote.  He  was  born  in  Du.xljury, 
Mass.,  November  20,  1822,  a  son  of  Captain 
Jonathan  and  Ruth  (Phillips)  Sprague.  Cap- 
tain Jonathan  Sprague,  who  was  a  son  of  Jona- 
than Sprague,  of  Marshfield,  was  born  and 
reared  in  this  town.  He  followed  the  sea  for 
a  number  of  years,  and  had  a  varied  experience 


in  the  coasting,  the  West  India,  and  the 
foreign  trade.  He  died  in  1832.  Two  of  his 
children  are  living:  Elisha  P.,  the  subject  of 
this  sketch;  and  Angeline  M.,  whose  home  is 
at  Marshfield  Hills,  Mass. 

Elisha  P.  Sprague  was  ten  years  of  age 
when  his  father  died.  He  was  educated  in  the 
common  schools  of  Du.xbury,  remaining  at 
home  until  he  was  sixteen  years  old.  Then, 
adopting  the  vocation  followed  by  his  father, 
he  took  to  the  sea,  and  in  ten  years  passed 
through  the  various  grades  of  promotion  to  the 
rank  of  captain.  Among  the  vessels  which 
he  commanded  were  the  brig  "Trenton,"  of 
Diixbury,  on  which  he  sailed  for  five  years, 
making  a  number  of  foreign  voyages;  the 
bark  "Tallyho, "  trading  between  Archangel, 
Russia,  and  Boston,  Mass.;  the  ship  "Ocean 
Eagle,"  trading  between  Calcutta,  India,  and 
Boston;  the  ship  "Meteor,"  on  which  he  made 
one  voyage,  between  Boston  and  Mediterranean 
ports;  the  "Josiah  Ouincy,"  of  which  he  was 
master  some  five  years,  making  a  number  of 
foreign  voyages;  and  the  ship  "Marshall," 
which  was  in  his  charge  about  a  year  and  a 
half.  This  vessel  was  captured  at  the  time  of 
the  war  at  New  Orleans  by  the  Confederates, 
and  was  burned  by  them.  His  last  vessel,  the 
"Merchant,"  which  was  engaged  in  foreign 
trade,  was  in  his  charge  some  eight  years. 
Captain  Sprague  retired  from  the  sea  in  1870, 
and  has  since  spent  most  of  his  time  in  his 
pleasant  home  in  Marshfield.  P'rom  his  quiet 
retreat  here  he  can  look  back  to  stirring 
scenes  in  his  younger  days;  and  his  knowledge 
of  the  world  and  of  all  classes  of  humanity  is 
an  unending  source  of  pleasure  to  himself  and 
others. 

Captain  Sprague  has  been  twice  married. 
His  first  wife,  Sarah  T.  Stevens,  who  was 
born  here,  March  15,  1828,  died  April  26, 
1849;  and  on  October  i,  1853,  he  was  united 


344 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


with  Lucy  A.  Cushman,  of  Duxbury,  who  was 
born  August  7,  1835,  daughter  of  Briggs  and 
Lucy  (Keen)  Cushman,  who  were  both  natives 
of  that  town.  Mr.  Cushman,  who  was  a  car- 
penter, died  in  1883.  By  his  second  union 
the  captain  has  two  sons:  Francis  B.,  born 
October  25,  1S54,  at  South  Framingham, 
Mass.;  and  Marshall  P.,  born  September  2, 
i860,  in  South  Weymouth,  Mass.;  and  one 
daughter,  Nellie  R.,  who  was  born  September 
8,   1865,  and  died  June  6,   1868. 

Captain  Sprague  votes  the  Republican 
ticket.  He  is  a  Mason,  belonging  to  Corner 
Stone  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Duxbury. 
Mrs.  Sprague  is  a  member  of  the  Congrega- 
tional church  and  of  the  Ladies'  Benevolent 
Society  connected  with  it.  The  captain  and 
his  wife  take  an  active  interest  in  all  social 
events  of  importance  in  the  town,  and  are  very 
popular  members  of  the  community. 


ILLIAM  E.  SPARROW,  M.D., 
has  been  actively  engaged  in  the 
practice  of  medicine  in  Mattapoisett 
for  nearly  half  a  century,  and  has  also  long 
been  identified  with  the  business  and  political 
life  of  the  place.  He  was  born  in  the  adjoin- 
ing town  of  Rochester,  April  21,  1S24,  a  son 
of  Josiah  and  Minerva  (Millen)  Sparrow. 
His  early  boyhood  was  passed  on  a  farm;  and, 
when  he  was  sixteen  years  old,  he  entered  a 
drug  store  in  Mattapoisett,  where  he  was  em- 
ployed as  clerk  until  his  professional  stLidies 
were  completed. 

When  he  was  eighteen  years  of  age,  he  began 
to  study  medicine  with  Dr.  Newton  South- 
worth,  of  this  town;  and  in  1847  he  entered 
Yale  College,  where  he  was  graduated  in  1848. 
He  immediately  started  in  on  professional 
work,  and  had  established  a  good  practice 
in   Mattapoisett    when    the    war    broke    out. 


Answering  the  call  for  surgeons,  he  was 
located  at  Jefferson  Barracks,  St.  Louis,  Mo., 
in  1863,  and  in  1864  was  in  Virginia,  and  was 
acting  assistant  surgeon,  following  Grant  in 
the  hospitals.  This  military  hospital  jjractice 
made  him  an  expert  in  the  most  difficult  cases 
of  surgery,  and  also  broadened  his  experience 
in  treating  fevers  and  other  diseases  incident 
to  army  life,  so  that,  when  he  returned  to  his 
quiet  Mattapoisett  home,  few  physicians  in  the 
locality  could  compete  with  him  in  profes- 
sional knowledge  and  skill.  Dr.  Sparrow  has 
be'en  for  many  years  proprietor  of  a  drug  store 
in  this  town.  In  1867  he  undertook  the  man- 
agement of  some  lumber-mills  in  the  town  of 
Marion,  which  are  yet  under  his  control ;  and 
for  fifteen  years  he  has  been  interested  in 
cranberry  culture,  owning  extensive  meadows 
in  Marion. 

Dr.  Sparrow  was  first  married  in  1852  to 
Sophronia  S.  Holmes.  She  died  in  1865, 
leaving  four  children  —  William  E. ,  Jr.,  Eliz- 
abeth H.,  Solomon  E.,  and  I'rank  Miller. 
The  eldest  son,  William  E.  Sparrow,  Jr., 
qualified  as  a  civil  engineer,  but  is  now  en- 
gaged in  manufacturing  in  New  Bedford; 
Elizabeth  Sparrow  is  the  wife  of  Ward  P.  Del- 
ano, of  Worcester;  and  Solomon  E.  Sparrow 
is  a  graduate  of  West  Point,  and  holds  the 
rank  of  Lieutenant  in  the  United  States 
Army.  The  youngest  son,  I'rank  M.  Spar- 
row, is  a  graduate  of  Harvard,  and  is  now  a 
practising  attorney  in  New  Bedford.  Dr. 
Sparrow  contracted  a  second  marriage  in  1868 
with  Mrs.  Eliza  Har<ling,  daughter  of  George 
Dunham,  of  Martha's  Vineyard,  but  has  no 
children  by  this  union. 

In  political  matters  he  favors  the  Republi- 
can side.  He  was  first  appointed  to  public 
office  in  1856,  when  he  was  made  Deputy 
Postmaster  of  Mattapoisett.  In  this  capacity 
he   served   until    1866,  when,  the   Postmaster, 


EDMUND    HERSEY. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


347 


Benjamin  F.  Barstovv,  dying,  Dr.  Sparrow 
succeeded  him,  and  was  in  office  until  1S93. 
He  has  been  a  member  of  the  Town  Board  of 
Health  for  forty-five  years,  and  a  member  of 
the  School  Committee  for  more  than  twenty 
years.  Dr.  Sparrow  attends  the  Congrega- 
tional church. 


ISAAC  GILMAN  STETSON,  a  retired 
merchant  and  the  present  Postmaster  of 
South  Hanover,  was  born  in  the  town  of 
Pembroke,  Plymouth  County,  Mass.,  August 
7,  1826,  son  of  Isaac  O.  and  Emily  (Josselyn) 
Stetson,  he  being  the  only  child. 

He  was  educated  in  the  district  school  and 
at  Hanover  Academy.  He  remained  at  home 
until  i<S'59,  then  came  to  South  Hanover,  and 
entered  the  store  of  E.  Y.  Perry  as  clerk. 
After  a  few  years  he  purchased  an  interest  in 
the  business,  and  the  firm  name  was  changed 
to  E.  Y.  Perry  &  Co.  Mr.  Stetson  subse- 
quently bought  out  Mr.  Perry's  interest,  and 
conducted  the  store  alone.  In  1870  he  erected 
the  store  now  occujued  by  E.  W.  Philli|)s, 
where  he  carried  on  a  successful  general  mer- 
cantile business  until  1890,  a  period  of 
twenty  years.  Although  he  then  retired  from 
trade,  he  still  continues  to  hold  the  office 
of  Postmaster,  in  which  capacity  he  has  now 
served  for  thirty-five  years.  This  and  the 
management  of  his  farm  occupy  his  time  quite 
fully.  In  1846,  fifty  years  ago,  Mr.  Stetson 
was  joined  in  marriage  with  Miss  Jane  R. 
Oldham,  daughter  of  A.  \V.  Oldham,  of  Pem- 
broke. Three  of  their  four  children  are  living, 
namely:  Emily,  wife  of  S.  W.  Bailey;  Fred; 
and  Grace,  the  wife  of  E.  W.  Phillips.  Their 
other  child,  Mary,  died  in  infancy. 

Mr.  Stetson  is  a  Republican  politically, 
and  in  1885  was  a  member  of  the  State  legis- 
lature.     He  has  also  served  as   Selectman  for 


about   ten   years,    being  for  a   portion    of   that 
time  Chairman  of  the  Board. 


DMUND  IIERSEY,  of  Hingham,  in- 
structor in  farming  at  the  Bussey  In- 
stitution in  Jamaica  Plain,  the 
School  of  Agriculture  and  Horticulture  con- 
nected with  Harvard  University,  and  superin- 
tendent of  the  Bussey  Farm,  was  born  in 
Hingham,  August  7,  1823,  son  of  Samuel  F. 
and  Persis  (Hobart)  Hersey. 

The  original  founder  of  the  family  in 
America  was  William  Hersey,  who  emigrated 
from  England  in  1635,  and  in  the  fall  of  that 
year  settled  in  Hingham.  He  became  identi- 
fied with  the  town  government,  and  was  promi- 
nent in  its  affairs  until  his  death,  which  took 
place  in  1657  or  1658.  His  wife,  Elizabeth, 
died  in  1671.  Their  son  John  was  born  in 
Hingham,  and  here  followed  the  trade  of  a 
tailor  for  the  greater  part  of  his  active  life. 
He  was  serving  as  a  Constable  in  1701,  and 
he  died  at  the  age  of  eighty-six  years.  His 
wife,  Sarah,  a  native  of  Dedham,  Mass.,  lived 
to  be  eighty-three  years  old.  They  were  the 
parents  of  eleven  children;  and  of  these 
Daniel,  the  next  in  line,  was  the  eighth. 

Daniel  Hersey  was  born  in  Hingjiam,  as 
was  each  succeeding  ancestor  down  to  the  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch;  and  his  wife,  whose 
maiden  name  was  Mary  Mays,  is  thought  to 
have  been  a  native  of  this  town.  He  was  a 
cooper  by  trade,  and  he  also  carried  on  farm- 
ing. The  house  he  lived  in  is  still  standing 
on  Hersey  Street,  in  a  good  state  of  preserva- 
tion. Daniel  and  Mary  Hersey  reared  a  fam- 
ily of  five  children,  Isaiah,  Mr.  Edmund  Her- 
sey's  great-grandfather,  being  the  fourth-born. 
He  was  a  cooper  and  a  farmer,  and  he  lived  to 
be  eighty-two  years  old.  He  wedded  Margaret 
Sprague,  of  Hingham,  a  descendant  of  William 


348 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Sprague,  an  early  settler;  and  they  were  the 
parents  of  eight  children,  of  whom  Reuben, 
the  next  in  line,  was  the  youngest.  The 
mother   lived  to  the  age  of  eighty-eight  years. 

Reuben  Hersey,  grandfather  of  Edmund, 
followed  the  cooper's  trade  in  connection  with 
farming,  and  was  eighty-eight  years  old  when 
he  died.  He  was  a  member  of  the  Unitarian 
church,  and  in  politics  was  a  Jacksonian  Dem- 
ocrat. He  married  Mary  French,  a  native  of 
Weymouth,  Mass.;  and  they  reared  a  family 
of  six  children,  of  whom  Samuel  F. ,  above 
named,  was  the  second-born.  Mrs.  Mary  F. 
Hersey  died  at  the  age  of  sixty-four  years. 

Samuel  F.  Hersey  was  a  lifelong  resident  of 
Ilingham;  and,  like  his  ancestors,  he  learned 
the  cooper's  trade,  which  he  followed  to  some 
extent.  He  was,  however,  particularly  inter- 
ested in  agriculture  as  a  science;  and,  as  an 
experimental  farmer,  he  derived  considerable 
local  notoriety.  He  attained  the  advanced 
age  of  ninety-three  years.  His  wife,  Persis 
Hobart,  became  the  mother  of  four  children, 
as  follows:  Persis,  who  was  born  in  1814, 
married  Isaac  Cothrell,  of  Hingham,  and  is  the 
mother  of  six  children  —  namely,  Isaac,  Eliza- 
beth, Sarah,  Albion,  Edward,  and  Addie; 
Mary  French,  who  was  born  in  1816,  married 
Elijah  C.  Cothrell,  of  this  town,  and  has  three 
children  living  —  namely,  Elijah  L.,  Reuben 
H.,  and  Nellie;  Samuel,  who  was  born  in 
1820,  whose  wife,  Ciseline  Stoddard,  of  Hing- 
ham, died  leaving  no  children;  and  Edmund, 
the  subject  of  this  sketch.  Mrs.  Persis 
Hobart  Hersey  lived  to  be  seventy-six  years 
old.  Representatives  of  each  generation  of 
the  Hersey  family  were  members  of  the  old 
First  Church,  whose  earliest  pastor  was  the 
Rev.  Peter  Hobart.  It  is  a  fact  worthy  of 
mention  that  representatives  of  five  genera- 
tions of  the  family  have  erected  dwellings  on 
Hersey  Street,  the  origin  of   whose   name    is 


obvious;  and  all  of  these  houses  are  still 
owned  in  the  family.  Daniel  built  in  1730; 
Isaiah,  in  1753;  Reuben,  in  1776;  Samuel 
F.,  in  1813;  Cedar  Hedge  was  erected  by  Ed- 
mund Hersey  in  1851;  and  Reuben  H.  Coth- 
rell has  also  built  a  residence  on  Hersey 
Street  —  and  all  are  within  a  quarter  of  a  mile 
of  each  other. 

Edmund  Hersey  was  educated  in  the  public 
schools  of  Hingham;  and,  when  a  young  man, 
he  learned  the  trade  of  a  cooper  and  box-maker 
with  his  father.  He  continued  to  work  as  a 
journeyman  for  some  years;  and  in  1848  he 
invented  a  machine  for  the  manufacture  of 
boxes,  which  revolutionized  the  trade.  This 
invention,  which  practically  did  away  with 
hand  work  in  the  box  manufacturing  business, 
is  now  used  in  all  factories  throughout  the 
country;  and  after  introducing  it,  and  assuring 
himself  of  its  success,  its  inventor  relin- 
quished mechanical  pursuits.  Mr.  Hersey 
next  entered  the  field  of  journalism  as  agri- 
cultural editor  of  the  Massachusetts  Plough- 
man, and  remained  with  that  well-known 
paper  for  eight  years. 

At  an  early  age  he  displayed  a  taste  and 
capacity  for  agricultural  pursuits;  and,  when 
nineteen  years  old,  he  began  to  make  scientific 
experiments  upon  a  small  plot  of  ground  given 
him  by  his  uncle.  As  he  grew  older,  he  de- 
veloped his  genius  in  this  direction,  and 
acquired  a  vast  amount  of  practical  knowledge 
relating  to  the  elementary  principles  and  ad- 
vanced methods  of  agriculture.  His  home- 
stead property  in  Hingham  consists  of  fifty 
acres,  which  has  afforded  him  ample  opportu- 
nity to  forward  and  accomplish  many  impor- 
tant experiments;  and  probably  there  is  not  a 
more  able,  progressive,  and  successful  agri- 
cultural scientist  in  the  State  to-day  than  is 
Mr.  Hersey.  In  1890  he  became  connected 
.   with  the  Bussey  Institution  in  Jamaica  Plain, 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


349 


a  department  of  Harvard  University;  and  he  is 
now  instructor  in  the  theory  and  practice  of 
farming,  and  superintendent  of  Bussey  Farm, 
which  is  used  for  experimental  purposes. 

IVIr.  Hersey  has  been  twice  married.  His 
first  wife  was  Mary  C.  Hobart,  daughter  of 
Ebed  Hobart,  of  Hingham.  She  died  at  the 
age  of  sixty-one  years,  leaving  one  daughter, 
Fanny,  who  was  born  in  1854,  and  is  the  wife 
of  James  E.  Perry,  of  Pepperell,  Mass.,  and 
mother  of  two  daughters  —  Lizzie  F.  and 
Lillie.  Mr.  Hersey's  present  wife  was  before 
marriage  Clara  S.  Sherman.  She  is  a  native 
of  Scituate,  Mass.  By  this  union  there  are 
no  children. 

Mr.  Hersey  has  been  a  member  of  the 
Massachusetts  Board  of  Agriculture  twenty- 
one  years,  and  is  to-day  the  oldest  elective 
member  of  the  Board.  For  five  years,  by 
unanimous  election,  he  was  President  of  the 
Agricultural  Society  of  Hingham;  and  for  ten 
years  he  was  also  Trustee  of  the  Hingham 
Savings  Institution.  In  politics  Mr.  Hersey 
is  a  Republican.  He  has  held  several  impor- 
tant offices,  and  was  Overseer  of  the  Poor  for 
some  years.  He  was  for  three  years  State 
statistician,  and  in  that  period  he  greatly  im- 
proved the  system  of  obtaining  statistics.  He 
is  a  man  of  original  ideas,  who  possesses  the 
skill  to  prove  their  utility ;  and  tor  the  past 
six  years,  as  agricultural  editor  of  the  0/t/ 
Fanner  s  Almanac,  he  has  placed  many  of 
them  within  reach  of  the  practical  farmers  of 
this  Commonwealth. 


I^UTHER  WHITE,  contractor  and 
jJT  builder,  of  Marshfield,  Mass.,  was 
-^ —  ^  born  in  Plymouth,  Mass.,  April  13, 
1829,  a  son  of  Thomas  F.  and  Hannah 
(Clarke)  White.  Mr.  White  is  a  scion  of  one 
of  the  old  Pilgrim  families  famous  in  the  his- 


tory of  the  Bay  State,  being  the  seventh  in 
lineal  descent  from  Peregrine  White,  the  first 
child  of  English  parentage  born  within  New 
England  limits,  whose  birthplace,  it  will  be 
remembered,  was  the  cabin  of  the  "May- 
flower," then  at  anchor  in  Provincetown  Har- 
bor. He  was  named  Peregrine  to  commemo- 
rate the  wanderings  or  peregrinations  of  the 
Pilgrim  fathers  and  mothers.  Peregrine 
White  married  Sarah  Bassett ;  and  their  son 
Daniel  was  the  father  of  Benjamin  and  grand- 
father of  Benjamin  White,  Jr.,  who  was  the 
father  of  Luther,  first,  and  great-grandfather 
of  the  subject  of  this  sketch.  Thomas  F. 
White,  who  was  a  son  of  the  first  Luther,  was 
born  and  reared  in  Marshfield.  He  devoted 
his  life  to  the  pursuit  of  agriculture,  and  was 
also  engaged  in  teaming  to  some  extent.  His 
death  occurred  in  April,  1889.  Mrs.  White, 
who  was  born  in  Plymouth,  died  in  Marsh- 
field in  1876.  They  were  the  parents  of  the 
following  children  :  Mary,  wife  of  Thomas 
Thurber,  of  Attleboro,  Mass.  ;  Luther,  the 
subject  of  this  sketch;  Peregrine  F. ,  now  in 
Worcester,  Mass.  ;  Sarah,  wife  of  Henry  Bos- 
worth,  of  Pembroke,  Mass.  ;  Edward,  living  in 
Ouincy,  Mass.  ;  Betsey,  widow  of  George  J. 
Peterson,  of  Mar.shfield ;  and  Hannah  T.  and 
Mehitable  M.,  deceased. 

Luther  White  was  educated  in  Marshfield, 
his  parents  removing  from  Plymouth  to  this 
town  when  he  was  five  years  old.  His  school- 
ing was  limited  to  the  winter  sessions  of  the 
district  school,  and  ended  when  he  was  sixteen 
years  old.  At  the  age  of  seventeen  he  began 
to  learn  the  carpenter's  trade  at  Dorchester, 
Mass.,  with  David  Bartlett,  a  well-kno'wn 
builder  of  that  place,  and  served  four  years; 
and  he  afterward  worked  for  Mr.  Bartlett  as  a 
journeyman  some  twelve  years.  He  remained 
in  the  vicinity  of  Dorchester  until  1876,  re- 
turning then  to  Marshfield,  where  he  has  now 


35° 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


made  his  home  for  twenty  years  in  succession. 
As  a  contractor  and  builder,  Mr.  White  has  the 
confidence  of  the  public.  He  has  finished  a 
number  of  important  contracts,  including  resi- 
dences at  Brant  Rock  and  Green  Harbor  and 
the  Ventress  Memorial  Hall  in  Marshfield, 
now  the  town  hall  and  high  school.  Mr. 
White  has  made  his  own  way  in  life,  winning 
the  general  respect  always  accorded  success. 
He  married  Miss  Mary  A.  Church,  daughter 
of  the  late  John  Church,  of  Pembroke,  Mass. 
Mr.  White  votes  the  Republican  ticket.  He 
is  a  public-spirited  citizen,  always  in  favor  of 
progress  and  improvement. 


, ATTAIN  JAMES  BURGES.S,  a  prom- 
inent citizen  of  Wareham,  Mass.,  son 
of  John  and  Hitty  (Linnell)  Bur- 
gess, formerly  of  Orleans,  Mass.,  has  followed 
the  sea  for  forty-seven  years,  and  is  now  living 
at  ease  on  the  farm  where  he  was  born,  Octo- 
ber s,  1815.  On  this  farm  the  earlier  days 
of  his  boyhood  were  spent ;  and  the  educational 
advantages  with  which  he  began  active  life 
were  very  scanty,  the  fund  of  knowledge  which 
he  now  possesses  having  been  mostly  acquired 
in  the  inductive  school  of  experience.  When 
only  twelve  years  of  age,  he  shipped  as  boy  on 
a  coasting  vessel,  and  in  course  of  time  was 
advanced  to  the  position  of  able  seaman.  He 
was  in  the  coasting  trade  nine  years,  or  until 
he  was  twenty-one,  and  became  very  familiar 
with  the  Atlantic  shore.  He  then  shipped 
as  mate  of  a  merchant  vessel  at  Boston,  and 
ten  years  later  he  was  captain  of  a  merchant- 
man. In  this  capacity  he  sailed  for  twenty 
years,  visiting  many  parts  of  the  globe  and 
doubling  Cape  Horn  several  times. 

In  all  this  period  he  never  lost  a  vessel,  and 
he  established  a  reputation  for  reliability  that 
was   worth   more  than   his   salary.      When    he 


became  captain,  he  purchased  shares  in  the 
vessels  which  he  sailed,  and  was  soon  in  com- 
mand of  an  independent  income.  In  1S74  he 
returned  to  the  paternal  farm,  his  birthplace, 
which  has  now  been  his  permanent  home  for 
twenty-si.x  years.  He  has  thirty  acres  of  land, 
and  is  very  comfortably  and  pleasantly  situ- 
ated. Captain  Burgess  won  success  by  his  own 
unaided  ability  and  strength  of  purpose,  stur- 
dily working  his  way  upward,  beginning  as  a 
penniless  ship  boy,  and  gradually  attaining  his 
present  prosperity. 

He  was  married  April  27,  1856,  to  Miss 
Margery  J.  Robinson,  of  Nova  Scotia,  who 
died  February  3,  1S77,  leaving  one  child,  John 
S.  ;  and  he  subsequently  married,  March  20, 
1878,  Miss  Helen  M.  Baker,  daughter  of  Mark 
Baker,  of  North  Conway,  N.  H.  He  has  no 
children  by  his  second  union.  Captain  Bur- 
gess votes  the  Republican  ticket,  but  takes  no 
active  part  in  politics.  He  is  a  member  of 
Social  Harmony  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of 
Wareham.  One  of  the  oldest  citizens  of  the 
town,  he  is  widely  known  and  highly  re- 
spected. 

FORGE  M.  BAKER  has  long  been  an 
honored  citizen  of  Marshfield,  his 
native  place.  He  was  born  February 
2,  1820,  and  is  a  son  of  George  and  Becky 
(Snell)  Baker.  His  grandfather,  Major  Eli- 
jah Baker,  served  in  the  Revolutionary  War. 
His  father,  George  Baker,  who  was  born  in 
Duxbury,  Mass.,  resided  for  a  number  of  years 
in  Marshfield,  following  the  carjDenter's  trade 
and  also  acting  as  auctioneer.  He  was  an 
officer  in  the  State  militia,  and  was  familiarly 
known  as  Major  George  Baker.  In  politics  he 
was  a  Whig.  He  died  in  1838.  His  wife, 
who  was  born    in    Bridgewater,  Mass.,  died    in 

1845. 

George  M.  Baker  was  born  and  reared  in  his 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


351 


present  home.  He  obtained  his  elementary 
education  in  the  public  schools  of  Marshfield, 
subsequently  attending  the  academy  and  the 
'  State  Normal  School  at  Bridgevvater.  After 
finishing  his  studies,  he  was  engaged  as  a  dis- 
trict school  teacher  in  Uuxbury  and  Marsh- 
field  some  fourteen  winters.  In  1855  he  en- 
gaged in  the  sale  of  general  merchandise  at 
Marshfield,  and  managed  a  prosperous  busi- 
ness for  fifteen  years,  retiring  then  from 
trade.  In  his  early  manhood  he  became  agent 
for  the  Ouincy  Mutual  Fire  Insurance  Com- 
pany, and  he  was  subsequently  employed  as 
agent  for  the  Hingham  Mutual  and  other  fire 
insurance  companies.  At  present  he  repre- 
sents a  number  of  leading  insurance  associa- 
tions, including  the  Mutual  Life  Insurance 
Company  of  New  York,  and  devotes  the 
greater  part  of  his  time  to  the  insurance  busi- 
ness. 

Mr.  Baker  was  married  in  October,  1S42,  to 
Sophronia  H.,  daughter  of  Captain  William 
Weston,  formerly  a  well-known  seafaring 
man  of  Marshfield.  Five  children  have 
blessed  their  union,  namely:  George; 
Frank;  Mary  W.  ;  Stella  B.  ;  and  Martin, 
who  died  at  the  Massachusetts  Agricultural 
College,  aged  nineteen  years.  George  Baker 
for  several  years  was  one  of  the  Board  of  Se- 
lectmen, was  a  member  of  the  legislature  for 
the  year  1882,  and  for  many  years  was  engaged 
in  mercantile  pursuits.  Frank  Baker  gradu- 
ated in  1872  at  the  United  States  Military 
Academy  at  West  Point,  standing  number  five 
in  a  class  of  fifty-seven  members.  He  served 
with  his  regiment  (the  Thirteenth  Infantry)  in 
various  parts  of  the  United  States,  and  was 
transferred  in  1879  to  the  Ordnance  Depart- 
ment of  the  army.  He  is  now  a  Captain  in 
that  branch  of  the  service.  Mary  and  Stella 
Baker  have  been  teachers  in  the  public  schools 
for  many  years. 


When  a  young  man,  Mr.  George  M.  Baker 
was  elected  to  the  School  Committee  of 
Marshfield,  and  served  over  twenty-five  years; 
and  he  was  also  one  of  the  Selectmen  for  sev- 
eral years,  serving  at  different  periods.  In 
1852  and  1S53  he  was  in  the  Massachusetts 
State  legislature,  and  he  was  Postmaster  from 
1858  to  1885.  He  was  one  of  the  founders  of 
the  Marshfield  Agricultural  and  Horticultural 
Society,  was  elected  its  first  President,  and 
held  that  office  twenty  years.  For  fourteen 
years  he  was  a  member  of  the  Massachusetts 
State  Board  of  Agriculture. 

He  has  been  a  lifelong  temperance  man,  and 
interested  in  all  measures  for  the  suppression 
of  the  traffic  and  use  of  into.xicating  liquors 
as  a  beverage.  He  was  early  interested  in  the 
anti-slavery  agitation,  and  cast  his  first  vote 
for  James  G.  Binney  in  1841.  When  the 
Liberty  party  became  merged  in  the  Free  Soil 
party,  he  was  with  that  party;  and  he  em- 
braced the  Republican  party  at  its  organiza- 
tion. He  has  never  voted  with  any  other 
national  party.  He  was  one  of  the  movers  in 
the  enterprise  to  shut  out  the  tides  from  Green 
Harbor  Marsh,  whereby  some  fourteen  hundred 
acres  of  salt  meadow  were  reclaimed  for  agri- 
cultural purposes  by  the  construction  of  the 
Marshfield  Dike.  The  welfare  of  his  native 
town  has  always  been  dear  to  him,  and  he 
ranks  as  one  of  her  public-spirited  citizens. 


DWARD  Y.  PERR¥,-one  of  the  fore- 
most citizens  of  Hanover,  Mass.,  was 
born  in  that  part  of  the  town  of  Pem- 
broke, Plymouth  County,  now  known  as  Han- 
son, November  4,  18 12.  His  parents  were 
Elijah  and  Chloe  (Stetson)  Perry.  The  old 
homestead  has  been  occupied  by  his  ancestors 
for  several  generations. 

The  Perry  stock  is  among  the  best   in   New 


352 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


England.  Its  representatives  have  been  wor- 
thily engaged  in  various  spheres  of  human 
activity ;  but  more  especially  have  they  figured 
among  the  sturdy  and  intelligent  holders  and 
tillers  of  the  soil,  who,  independent  and 
patriotic  of  spirit,  were  quick  to  resist 
oppression  in  time  of  danger  from  foreign 
foes,  and  as  quick  in  time  of  peace  to  do 
their  part  in  developing  the  resources  of  the 
country. 

Mr.  Perry's  paternal  grandparents,  Seth  and 
Hannah  Perry,  were  of  this  class.  The  for- 
mer, a  farmer  by  occupation,  gave  up  the 
plough  for  the  musket,  and  fought  bravely 
for  American  independence  in  the  Revolution- 
ary War.  Their  son  Elijah  learned  the  trade 
of  a  moulder,  but  subsequently  devoted  most 
of  his  time  to  farming.  He  shared  in  a  large 
degree  the  sturdy  patriotism  of  his  father,  and 
performed  active  military  service  in  the  War 
of  1812.  The  hardships  which  he  endured  at 
this  time  were  the  cause  of  his  death  about 
two  years  after  the  close  of  the  war.  His 
wife,  Chloe,  had  died  in  IJecember,  1812, 
when  their  son  Edward,  the  subject  of  this 
sketch,  was  but  seven  weeks  old. 

Left  an  orphan  at  the  age  of  but  two  years, 
little  Edward  was  taken  care  of  by  his  pater- 
nal grandparents,  with  whom  he  remained  dur- 
ing his  minority,  engaged  in  his  later  youth  in 
tilling  the  ancestral  acres.  Seth  Perry  and 
his  wife  both  lived  to  be  very  old,  he  dying 
when  about  ninety-five  years  of  age,  and  she 
surviving  to  the  remarkable  age  of  ninety- 
nine  years  and  nine  months.  Upon  attaining 
his  majority,  Edward  Y.  Perry  started  in  busi- 
ness for  himself,  his  first  venture  being  as  a 
country  merchant  in  Hanson,  where  he  contin- 
ued for  several  years,  meeting  with  fair  suc- 
cess. Having,  however,  for  the  purpose  of 
accommodating  others  indorsed  some  paper 
which   subsequently   proved   worthless,  he   lost 


all  he  had  made,  and  found  himself  several 
thousand  dollars  in  debt  besides.  This  debt 
he  paid  in  time,  but  it  proved  for  some  years 
a  heavy  ta.x  upon  his  resources.  By  no  means 
discouraged  by  this  unfortunate  experience,  he 
looked  about  him  for  a  chance  to  retrieve  his 
fortunes.  With  quick  intelligence  he  saw 
that  the  future  of  New  England  depended 
largely  upon  her  manufactures,  and  he  resolved 
to  enter  the  lists  in  what  was  comparatively 
a  new  industry. 

Taking  into  partnership   Mr.  Charles  Dyer, 
a  gentleman  who,    like  himself,  had   failed   in 
business  and   was   in   debt,  the  two,  without  a 
dollar  in  the  world,  engaged   in   the   manufact- 
ure of  tacks  in  the  town  of   Hanover,  on  the 
site  of  the  present  factory  of  S.  C.  Waterman 
&   Sons.      They  began   with   one   or   two   hun- 
dred  pounds   of   iron,    which  they  worked   into 
shape  and    sold,    and   with   the  proceeds  pur- 
chased a  larger  supply  of  raw  material.      From 
this  modest  beginning  they  gradually  built  up 
a  business,   making  a  little  advancement  year 
by  year.      But  their   progress   was  slow;  and, 
when    fifteen    years   had    elapsed    without    any 
marked  degree  of  success,  they  mutually  agreed 
to  dissolve  partnership.      Mr.   Perry,  however, 
resolved  to  continue   in   the   business,  and   ac- 
cordingly    purchased      Mr.      Dyer's     interest, 
which     he    did    mostly    on     credit.      He    then 
bought    the    property    of    the    Hanover    Eorge 
Company  at  South    Hanover,  and  shortly  after- 
ward associated  with  himself  Mr.  Ezra  Phillips 
and  Martin  W.  Stetson,  under  the  firm   name 
of  E.    Y.    Perry   &   Co.      Mr.    Perry  gave    his 
attention    to    the   old    factory;    while    Messrs. 
Phillips   and    .Stetson   made   necessary  changes 
in  the  newly  acquired  property  to  adapt   it  to 
the  manufacture  of  tacks  instead  of  anchor  forg- 
ing.     The  machinery  from   the  old  factory  was 
then  transferred  to  the  new,  and  manufacturing 
conducted  in  the  latter  entirely. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


353 


Shortly  after  this  Mr.  Stetson  withdrew, 
and  Messrs.  Perry  and  Phillips  carried  on  the 
business  together.  This  proved  a  happy  com- 
bination, and  lasted  for  a  period  of  thirty  years, 
at  the  end  of  which  time  Mr.  Perry  withdrew, 
in  order  to  devote  his  attention  to  his  outside 
interests.  The  business  had  been  most  suc- 
cessful, and  the  firm  was  known  as  one  of  the 
largest  tack  manufacturing  concerns  in  the 
country.  Mr.  Perry  pays  a  high  tribute  to 
the  ability  and  character  of  his  partner  with 
whom  he  was  so  long  associated,  and  whose 
qualities,  business  and  social,  were  so  well 
adapted  to  make  their  connection  both  pleasur- 
able and  profitable.  Besides  their  tack  busi- 
ness they  had  established  in  1870  a  steam - 
mill  at  West  Hanover,  which  was  at  once  a 
grist  and  saw  mill,  and  where  also  they  manu- 
factured boxes.  -At  the  same  time,  in  con- 
nection with  others,  they  had  started  a  coal 
and  grain  business  in  Rockland  and  Hanover 
and  a  leather  and  findings  store  in  Boston, 
under  the  firm  name  of  Phinney  &  Phillips. 
On  dissolving  partnership,  all  these  outside 
interests  fell  into  Mr.  Perry's  hands.  The 
mill  at  West  Hanover  is  now  conducted  under 
the  firm  name  of  L.  Phillips  &  Co.,  Mr.  Lot 
Phillips  being  a  ixutner.  The  grain  business 
at  Rockland  is  continued  under  the  name  of 
Culver,  Phillips  &  Co.  The  leather  store  in 
Boston,  although  a  successful  venture,  was 
discontinued  in  1S82. 

In  1883  Mr.  Perry,  in  company  with  Will- 
iam A.  Vannah  and  I{.  P.  Sweeney,  purchased 
the  property  known  as  Winslow's  Mills  at 
Waldoboro,  Me.,  and,  under  the  firm  name  of 
Vannah,  Sweeney  &  Co.,  went  into  business 
as  dealers  in  lumber,  bark,  wood,  grain,  flour, 
hay,  and  groceries;  and  he  still  remains  con- 
nected with  this  firm,  which  does  a  flourishing 
business.  He  is  also  engaged,  in  company 
with   Charles   E.   Soule,  of   Pembroke,  in   buy- 


ing and  selling  real  estate,  lumber,  and  wood; 
and  they  have  been  very  successful. 

Prior  to  1861  Mr.  Perry  was  one  of  the  lead- 
ing men  in  agitating  the  Cjuestion  of  building 
a  railroad  from  North  Abington  to  Hanover. 
But  at  that  time  few  could  be  found  willing 
to  invest  a  dollar ;  and  the  accomplishment  of 
the  enterprise  would  have  remained  something 
rather  to  be  wished  than  hoped  for,  had  it  not 
been  for  Mr.  Perry's  persistent  and  aggressive 
efforts.  An  old  charter  had  been  granted  for 
the  purpose  many  years  previously,  but  noth- 
ing had  been  done.  It  was  now  renewed,  and 
matters  were  just  beginning  to  assume  a  prac- 
tical form  when  the  breaking  out  of  the  Civil 
War  stopped  operations.  After  the  war  Mr. 
Perry  renewed  his  efforts;  and  in  July,  1868, 
he  had  the  satisfaction  of  seeing  the  road  an 
accomplished  fact.  Upon  its  completion 
there  was  a  debt  of  si.xty  thousand  dollars, 
which  has  since  been  reduced  to  twent}'  thou- 
sand dollars.  Mr.  Perry  had  general  super- 
vision of  the  building  of  the  road,  besides  the 
engineering.  He  was  President  and  active 
manager  of  the  road  from  its  inception  to 
the  time  it  was  sold  to  the  Old  Colony  Rail- 
road. He  exercised  a  watchful  supervision 
over  its  business  and  traffic,  and  everything 
relating  to  its  finances  passed  through  his 
hands. 

Mr.  Perry  has  performed  his  share  of  public 
service.  He  has  been  Justice  of  the  Peace  for 
many  years,  has  besides  done  much  probate 
business,  and  in  1867  he  was  a  member  of  the 
State  legislature.  At  an  early  ]ieriod  he 
threw  himself  into  the  anti-slavery  movement, 
becoming  a  member  of  the  American  Anti- 
slavery  Society  at  its  organization  by  William 
Lloyd  Garrison  in  1832,  and  so  remaining 
until  the  emancipation  of  the  slaves  was  an 
accomplished  fact.  He  has  long  been  an  ear- 
nest   advocate   of    the    temperance    cause,    on 


354 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


which  as  on  other  matters  his  opinions  are 
pronounced  and  outspoken.  He  is  so  opposed 
to  usury  in  every  form  that  on  July  i,  1880, 
he  stopped  taking  interest  on  his  loans;  and 
he  collects  no  interest  upon  mortgages  now  in 
his  hands.  He  is  known  throughout  Plym- 
outh County  as  one  of  the  best  judges  of  real 
estate  values.  Though  wealthy,  he  is  still  as 
full  of  enterprise  as  in  his  younger  days.  Of 
dauntless  spirit,  strong  will  power,  keen  in- 
telligence, and  unswerving  honesty,  he  is 
widely  recognized  as  a  thoroughly  capable  man 
of  affairs;  and  he  has  done  much  to  improve 
the  town  and  add  to  the  prosperity  of  the  gen- 
eral community. 

On  July  8,  1834,  Mr.  Perry  married  Miss 
Mary  B.  Oldham,  daughter  of  David  and  Deb- 
orah (Barker)  Oldham,  of  Pembroke;  and  on 
July  8,  1894,  they  celebrated  together  their 
golden  wedding.  They  had  one  child,  who 
died  in  infancy. 


|EV.  W.  C.  IIYDEI^,  the  well-known 
pastor  of  the  Independent  Congrega- 
tional Church  of  Rock,  Plymouth 
County,  Mass.,  was  born  in  Leeds,  Me.,  No- 
vember 30,  1840,  son  of  a  Baptist  clergyman 
who  was  then  located  in  that  town. 

W.  Clarkson  Ryder  came  when  he  was  si.\ 
months  old  with  his  parents  to  Middleboro, 
where  he  grew  to  manhood.  After  attending 
the  public  schools  he  took  a  supplementary 
course  of  study  at  Peirce  Academy,  from 
which  institution  he  was  subsequently  gradu- 
ated. At  the  age  of  twenty-one  he  began 
teaching,  being  in  Marion,  North  Scituate, 
and  Fairhaven,  Mass.,  and  Woonsocket,  R.I. 
After  following  the  profession  for  ten  years  he 
was  obliged,  on  account  of  failing  health,  to 
'resign.  He  then  came  to  Rock.  The  follow- 
ing year,  1872,  he  entered  the  employ  of  the 


American  Tack  Company,  of  I'airhaven, 
Mass.,  and  has  remained  in  their  employ  and 
that  of  their  successors.  The  Atlas  Tack  Cor- 
poration, as  salesman  in  New  England,  and 
manager  of  their  store  in  Boston,  for  twenty- 
five  years.  Being  religiously  inclined,  he  be- 
came an  evangelist,  and,  with  the  co-operation 
of  others,  gathered  a  congregation.  In  1886 
he  was  ordained  pastor  of  the  Independent 
Church  of  Rock,  which  has  grown  and  pros- 
pered under  his  pastorate.  A  number  of  years 
ago  Mr.  Ryder  began  a  grove  meeting  on  his 
land,  with  five  tents.  It  has  become  under  his 
management  a  camp  meeting,  with  six  large 
society  tents,  a  ladies'  pavilion,  tabernacle, 
preacher's  stand,  with  seats  for  about  one 
thousand,  large  dining-rooms,  etc.  A  com- 
pany has  been  formed  to  continue  these  meet- 
ings, which  are  held  in  July  of  each  year,  and 
are  for  the  promotion  of  Scriptural  holiness. 

In  1863  Mr.  Ryder  married  Emily  V. 
Holmes,  a  native  of  Rock.  They  have  one 
child,  Harland  H.,  who  was  graduated  from 
Boston  University  in  the  class  of  1S94.  He 
is  now  principal  of  Hopedale  High  School. 


DWIN  SAWTELL,  an  enterprising  and 
successful  citizen  of  Brockton,  promi- 
nent in  business,  politics,  and  social 
affairs,  was  born  in  Rindge,  Cheshire  County, 
N.H.,  August  25,  1838,  son  of  Solomon  Nel- 
son and  Nancy  (Whitney)  Sawtell,  His 
grandfather,  Jonathan  Sawtell,  a  native  of 
New  Hampshire,  was  for  many  years  engaged 
in  farming  in  Jeffrey,  that  State.  Jonathan 
fought  in  the  Revolutionary  War,  bearing  the 
rank  of  Lieutenant,  and  lost  a  thumb  in  the 
battle  of  Bennington.  He  died  at  the  age  of 
eighty-nine  years.  His  children  numbered 
four  sons  and  three  daughters.  Solomon  Nel- 
son   Sawtell    was    born    April    6,     1786.      A 


EDWIN     SAWTELL. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


357 


farmer  like  his  father,  for  many  years  he  lived 
in  Rindge  or  its  vicinity.  He  served  in  the 
War  of  1812,  was  a  Congregationalist  in  re- 
ligion, and  died  at  the  age  of  seventy-seven. 
He  was  twice  married,  and  had  a  family  of  fif- 
teen children,  of  whom  eleven  were  borne  by 
Edwin's  mother.  Five  of  the  boys  served  in 
the  war  of  the  Rebellion.  Tiie  youngest  was 
killed  during  the  raid  on  Washington.  Nel- 
son died  in  a  hospital.  John  L.  died  in 
Mansfield,  Mass.,  July  22,  1894.  Of  the 
other  two  who  are  living,  one  was  wounded  at 
Antietam. 

Edwin  Sawtell,  who  was  the  tenth  child 
borne  by  his  mother,  completed  his  education 
in  the  high  schools  of  Rindge  and  Jaffrey. 
For  a  few  years  after  leaving  school  he  was 
employed  as  a  painter  in  pail  factories,  and  he 
was  working  in  Lancaster,  Mass.,  when  the 
war  broke  out.  Enlisting  in  Company  I, 
I-"ifty-third  Massachusetts  Regiment,  he  was 
sent  to  Louisiana,  where  he  was  detailed  as 
hospital  nurse.  In  this  capacity  he  performed 
many  painful  duties.  He  was  one  of  the  at- 
tendants sent  with  the  wounded  soldiers  from 
Alexandria  to  Brashear  City.  There  they  were 
disturbed  by  the  Rebels,  and  were  obliged  to 
move  on  to  New  Orleans.  Mr.  Sawtell  was 
ordered  to  report  for  duty  in  the  hospital 
wards,  but  requested  to  be  allowed  to  join  the 
regiment,  and  was  sent  to  Port  Hudson. 
After  the  expiration  of  his  term  of  enlistment 
he  came  home.  In  November,  1866,  he 
started  a  hulled-corn  business  in  Abington. 
The  following  April  saw  him  established  on 
Cary  Hill  in  Brockton.  His  venture  in  luilled 
corn,  which  he  carried  on  in  the  winter  for 
twenty-four  years,  was  quite  successful.  In 
the  summer  he  dealt  in  ice-cream.  He  also 
speculated  in  real  estate.  After  spending 
three  years  on  Cary  Ilill,  he  exchanged  his 
place    of   business  for    his    present    stand    on 


North  Main  Street.  He  now  owns  a  large 
amount  of  real  estate.  He  has  given  away 
several  lots  for  manufacturing  purposes,  and 
conceived  the  idea  of  building  a  power  house, 
in  order  to  enhance  the  value  of  his  other 
property.  In  1891  he  bought  the  business  of 
the  New  England  Ball  Castor  Company,  and, 
after  conducting  it  under  their  patent  for  two 
years,  gave  it  up.  Among  the  lots  given  away 
was  one  of  three  hundred  feet  in  length  to  the 
Industrial  Improvement  Corporation,  and  one 
to  the  Stevens  Shank  Company.  He  was  one 
of  the  principal  movers  toward  the  locating 
of  the  W.  L.  Douglas  Company,  and  several 
other  shoe  companies  upon  a  portion  of  his 
land.  It  is  to  his  enterprise  that  the  upbuild- 
ing of  that  portion  of  Brockton  called  Mon- 
tello  is  due;  for  up  to  the  year  18S0  no  de- 
velopment of  the  land  in  that  quarter  had 
taken  place.  During  that  year  fifty-six  house- 
lots  west  of  the  railroad  were  laid  out,  streets 
were  built,  and  house  building  commenced. 
At  the  present  time  nearly  all  the  lots  have 
dwellings  of  neat  design.  Beginning  in  1880, 
he  was  constantly  inirchasing  land  east  of  the 
railroad  until  1890,  when  at  that  time  he 
owned  in  all  two  hundred  and  sixty  acres.  At 
the  present  time,  on  this  property  are  manu- 
factories of  various  kinds,  and  over  one  hun- 
dred homes.  At  a  celebration  held  when  the 
first  factory  was  completed,  he  was  designated 
the  "father  of  Montello. "  He  is  now  Presi- 
dent of  the  Brockton  Power  Company,  which 
was  organized  for  the  purpose  of  erecting  fac 
tories  in  this  city. 

Mr.  .Sawtell  was  married  November  24, 
1859,  to  Anna  L.  Holbrook,  of  P'itzwilliam, 
N.H.  She  died  March  14,  1891,  leaving  two 
children,  who  are  both  living.  On  August 
14,  1893,  he  was  again  married,  this  time  to 
Miss  Lucy  A.  Doolittle.  A  lady  of  remark- 
able ability,    before    her  marriage   she    spent 


3S8 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


several  years  in  the  Argentine  Republic  as 
principal  of  a  kindergarten  school  and  school 
for  training  teachers.  She  also  opened  a 
school  for  the  same  purpose  in  Topeka,  Kan., 
and  formed  a  free  kindergarten  association  in 
Bangor,  Me.,  and  for  ten  years  she  was  en- 
gaged in  educational  work  in  Florence,  Mass. 
She  died  April  8,  1S96,  in  her  fifty-first  year. 
For  a  number  of  years  Mr.  Sawtel!  has  been 
affiliated  with  the  Prohibition  party.  He  was 
one  of  the  original  twenty-four  in  Brockton 
that  voted  in  accordance  with  their  convic- 
tions. He  has  served  on  the  State  and 
County  Committee  for  many  years,  and  was  a 
delegate  to  the  National  Convention  at  Cin- 
cinnati, Ohio,  in  1892,  and  to  the  convention 
at  Pittsburg,  Pa.,  in  1896;  and  he  has  been 
nominated  for  various  official  positions.  At 
one  time  he  served  on  the  City  Council. 
Before  the  war  he  became  a  Mason  and  is 
now  a  member  of  Paul  Revere  Lodge,  A.  F. 
&  A.  M.  ;  and  for  a  number  of  years  he  has 
been  a  member  of  Fletcher  Webster  I^ost,  No. 
13,  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic.  He  has 
been  a  member  of  the  Methodist  church  since 
he  was  fourteen  years  of  age,  and  he  filled 
several  ofificial  positions  in  the  Central  Church 
of  this  city,  his  services  extending  over  a 
period  of  twenty-five  years. 


ILLIAM  FEARING,  2d,  Town 
k)\l  Treasurer  of  Hingham,  I^lymouth 
County,  Mass.,  was  born  here  on 
May  13,  1832,  son  of  David  and  Polly  S. 
(Burr)  F"earing.  The  earliest  known  progeni- 
tor of  the  family  in  America,  John  Fearing 
(also  written  Peering  and  Pterin),  came  from 
Cambridge,  England,  in  1638,  settling  in 
Hingham,  Mass.  Land  was  granted  him  in 
1635  and  1647;  and  after  his  death  other  lots 
in    the  si.x   divisions  fell   to  his    heirs,    being 


drawn  in  his  name.  He  was  a  prominent  man 
in  the  early  local  history,  holding  various 
positions  of  trust  and  responsibility.  He  was 
Freeman  in  1652,  Selectman  in  164S,  1661, 
and  1663,  and  was  a  Deacon  of  the  church  for 
many  years.  He  was  a  farmer,  and  resided  on 
North  Street,  nearly  opposite  the  Universalist 
church.  He  died  May  14,  1665.  In  his  will, 
dated  three  days  previously,  and  proved  June 
12,  he  names  his  wife,  two  sons,  and  two 
daughters,  and  specifies  that  the  eldest  son  is 
to  have  a  double  portion.  His  wife,  Margaret, 
survived  him,  and  subsequently  married  on 
November  3,  1675,  Robert  Williams,  of 
Roxbury. 

Of  John's  four  children,  all  of  whom  were 
natives  of  Hingham,  Israel,  the  second-born, 
was  baptized  in  September,  1644.  On  July 
22,  1673,  he  was  united  in  marriage  to  Eliza- 
beth Wilder,  daughter  of  Edward  and  Eliza- 
beth (Fames)  Wilder.  Israel  Fearing,  who 
was  a  cooper,  died  in  Dorchester  in  January, 
1693;  and  his  wife  died  in  Hingham,  January 
-?!  i/SO-  Five  children  were  the  result  of 
their  union.  John,  the  eldest,  born  December 
29,  1674,  was  a  weaver.  He  served  the  town 
as  Constable  in  1703,  and  as  Selectman  in 
1 73 1  and  1732.  The  maiden  name  of  his 
wife,  to  whom  he  was  married  May  8,  1708, 
was  Margaret  Hawke.  Her  parents  were 
James  and  Sarah  (Jacob)  Hawke.  The  sec- 
ond John  Fearing  died  November  7,  1752; 
and  his  wife  passed  away  on  September  28, 
1764,  being  eighty-three  years  of  age.  Their 
home  was  on  Pleasant  Street,  and  they  had 
four  children. 

Hawkes  Fearing,  their  third  child,  was 
born  July  13,  1715.  He  was  a  farmer.  He 
held  the  office  of  Selectman  in  1751,  1754, 
and  1755.  On  December  3,  1741,  he  married 
Margaret  Lincoln,  daughter  of  David  and 
Leah     (Beal)     Lincoln.       She    was     born     in 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


3S9 


Hingham,  April  19,  1722.  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Havvkes  Fearing  resided  on  Main  Street, 
Hingliam  Centre,  and  liad  thirteen  children. 
He  died  June  16,  1785;  and  his  wife  lived 
until  November  12,  18 16.  Havvkes,  the  fifth 
child,  born  November  26,  1750,  was  a  farmer 
and  trader.  He  resided  on  the  homestead, 
and  was  a  man  of  prominence,  serving  as  Rep- 
resentative from  1806  to  1811,  inclusive.  On 
May  5,  1779,  he  married  Leah  Lincoln, 
daughter  of  Enoch  and  Rachel  (Fearing)  Lin- 
coln. She  was  born  here,  December  3,  1758. 
Eleven  children  blessed  their  union.  The 
father  passed  to  the  life  immortal  June  6, 
1826,  and  the  mother,  January  18,   1S44. 

David,  the  si.xth  child  of  Hawkes  and  Leah 
Fearing,  was  born  here,  August  28,  1789.  He 
was  engaged  in  trade;  and  he  served  as  Repre- 
sentative to  the  legislature  in  1839  and  1840. 
On  January  31,  1819,  he  married  Polly  S. 
Burr,  daughter  of  Levi  and  Susanna  (Stowers) 
Burr.  They  resided  on  the  paternal  hnme- 
stead,  and  had  six  children.  The  mother, 
born  in  Hingham,  November  24,  1794,  died 
September  11,  1859.  David,  the  father,  died 
October  i,  1876.  Their  children  were: 
Mariah ;  David;  William,  who  died  at  the 
age  of  three;  Mary  Hannah  Thayer;  and 
William. 

William  Fearing,  2d,  who  was  reared  in 
this  town,  had  excellent  educational  advan- 
tages, supplementing  his  common-school  in- 
struction by  attending  Derby  Academy,  which 
stood  high  among  the  institutions  of  learning 
of  the  day.  His  commercial  career  began  in 
his  father's  grocery  store,  where  he  continued 
until  it  was  burned  out.  In  1858  he  built 
a  store  here;  and  he  continued  to  engage  in 
the  sale  of  goods  and  in  business  generally 
therein  until  1892,  when  he  sold  out.  He 
now  has  an  office  in  the  second  story  of  the 
same  building. 


In  politics,  since  casting  his  first  vote  for 
John  C.  Fremont,  he  has  affiliated  with  the 
Republican  party.  He  has  been  actively 
interested  in  local  affairs,  serving  efficiently 
as  Town  Treasurer  for  thirty-nine  consecutive 
years.  He  is  Vice-President  of  the  Hingham 
Institution  for  Savings,  Treasurer  of  the 
Hingham  Public  Library,  President  and  Treas- 
urer of  the  Hingham  Mutual  Fire  Insurance 
Company,  and  Treasurer  of  the  Hingham 
Cordage  Company.  P^aternally,  he  is  a  mem- 
ber of  Old  Colony  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.  ; 
Past  Commander  of  South  Shore  Commandery, 
Knights  Templars,  having  passed  the  thirty- 
second  degree;  and  Life  Member  of  Massa- 
chusetts Consistory.  In  New  York  City, 
I'ebruary  19,  1863,  Mr.  Fearing  was  united 
in  marriage  with  lunily  L.  Cushing,  of  Boston. 
She  died  twelve  years  ago,  leaving  four  chil- 
dren, three  of  whom  are  living  and  at  home: 
William  B.,  born  September  25,  1864;  Alice 
L.,  born  August  29,  1866;  and  Gertrude  I., 
born  October  i,  1872.  In  religion  Mr.  P^ear- 
ing  is  a  man  of  liberal  ideas,  being  a  Unita- 
rian. Personally,  he  is  a  man  of  social  as 
well  as  official  prominence  and  power. 


OHN  B.  HOLLIS,  a  prominent  citizen 
of  Duxbury,  Mass.,  and  one  of  the 
messengers  of  the  Massachusetts  House 
of  Representatives,  is  a  native  of  Weymouth, 
Norfolk  County,  this  State.  He  was  born 
January  8,  1833,  a  son  of-Jtihn  B.  and  I^nrily 
(Harvey)  Hollis,  the  former  of  whom  was  born 
in  Weymouth,  and  the  latter  in  North  Yar- 
mouth, Me.  Hosea  Hollis,  father  of  John 
B. ,  Sr. ,  was  also  a  native  of  Weymouth,  where 
the  founder  of  the  family  settled  at  an  early 
date.  He  was  a  soldier  in  the  War  of  1812. 
John  B.  Hollis,  Sr. ,  was  a  lifelong  resident 
of  Weymouth,  and  was  engaged  in  shoe  manu- 


360 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


facturing.  For  several  years,  in  the  thirties, 
he  served  as  Town  Clerk ;  and  for  many  years 
he  was  a  member  of  the  Massachusetts  legis- 
lature. In  his  boyhood  he  was  a  companion  of 
Mr.  Lovell,  of  the  John  P.  Lovell  Arms  Com- 
pany; and  in  later  life  he  was  for  a  time  com- 
mander of  an  artillery  company,  and  was  fa- 
miliarly known  as  Captain  Hollis.  He  and 
his  wife,  Emily  Harvey  Hollis,  had  eleven 
children,  of  whom  the  following  are  living, 
namely:  David;  George;  Lydia,  the  wife  of 
Joseph  Smith;  Mary,  wife  of  Thomas  Smith; 
Emily,  wife  of  Edwin  French;  Carrie,  wife  of 
Timothy  Hersey ;  Susie;  Georgia;  and  John 
B.  Captain  Hollis  was  a  Jacksonian  Demo- 
crat. He  lived  to  be  over  ninety-four  years 
of  age,  and  his  mother  lacked  but  a  few 
months  of  being  a  centenarian  at  the  time  of 
her  death.  A  few  years  ago  there  were  resid- 
ing at  Cohasset,  Mass.,  in  one  house,  five 
generations  of  the  Hollis  family. 

John  B.  Hollis,  the  special  subject  of  this 
sketch,  lived  in  Weymouth  until  about  sixteen 
years  old,  when  he  went  with  his  parents  to 
Cohasset,  Mass.,  and  resided  there  several 
years.  He  received  his  education  in  the  pub- 
lic schools  of  Weymouth  and  Cohasset,  after 
which  he  learned  the  shoe  business.  At  the 
time  of  the  invention  of  the  Blake  Sole-sewing 
Machine  by  Lyman  R.  Blake,  Mr.  Hollis  and 
others  became  interested  in  the  foreign  patents; 
and  he  spent  about  a  year  in  Europe,  introduc- 
ing and  exhibiting  the  workings  of  the  ma- 
chine, Leeds,  England,  and  Paris,  Prance, 
being  among  the  cities  visited.  On  his  return 
to  Massachusetts  he  took  charge  of  the  ma- 
chines of  Emerson  &  Sons,  shoe  manufacturers 
at  what  is  now  Wakefield,  Mass.,  remaining 
with  them  several  years,  leaving  there  to  take 
charge  of  the  sole-sewing  machines  of  the 
Hayward  Rubber  Company  at  Wyoming, 
Mass.,    his    work    being  the  oversight    of    the 


sewing  of  the  rubber  soles  of  rubber  shoes 
made  by  that  firm  for  the  United  States  Army. 
He  had  been  with  them  but  a  short  time  when 
they  went  out  of  business.  In  1857  he  came 
to  Duxbury,  and  has  practically  resided  here 
since.  For  five  years  he  was  on  the  State 
police  force  under  Major  Jones  and  William 
H.  Clemence,  of  Lowell,  his  duties  being 
principally  in  Plymouth  and  Suffolk  Counties. 
He  next  served  two  years  under  General 
Stevenson  of  the  State  Department  of  Inspec- 
tion of  Public  Buildings.  In  1S81  he  was 
appointed  a  messenger  of  the  Massachusetts 
House  of  Representatives,  in  which  capacity 
he  has  now  served  about  fifteen  years. 

In  1857  Mr.  Hollis  was  joined  in  marriage 
with  Miss  Gertrude  W.  Prior,  daughter  and 
only  child  of  Captain  George  C.  and  Caroline 
Prior,  of  Duxbury.  Sylvanus  Prior,  the 
grandfather  of  Mrs.  Hollis,  was  an  early 
settler  of  Duxbury,  in  whicli  town  her  father 
spent  his  youth.  At  fourteen  George  C.  Prior 
became  a  sailor,  at  twenty-one  he  had  risen 
to  be  master  of  a  vessel ;  and  from  that  time 
on  he  was  in  command  of  various  vessels, 
engaging  principally  in  the  Smyrna  trade,  but 
visiting  many  of  the  principal  ports  of  the 
world.  In  1849  Captain  Prior  went  to  Cali- 
fornia, where  he  spent  several  years.  He  died 
in  Duxbury  in  1892,  at  about  eighty-four  years 
of  age.  His  widow,  who  is  now  in  her  eighty- 
sixth  year,  is  living  in  Boston.  In  politics  he 
was  a  Republican.  He  was  a  member  of  the 
Methodist  P^piscopal  church,  and  was  identi- 
fied with  the  Independent  Order  of  Odd 
P'ellows.  Mr.  and  Mis.  John  B.  Hollis  have 
two  children  living,  namely:  John  E.,  resid- 
ing in  Boston;  and  Carrie  G.,  at  home  in 
Duxbury. 

In  political  affiliation  Mr.  Hollis  is  a  Re- 
publican. For  a  number  of  years  he  was  a 
member    and    Chairman    of    the    Republican 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


361 


Town  '  Committee.  He  is  a  member  of  the 
Duxbury  Yacht  Club,  also  of  Corner  Stone 
Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  which  is  one  of  the 
oldest  Masonic  lodges  in  the  State.  He  be- 
longs to  the  Standish  Monument  Association, 
and  is  a  member  of  its  E.xecutive  Committee; 
also  a  member  of  the  Norfolk  Club  at  Boston 
and  the  Plymouth  County  Club.  Mr.  and 
Mrs.   Hollis  are  very  popular  in   social   circles. 


(^OHN  SHERMAN,  one  of  the  stirring 
and  progressive  farmers  of  Plympton, 
Mass.,  and  an  ex-member  of  the  State 
legislature,  was  born  upon  the  farm  he  now 
owns  and  occupies,  March  15,  1834,  son  of 
John  and  Sally  (Ransom)  Sherman.  Mr. 
.Sherman  is  truly  a  representative  of  Old  Col- 
ony stock,  as  he  numbers  among  his  ancestors 
some  of  the  passengers  in  the  "Mayflower"  in 
1620,  his  great-great-great-grandfather,  Will- 
iam Sherman,  second,  having  married  in 
1667  Desire  Doty,  daughter  of  the  Pilgrim 
Edward  Doty,  and  their  son,  William,  third, 
his  great-great-grandfather,  having  married  in 
1697  Mercy,  daughter  of  Peregrine  White. 
John  Sherman,  first,  father  of  the  subject 
of  this  sketch,  was  a  native  of  Carver,  Mass.  ; 
but,  when  a  young  man,  he  settled  upon  the 
farm  in  this  town  which  is  now  owned  by  his 
son,  and  he  was  engaged  in  agricultural  pur- 
suits until  his  death,  which  took  place  in 
1845.  He  was  an  able  and  industrious 
farmer  and  a  useful  citizen,  who  displayed 
a  deep  interest  in  all  matters  affecting  the 
general  welfare  of  the  community;  and  he  was 
highly  respected  and  esteemed  by  his  fellow- 
townsmen. 

John  Sherman  was  reared  upon  the  paternal 
homestead,  and  his  education  was  acquired  in 
the  district  schools.  He  was  but  eleven  years 
old    when    his    father    died.      His    youth    was 


passed  in  assisting  in  carrying  on  the  farm, 
which  has  always  been  his  home;  and  upon 
attaining  his  majority  he  took  entire  charge 
of  the  property.  He  owns  one  hundred  acres 
of  well-improved  land,  which  is  devoted  to 
general  agriculture  and  the  raising  of  small 
fruits;  and,  by  industriously  apjilying  himself 
to  maintaining  the  fertility  of  the  soil  and 
exterminating  weeds,  he  realizes  excellent 
results  for  his  labor. 

On  January  9,  1859,  Mr.  Sherman  married 
Sarah  N.  Wright,  of  Plympton.  Three  chil- 
dren were  born  of  this  union,  as  follows:  S. 
Jennie,  who  is  the  wife  of  John  S.  Robbins, 
of  Plymouth,  and  has  one  daughter,  Helen 
S.  ;  Georgie  Etta,  who  died  at  the  age  of  six- 
teen ;  and  Nellie  F.,  who  lives  at  home  with 
her  father.  Mrs.  Sherman,  the  mother,  died 
in  December,   1895. 

In  public  affairs  Mr.  Sherman  is  very  prom- 
inent, and  has  by  his  long  and  faithful  service 
proved  himself  of  great  value  to  the  town  in 
the  transaction  of  its  official  business.  Dur- 
ing a  period  of  eighteen  years  he  at  different 
times  served  as  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Se- 
lectmen. He  was  an  Assessor  for  nineteen 
years.  Overseer  of  the  Poor  for  nearly  that 
length  of  time,  and  in  1892  he  was  elected 
by  the  Republican  party,  of  which  he  is  a 
leading  spirit  in  this  part  of  the  county,  to 
represent  the  Second  Plymouth  District  in  the 
lesislature. 


LMER  B.  COLE,  of  the  firm  of  Clark 
&  Cole,  box  manufacturers  of  Middle- 
boro,  Mass.,  was  born  in  North 
Carver,  another  Plymouth  County  town,  Jan- 
uary II,  1858.  His  parents,  Harrison  G. 
and  Lucy  (Chace)  Cole,  were  also  born  in 
Carver.  Harrison  G.  Cole  was  in  business 
there  as  a  box  manufacturer  for  about  forty 
years,  and  was  looked  upon  as  one  of  the  lead- 


362 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


iiig  business  men  of  the  place.  He  died  at 
the  age  of  sixty-nine  years  and  three  months. 
His  wife  died  in  Carver  in  her  fifty-fifth  year. 
She  was  the  mother  of  seven  children,  three 
daughters  and  four  sons,  four  of  whom  are  liv- 
ing besides  the  special  subject  of  this  biogra- 
phy, namely:  Theron  M.,  in  North  Carver; 
Sarah  L. ,  wife  of  Gustavus  Swift,  of  Middle- 
boro;  Henry  H.,  who  is  in  the  clothing  busi- 
ness in  Plymouth  ;  Horace  C,  a  tack  manufact- 
urer in  Kingston. 

Elmer  B.  Cole  received  a  common-school 
education  in  his  native  town.  He  went  to 
work  in  his  father's  bo.\  factory  at  the  age  of 
fourteen  ;  and  it  may  be  said  that  he  grew  up 
in  the  business,  for  he  learned  all  the  details 
from  the  beginning  to  the  final  completion  of 
a  bo.x.  He  was  subsequently  in  business  with 
a  brother  under  the  firm  name  of  Cole  Brothers 
at  North  Carver;  but,  after  remaining  there 
about  eight  years,  he  moved  to  Middleboro, 
leaving  the  business  in  Carver  under  his 
brother's  direction,  and  in  partnership  with 
J.  S.  Clark  established  his  present  enterprise, 
which  has  prospered  from  the  beginning.  Mr. 
Cole's  natural  ability  and  long  experience 
combined  have  placed  his  business  on  a  firm 
footing. 

He  was  married  on  December  25,  1883,  to 
Miss  Emma  M.  Anderson,  who  was  born  in 
Palmyra,  Mo.,  and  reared  in  the  State  of 
Maine,  which  became  her  home  when  she  was 
two  years  old.  They  have  had  one  child. 
Forest,  now  deceased.  Mr.  Cole  is  a  member 
of  the  Commercial  Club,  an  organization 
which  has  for  its  object  the  upbuilding  of  the 
business  industries  of  Middleboro. 

Politically,  Mr.  Cole  favors  the  Democratic 
party.  He  belongs  to  three  of  the  leading 
fraternal  organizations  of  the  day  —  the  Ma- 
sonic order,  Knights  of  Pythias,  and  the  Royal 
Society    of   Good    Fellows.      The  teaching  of 


his  religious  belief  is  summed  up  in  the  pre- 
cept, Do  unto  others  as  ye  would  that  they 
should  do  unto  you. 


/^^TkORGE  V.  CUSHMAN,  Commodore 
VpT  of  the  Duxbury  Yacht  Club,  has 
served  with  distinction  in  the  United 
States  Navy,  both  in  time  of  war  and  in  peace, 
and  is  now  living  in  pleasant  retirement  in 
his  native  town,  Duxbury.  He  was  born  Oc- 
tober 14,  1837.  His  parents,  George  and 
Judith  (Weston)  Cushman,  were  natives  of 
Duxbury,  and  members  of  old  Colonial 
families. 

Mr.  Cushman  is  a  lineal  descendant,  in  the 
ninth  generation,  of  Robert  Cushman,  who 
embarked  witli  the  "Mayflower"  IMlgrims  in 
1620,  but,  on  account  of  the  "Speedwell" 
proving  unseaworthy,  went  back  to  London 
with  others  of  the  company.  He  was  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Pilgrims'  Church  in  Leyden,  Hol- 
land; and  for  a  number  of  years  he  served  as 
their  business  agent  in  England.  He  came 
to  Plymouth  with  his  son  Thomas  in  the 
"Fortune"  in  November,  162 1,  and  returned 
to  PLngland  in  December,  leaving  Thomas, 
his  only  child,  in  the  family  of  Governor 
Bradford.  Thomas  Cushman  married  Mary 
Allerton,  who  came  to  I^lymouth  with  her 
father,    Isaac  Allerton,    in    the   "Mayflower." 

George  Cushman,  first,  father  of  the  second 
George  named  above,  was  a  soldier  in  the  Rev- 
olutionary War.  He  married  a  Miss  Perry, 
who  lived  to  be  ninety-seven  years  old.  Their 
son,  George  Cushman,  second,  father  of 
George  P.,  followed  the  sea  for  a  number  of 
years,  and  retired  on  account  of  acquired  deaf- 
ness, settling  on  a  farm  in  Duxbury.  He, 
too,  was  in  the  United  States  military  service, 
participating  in  the  War  of  1812.  He  died 
in   Duxbury   in  1874.      The  Weston  family,  of 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


363 


which  his  wife  was  a  member,  dates  back  to 
the  coming  of  Governor  Winthrop  to  this 
country  in  1628,  the  first  New  England 
Weston  having  been  a  member  of  the  Boston 
colony.  The  following  children  were  born  to 
George  and  Judith  (Weston)  Cushman:  Rufus, 
residing  in  East  Boston,  Mass. ;  Alden,  in 
Duxbury;  Rebecca  T.,  wife  of  Allen  Holmes, 
of  this  town;  George  P.,  the  subject  of  this 
sketch;  and  John,  deceased. 

George  P.  Cushman  was  reared  in  Du.\bury, 
attending  school  until  he  was  fourteen  years 
old.  He  went  to  sea  before  he  was  fifteen, 
being  engaged  the  first  summer  in  fishing  at 
the  Grand  Banks,  Newfoundland;  and  he  then 
shipped  as  a  sailor  on  merchantmen  in  the 
foreign  trade.  When  he  was  seventeen  years 
old,  he  was  foremast  hand,  and  was  promoted 
to  the  rank  of  second  officer  of  an  East  India- 
man  called  the  "Levanter."  While  in  the 
merchant  service,  he  visited  most  of  the  princi- 
pal parts  of  the  world.  In  the  fall  of  1857, 
when  in  his  twenty-first  year,  he  was  second 
ofificer  of  the  ship  "Banshee,"  of  Baltimore. 
This  vessel,  of  some  seven  hundred  tons" 
burden,  with  a  complement  of  eighteen  men 
and  officers,  made  port  at  Rio  Janeiro,  Brazil, 
for  a  cargo  of  coffee.  The  yellow  fever  was 
then  raging  in  that  port,  and  most  of  the  ships 
in  the  harbor  were  infected.  The  crew  of  the 
"Banshee"  fell  a  prey  to  the  scourge;  and, 
when  she  sailed  for  Baltimore,  her  force  was 
reduced  to  five  working  hands,  under  command 
of  Mate  Cushman.  Though  so  short-handed, 
the  vessel  made  the  home  port  in  safety  after 
a  voyage  of  thirty-one  days;  and  during  thirty 
days  of  that  period  Mr.  Cushman  was  on  deck 
most  of  the  time,  night  and  day. 

The  achievement  was  unprecedented  in  the 
merchant  marine,  and  made  the  turning-point 
of  his  destiny.  Lieutenant  James  P.  Eoster, 
of  the  United  States  Navy,  then   attached  to 


the  recruiting  service,  hearing  of  it,  was  so 
impressed  with  the  ability  of  Mr.  Cushman 
that  he  induced  him  to  join  the  navy.  Mr. 
Cushman  was  first  assigned  to  the  receiving 
ship  "Alleghany,"  with  which  Mr.  Eoster  was 
connected.  In  May,  1858,  he  went  aboard  the 
"Plymouth,"  sloop-of-war  and  gunnery  prac- 
tice ship,  and  remained  until  she  went  out  of 
commission  in  November,  1858.  He  was  sub- 
sequently ordered  to  the  receiving  ship 
"Pennsylvania"  at  Norfolk,  Va. :  but  in  May, 
1859,  Lieutenant  Eoster,  who  had  been 
ordered  to  the  "Constellation,"  caused  Mr. 
Cushman  to  be  transferred  to  that  vessel. 
There  he  remained  until  October,  i860;  and 
in  the  mean  time  the  "Constellation"  cap- 
tured several  slavers  in  African  waters,  among 
them  the  barque  "Cora,"  with  seven  lunidred 
negroes.  Mr.  Cushman  was  the  first  to  board 
the  "Cora,"  and  was  sent  home  in  the  store 
ship  "Relief"  to  witness  against  the  slaver. 
In  the  early  part  of  the  Civil  War  he  was 
ap|)ointed  gunner's  mate  of  the  "Crusader," 
and  was  in  active  service  capturing  blockade 
runners.  One  of  the  captives  taken  at  this 
time  was  the  famous  slave  yacht  "Wanderer," 
commanded  by  Captain  Latham. 

Discharged  from  the  service  in  October, 
1861,  Mr.  Cushman  went  to  Washington,  and 
passed  the  examination;  and  on  December  18 
of  that  year  he  was  appointed  gunner  in  the 
United  States  Navy,  receiving  his  warrant 
October  10,  1862.  This  slip  of  paper  is  very 
precious  to  him  now;  for  it  hears  the  at't'o- 
graph  signature  of  Abraham  Lincoln,  besides 
that  of  Gideon  Welles,  then  Secretary  of  the 
Navy.  He  saw  much  active  service  while  the 
Rebellion  was  in  progress,  and  at  the  battle  of 
Hone  Hill,  Ga. ,  was  wounded  in  the  left  leg. 
After  the  war  he  was  retained  in  the  navy  as 
gunner  for  a  long  period,  in  the  course  of 
which  he  received  other  injuries.     On  account 


3^4 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


of  these  he  was  placed  on  the  retired  list  of 
the  United  States  naval  service,  July  22, 
1S91.  Since  that  time  he  has  made  his  home 
in  Duxbury,  still  kecpinj^  up  his  connection 
to  a  certain  extent  with  nautical  affairs.  He 
is  full  owner  of  one  schooner,  and  part  owner 
of  another  in  the  mackerel  fisheries,  the  only 
fishing  schooners  left  of  a  former  numerous 
fleet  from  Duxbury;  and  he  is  Commodore  of 
the  Duxbury  Yacht  Club. 

Mr.  Cushman  was  married  January  2,  1862, 
to  Rosa  A.  Gutteriez,  a  native  of  Malaga, 
Spain,  and  has  one  daughter  living,  Frances 
J.  He  has  long  been  a  member  of  the  Repub- 
lican party,  and  has  been  honored  in  various 
ways  by  his  fellow-partisans,  his  practical 
ability,  intrepidity,  and  good  judgment  being 
generally  recognized.  He  has  served  as 
national  delegate  from  Duxbury.  In  i8g6  he 
was  a  member  of  the  body  which  in  Boston 
elected  delegates  for  the  Republican  National 
Convention  at  St.  Louis;  and  in  the  same 
year  he  was  a  delegate  from  Duxbury  to  the 
Brockton  convention,  which  nominated  Will- 
iam C.  Levering  for  Congressman  from  this 
district,  and  also  nominated  the  Presidential 
elector.  Mr.  Cushman  is  a  Mason,  belonging 
to  Corner  Stone  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of 
Duxbury. 

IIOMAS  GAFFIELD,  who  presented 
Gafifield  Park  to  the  town  of  Norwell, 
is  well  known  in  Boston  as  a  merchant, 
a  manufacturer,  and  a  public-spirited  citizen, 
actively  interested  in  education  and  philan- 
thropy. He  was  born  in  Boston,  January  14, 
1825,  a  son  of  Thomas  and  Betsey  (Chester) 
Ciaffield.  Some  of  his  ancestral  kin  bore  the 
name  Garfield,  another  form  of  spelling, 
denoting,  no  doubt,  the  same  original  stock. 
Thomas  Gaffield  in  his  boyhood  attended 
the  Boston    public  schools   and   the   Lawrence 


Scientific  School.  In  1840  he  was  engaged  as 
clerk  in  the  store  of  Caleb  G.  Loring  Com- 
pany, of  Boston,  dealers  in  hardware  and  win- 
dow glass;  and  in  1847  he  became  a  member 
of  the  firm.  For  twenty-two  years,  or  until 
1869,  he  was  in  business  at  10  Merchants' 
Row,  Boston.  In  1863  he  began  some  experi- 
ments on  the  action  of  sunlight  in  changing 
the  color  of  glass.  The  interesting  results 
which  he  observed  until  1889  have  been  pub- 
lished in  several  scientific  journals  at  home 
and  abroad.  He  became  gradually  interested 
in  real  estate  matters,  and  has  now  for  a  num- 
ber of  years  been  engaged  extensively  in  real 
estate  transactions  in  Brookline  and  other  sub- 
urbs of  Boston ;  and  he  has  been  appointed 
executor  and  manager  of  several  large  estates, 
his  well-known  integrity  and  conservative  man- 
agement making  him  a  most  desirable  trustee. 
Mr.  Gaffield's  home  is  in  Boston  at  54  Allen 
Street.  He  is  personally  interested  in  the 
city  government  and  institutions. 

Mr.  Gaffield  is  a  member  of  the  American 
Academy  of  Arts  and  Sciences,  the  Society  of 
Art.s,  and  the  Natural  History  Society.  He 
has  been  a  Director  in  the  Franklin  Savings 
Bank  from  1872  to  the  present  time,  and  is 
also  a  Director  of  the  American  Unitarian 
Association.  He  attended  for  many  years 
during  the  ministry  of  the  Rev.  Dr.  Lowell 
and  the  Rev.  Dr.  Bartol  the  old  West  Church, 
where  he  was  successively  pupil,  teacher,  and 
acting  superintendent  of  the  Sunday-school. 
From  1852  to  1857  he  was  successively  Di- 
rector, Vice-President,  and  President  of  the 
Young  Men's  Christian  Lhiion.  He  has  been 
a  visitor  since  1846,  and  is  now  President,  of 
the  Young  Men's  Benevolent  Society.  He 
has  been  for  many  years  an  officer  of  the 
Benevolent  I'^raternity  of  Churches  for  the 
support  of  the  ministry-at-large  in  the  city  of 
Boston,  and  of  the  Children's  Mission  to  the 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


365 


Children  of  the  Destitute.  Mr.  Gaffield  was 
one  of  the  original  members,  and  from  1876  to 

1 88 1  the  Secretary,  of  the  Commercial  Club. 
In  1864  he  represented  Ward  5  in  the  Common 
Council  of  Boston,  and  in  1865,  1866,  1867, 
and  1873  was  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Alder- 
men, lie  was  on  the  Primary  .School  Com- 
mittee from  1 85 1  to  1855,  and  on  the  School 
Committee    under   its    new    organization    from 

1882  to  1885. 

Mr.  Gaffield  was  married  September  19, 
1848,  to  Miss  Sarah  W.  Kendall,  who  died  in 
1887;  and  on  March  12,  1890,  he  was  united 
with  Maria  W.  Turner,  who  was  born  in  the 
town  of  South  Scituate,  now  Norwell,  in 
1837.  Her  parents,  Samuel  and  Lydia  (Sim- 
mons) Turner,  were  old  residents  here;  and 
the  summer  residence  in  Norwell  occupied  by 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Gaffield,  into  which  they  moved 
in  1891,  stands  on  land  purchased  in  1784  by 
her  ancestor,  Israel  Turner,  a  descendant  of 
Humphrey  Turner,  to  whom  land  was  granted 
in  Scituate  in  1636.  Mrs.  Gaffield  before  her 
marriage  taught  school  in  Boston  for  a  number 
of  years.  She  and  her  husband  are  members 
of  the  Church  of  the  Disciples  in  Boston, 
which  was  founded  by  the  Rev.  James  Free- 
man Clarke,  D. D.,  and  whose  present  minister 
is  the  Rev.  Charles  G.  Ames. 

The  manner  in  which  Mr.  Gaffield  has 
recently  disposed  of  some  of  his  most  valuable 
books  and  specimens  of  glass  and  minerals  for 
the  benefit  of  the  public,  and  especially  of  art 
students,  may  be  learned  from  the  following 
announcements.  We  quote  first  from  the  Re- 
port of  the  Library  Committee  of  the  Museum 
of  Fine  Arts,  Boston,  for  1895:  "The  most 
important  gift  of  the  year,  and  the  most 
important  ever  made  to  the  library,  is  the 
collection  of  books  on  various  branches  of 
art  presented  by  Mr.  Thomas  Gaffield.  This 
collection  comprises  one   hundred  and  eighty- 


seven  works  in  two  hundred  and  seventy- 
nine  volumes,  many  of  them  folios  and  richly 
illustrated.  It  contains,  among  other  note- 
worthy books,  Layard's  'Nineveh,'  Jones's 
'Alhambra, '  Hamilton's  'Greek  Vases,' 
Haufstaengl's  'Dresden  Gallery,'  Bartsch's 
'Peintre-Graveur, '  Lippman's  'Diirer, '  Rich- 
ter's'Da  Vinci,'  Ottley's  'Italian  Art,'  Shaw's 
works  on  mediaeval  decoration,  and  a  number 
of  volumes  illustrative  of  the  arts  of  glass 
painting  and  staining.  The  collection  has 
been  placed  in  a  case  provided  for  the  purpose, 
inscribed  with  Mr.  Gaffield's  name  and  the 
date  of  the  gift.  "  The  museum  also  received 
from  Mr.  Gaffield  some  etchings  by  James 
Whistler,  specimens  of  Persian,  Venetian, 
English,  and  Roman  glass  and  crystal  or- 
naments. 

The  Report  of  the  Boston  Public  Library 
for  the  same  year  acknowledges  the  receipt  of 
thirty-seven  volumes  from  Mr.  Gaffield ;  and 
the  Report  of  the  President  and  Trustees  of  the 
Institute  of  Technology  contains  the  following  : 
"Mr.  Thomas  Gaffield  has  presented  to  the  In- 
stitute his  collections  relating  to  the  manu- 
facture of  glass,  a  subject  on  which  he  has 
long  been  known  as  an  authority.  His  gift 
comprises  a  considerable  library,  as  well  as 
large  and  varied  collections,  chemical,  mine- 
ralogical,  metallurgical,  and  mechanical.  The 
library  contains  two  hundred  and  sixty-one 
volumes  dealing  with  glass  and  kindred  sub- 
jects, si.x  volumes  on  precious  stones,  and 
thirty-four  referring  to  tlie^  effects  of  li^jht 
upon  glass.  Perhaps  the  most  interesting  and 
valuable  part  of  the  collection  is  composed  of 
si.xty-three  volumes  on  works  of  art  in  glass 
and  porcelain,  many  of  them  beautifully  illus- 
trated with  colored  plates.  Among  these  are 
two  large  folios,  Delange  at  Borneman,  'Re- 
cueil  de  Faience  Italienne  de  XV.,  XVI., 
XVII.      Siecles' ;     Warrington,     'History    of 


366 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


St:iincd  Glass';  Fortiiiim,  'Maiolica  in  South 
Kensington';  and  Jacqueniart,  'Histoire  de  la 
Ceramique,'  1875.  On  the  practical  side  the 
collection  includes  sets  of  glass-makers'  tools, 
models  of  furnaces  and  glass  pots,  samples 
of  materials  used  in  glass-making,  samples  of 
glass-blowers'  work,  specimens  of  old  cathe- 
dral glass;  also  many  which  show  the  results  of 
Mr.  Gaffield's  study  of  the  varying  action  of 
sunlight  upon  glass,  and  others  showing  the 
action  (jf  sand  blast,  of  glue,  mucilage,  and  of 
hydrofluoric  acid.  " 

The  park  which  Mr.  Gaffield  has  presented 
to  the  town  of  Norwell  he  purchased  in  1895, 
ami  it  was  accepted  by  the  town  in  1896.  It 
covers  some  eight  acres  of  land.  The  genera- 
tions to  come  who  will  enjoy  its  natural  ver- 
dure and  the  shade  of  its  trees  will  remember 
gratefully  the  man  who  rescued  for  them, 
from  the  grasping  hands  of  modern  progress, 
a  breathing-spot  where  Nature  may  minister  to 
the  sick  and  weary,  and  where  childhood  and 
youth  may  sport  in  undisturbed  innocence  and 
old  age  dream  restfully  of  the  past. 


l^TORATIO     B.     MAGOUN,    a     retired 
r^l       merchant    of    Hanover,    was    born    in 

Ji®  V  ^  this  town,  November  20,  1826. 
His  parents  were  Abncr  and  Mary  (I^llis)  H. 
Magoun.  The  first  years  of  his  life  were 
spent  in  West  Hanover.  At  the  age  of 
twelve  he  began  working  for  his  father,  who 
was  a  shoemaker.  I'our  years  latei-  he  secured 
employment  as  a  cutter,  and  followed  that 
occupation  for  three  years.  Then,  in  1857, 
he  o]iened  a  general  store  at  West  Hanover, 
where  he  carried  on  a  lucrative  business  until 
1880,  about  twenty-three  years,  at  the  end  of 
which  he  sold  to  Mr.  M.  V.  Bonney.  He  has 
since  been  engaged  in  the  sale  of  agricultural 
implements  and  in  farming,  having  about   one 


hundred  and  fifty  acres  of  land.  The  store 
now  occupied  by  Packard  &  Joslin  was  erected 
by  Mr.  Magoun  in  1889.  Mr.  Magoun  was 
appointed  Postmaster  of  West  Hanover  in 
1861,  and  has  since  held  the  office  continu- 
ously, a  period  of  about  thirty-five  years. 
Politically,  he  is  a  Republican.  He  is  a 
member  of  the  North  River  I.odge  of  Odd 
Fellows  at  Hanover. 

On  May  12,  1850,  Mr.  Magoun  was  united 
in  marriage  with  Miss  Catherine  B.  Bonney. 
They  have  had  three  children,  of  whom  but 
one  is  living.  Flora  J.,  who  is  the  wife  of 
William  H.  White.  The  deceased  are:  Frank 
W.  and  Austin  B.  Mr.  Magoun  is  a  gentle- 
man of  high  personal  character,  and  through 
all  his  past  career  has  enjoyed  in  a  large 
measure  the  respect  and  esteem  of  his  fellow- 
men. 


LIFT  RODGERS  is  one  of  the  oldest 
and  wealthiest  citizens  of  Marshfield, 
a  self-made  man,  who  has  for  some 
time  been  enjoying  the  leisure  earned  by  long 
years  of  industry.  He  was  born  in  Marsh- 
field,  December  4,  1806,  a  son  of  Luther  and 
Nabby  (Tilden)  Rodgers,  both  natives  of  this 
town.  His  paternal  grandfather  also,  Simeon 
Rodgers,  was  born  in  Marshfield.  Luther 
Rodgers  was  born  in  1778.  He  was  engaged 
in  farming,  and  also  kept  a  general  store  at 
Marshfield  Hills  (then  called  East  Marshfield) 
during  his  active  life.  He  died  March  3, 
i860,  his  wife,  who  also  was  a  member  of 
an  old  Marshfield  family,  having  jjassed  away 
January  28,  185S.  Of  their  children  two  are 
living,  namely:  Alvin,  at  Marshfield  Hills; 
and  Clift,  a  brief  sketch  of  whom  is  given 
below. 

Clift  Rodgers  began  the  work  of  life  with 
such  educational  advantages  as  his  n;itive  town 
afforded.      He  began  to  learn  the  trade  of  tan- 


'-A 


CLIFT    RODGERS. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


369 


ning  and  currying  in  Quincy,  Mass.,  when  he 
was  seventeen  years  old,  serving  as  an  appren- 
tice with  Francis  Williams  until  he  attained 
his  majority.  After  his  apprenticeship  was 
finished,  he  worked  as  a  journeyman  in  Mr. 
Williams's  employ  some  seven  years,  and 
then  established  a  shop  of  his  own  in  Quincy. 
In  the  spring  of  1852  he  went  into  the  leather 
commission  business  in  Boston,  with  Francis 
Williams  as  partner,  under  the  firm  name  of 
Williams  &  Rodgers;  and  Mr.  Williams's 
place  was  subsequently  taken  by  Lysander 
Richards  and  John  L.  Rodgers,  the  firm  name 
being  changed  to  Rodgers,  Richards  &  Co. 
This  house  controlled  a  large  and  prosperous 
leather  commission  business  for  a  number  of 
years.  Mr.  Rodgers  eventually  retired;  and 
in  the  beautiful  village  of  Marshfield  Hills  he 
has  grown  old  without  the  decrepitude  of  age, 
advancing  to  his  ninetieth  milestone  on  life's 
journey  as  if  it  were  no  more  than  his  sixtieth 
birthday. 

Mr.  Rodgers  was  married  December  27, 
1835,  to  Eleanor  Ba.xter,  daughter  of  James 
Ba.xter,  of  Quincy,  Mass.  Mrs.  Eleanor  B. 
Rodgers  died  March  13,  1893,  aged  seventy- 
seven  years.  Mr.  Rodgers  has  no  children 
living.  In  politics  he  belongs  to  the  Repub- 
lican party.  In  his  native  town,  where  so 
many  of  his  days  have  been  spent,  and  where 
there  are  so  many  of  his  old  friends  and  asso- 
ciates that  his  life  is  like  an  open  book,  he 
enjoys  the  good  will  and  respect  of  all. 


T^HARLES  C.  FIELD  was  born  in 
I    jp       North     Bridgewater,     now     Brockton, 

^^  ^  March  18,  1826,  and  has  been  in 
business  in  this  city  over  fifty  years.  His 
parents  were  Zophar  and  Berenice  (Howard) 
Field.  He  is  an  uncle  of  Daniel  Waldo  and 
Fred    F.    Field,    well-known    shoe    manufact- 


urers of  Brockton,  and  is  a  member  of  an  old 
family,  the  first  representative  of  which,  John 
Field,  settled  in  Bridgewater  in  1665,.  before 
the  town  was  divided.  Since  that  time,  over 
two  and  a  quarter  centuries,  the  Field  family 
has  flourished  where  it  was  originally 
planted. 

The  oldest  house  now  standing  in  Brockton 
was  erected  by  Jabez  Field,  grandson  of  John 
Field  and  great-grandfather  of  the  subject  of 
this  sketch,  in  1752.  Daniel  Field,  son  of 
Jabez  and  grandfather  of  Charles  C,  kept  a 
general  store  in  what  is  now  Montello  for 
some  time,  but  in  the  latter  part  of  his  life 
gave  his  attention  solely  to  the  pursuit  of 
agriculture. 

Zophar  Field  was  one  of  the  early  shoe 
manufacturers  of  North  Bridgewater,  asso- 
ciated with  Charles  Southworth,  under  the 
firm  name  of  Field  &  Southworth.  He  event- 
ually retired  from  the  shoe  business,  and  was 
engaged  in  slaughtering  cattle  for  the  Boston 
market  during  the  rest  of  his  life,  also  manag- 
ing the  homestead  farm.  Mr.  Zophar  Field 
attended  divine  worship  at  the  Universal ist 
church.  He  died  in  1865,  aged  seventy -five 
years.  His  wife  was  a  daughter  of  Oliver 
Howard,  of  North  Bridgewater.  She  was  the 
mother  of  four  sons  and  four  daughters:  Har- 
riet; Daniel,  who  died  in  November,  1893, 
aged  seventy-eight  years;  Louisa,  who  lived 
but  five  years;  George,  who  died  in  May, 
1896,  aged  seventy-eight;  Louisa;  Hannah; 
Charles  C. ;  and  Williani  L.  The  two  last 
named  are  the  only  survivors  of  the  family. 

Charles  C.  Field  received  a  common-school 
education  in  Montello,  going  to  work  at  the 
age  of  fourteen.  At  that  early  age  he  began 
to  drive  a  market  wagon  for  himself;  and  at 
sixteen  he  went  to  Brighton  to  buy  cattle, 
which  he  slaughtered.  In  1845  he  opened  a 
store   on   the   site  of    the   present    Enterprise 


37° 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Building;  and,  after  ten  years  of  prosperous 
trade  at  that  stand,  he  purchased  a  place  where 
the  Field  Block  now  is.  He  was  over  thirty 
years  in  business  at  that  location,  and  then 
moved  to  his  present  stand,  20  Spring  Street. 
Three  years  ago  he  retired  from  business;  but, 
soon  tiring  of  inactivity,  he  bought  back  his 
old  place,  and  is  again  happy,  welcoming  old 
customers,  and  making  many  new  acquaint- 
ances. He  opened  the  first  market  in  the 
town,  and  has  had  a  very  successful  career  in 
the  half-century  that  he  has  been  in  trade. 
Mr.  Field  was  engaged  for  a  while  in  market 
gardening,  raising  his  produce  on  a  piece  of 
land  which  he  afterward  sold  to  the  railroad 
company  for  a  freight  yard.  This  land  he 
purchased  of  B.  E.  Jones  for  five  hundred  dol- 
lars; and  in  1S91  the  railroad  company  paid 
him  seventy-five  thousand  dollars  for  it,  the 
transaction  being  the  best  real  estate  deal 
ever  effected  in  Brockton.  Mr.  Field  was 
married  in  1848  to  Lucy  Cobb  Cross,  daughter 
of  Nathaniel  and  Lucy  (Cross)  Cross,  of  North 
Bridgewater.  Their  silver  wedding  was  cele- 
brated in  October,  1873.  This  union  has 
been  blessed  by  four  children.  The  eldest 
daughter  died,  and  one  daughter  is  yet  at 
home  with  her  parents.  Charles  is  a  graduate 
of  Brown  University  and  the  Harvard  Medical 
School,  and  has  practised  medicine  in  East 
Bridgewater  for  seventeen  years.  The  other 
son,  George  Wilton,  is  a  graduate  of  Brown 
University  and  of  Johns  Hopkins  University 
at  Baltimore,  and  has  also  studied  in  Europe 
for  some  time,  remaining  in  Italy  si.x  months. 
For  the  past  three  years  he  has  filled  tlie  chair 
of  Professor  of  Biology  at  Brown  University. 

Mr.  Field,  who  is  a  stanch  Republican,  cast 
his  first  Presidential  vote  as  a  Whig  for  Zach- 
ary  Taylor  in  1848,  before  the  new  party  was 
formed.  He  has  been  urged  to  accept  dif- 
ferent   offices    in    Brockton,    but    has    always 


firmly  refused.  He  belongs  to  no  secret 
orders  and  to  no  temperance  society,  though 
a  strong  believer  in  total  abstinence,  having 
never  drank  liquor  or  smoked  or  chewed 
tobacco  in  his  life.  The  only  social  organiza- 
tion with  which  he  is  affiliated  is  the  Commer- 
cial Club,  of  which  he  is  an  honored   member. 


-AMES  HORACE  WEST,  a  well-known 
bo.\  manufacturer  of  North  Pembroke, 
Mass.,  was  born  January  25,  1829,  in 
North  Bridgewater,  now  Brockton.  His 
parents  were  James  and  Hannah  (Ballard) 
West.  John  West,  his  grandfather,  was  the 
earliest-known  ancestor  in  Plymouth  County. 
Living  in  this  region  before  the  days  of  rail- 
roads, Mr.  John  West  teamed  merchandise 
from  Boston  to  Randolph  and  surrounding 
towns.  His  last  years  were  spent  in  that  part 
of  Randolph  now  within  the  limits  of  the  town 
of  Holbrook.  He  married  Relief  Kingman,  a 
native  of  Randolph,  whose  father  was  a  black- 
smith. 

Their  son  James,  the  father  of  James  Horace 
West,  after  acquiring  a  common-school  educa- 
tion, learned  the  shoemaking  trade.  He 
bought  a  farm  in  that  part  of  Abington  which 
has  been  set  off  to  form  the  town  of  Whitman, 
and  continued  in  the  successful  management 
thereof  during  the  rest  of  his  life.  He  mar- 
ried Hannah  Ballard,  of  New  Hampshire,  by 
whom  he  had  nine  children.  He  died  in 
1890,  in  the  eighty-seventh  year  of  his  age. 
His  wife  died  at  the  age  of  seventy-nine 
years. 

James  11.  West,  leaving  school  at  the  age 
of  fifteen,  went  to  Pembroke  to  work  on  a 
farm,  and  during  his  minority  his  father  re- 
ceived his  wages.  For  a  time  thereafter  he 
was  engaged  in  teaming;  and  in  1867,  buying 
the   mill   in  North    Pembroke,   he    began    the 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


371 


manufacture  of  boxes,  which  still  engages  his 
attention.  The  mill  is  admirably  fitted  with 
all  kinds  of  machinery;  and  he  employs  an 
able  corps  of  workmen,  who  make  a  great  vari- 
ety of  boxes.  At  present  the  products  are  sold, 
almost  without  exception,  to  the  Walter  Baker 
Company.  In  politics  Mr.  West  has  been  a 
Republican  since  the  formation  of  the  party. 
He  served  six  years  on  the  Board  of  Select- 
men. 

The  maiden  name  of  his  wife,  to  whom  he 
was  married  in  1851,  was  Mary  Green  Shep- 
herd. Her  parents  were  Calvin  and  Mary 
(Byram)  Shepherd,  of  Pembroke,  consistent 
members  of  the  Society  of  I'riends,  their 
daughter  being  a  birthright  member.  Mrs. 
Mary  G.  S.  West  died  on  February  14,  1896, 
having  reared  two  children — James  H.,  Jr., 
and  Calvin  Shepherd.  James  H.  West,  Jr., 
•  married  Hattie  Irving  Calkins,  and  has  two 
children  —  Gilbert  Horace  and  Ada  Irvins. 
He  and  his  family  are  members  of  the  grange. 
Calvin  S.  West  is  a  member  of  the  Board  of 
Selectmen  of  Pembroke.  He  married  Sarah 
L.  Calkins;  and  they  have  one  son,  Lester 
Daniel  West. 


^ORRILL  A.  PHILLIPS,  of  the 
firm  of  E.  Phillips  &  Sons,  tack 
manufacturers,  was  born  in  the 
town  of  Hanson,  Plymouth  County,  Mass., 
February  27,  1844,  son  of  Ezra  and  Catherine 
(Tilden)  Phillips.  He  came  with  his  parents 
to  Hanover  in  1852,  and  was  educated  in  the 
public  schools  and  at  Hanover  Academy.  At 
the  age  of  nineteen  he  entered  E.  Y.  Perry  & 
Co. 's  store  in  South  Hanover,  remaining  two 
years,  and  he  was  afterward  employed  by  the 
same  firm  in  Boston.  In  1874  he  became 
associated  with  his  father  and  brothers,  who 
purchased  Mr.  Perry's  interest  in  the  tack 
business    at    South    Hanover,    the    firm    being 


thereafter  known  under  the  style  of  E.  Phillips 
&  .Sons.  They  manufacture  nails,  roll  sheet, 
zinc,  and  lead,  and  when  running  under  full 
capacity  turn  out  five  tons  of  nails  daily,  giv- 
ing employment  to  sixty-five  persons.  In 
1886  Mr.  Edward  M.  Sweeney  entered  the 
firm  as  partner.  In  i)olitics  Mr.  Phillips 
affiliates   with   the   Republican   party. 


M 


R.  STEPHEN  HENRY  has  been 
engaged  in  the  practice  of  dentistry 
in  Marshfield  since  1861,  and  enjoys 
the  confidence  and  esteem  of  the  public,  at 
least  three  generations  having  tested  and 
proved  his  ability  in  his  profession.  He  was 
born  in  Stoughton,  Norfolk  County,  Mass., 
December  4,  1829,  a  son  of  William  and  Lucy 
C.  (Tilson)  Henry.  On  the  paternal  side 
his  first  ancestor  to  locate  in  .Stoughton 
settled  there  as  early  as  1740;  and  many 
members  of  the  family,  including  our  subject's 
father,  were  born  in  that  town.  William 
Henry  was  a  millwright  by  trade.  His  wife, 
Lucy  C.  (Tilson)  Henry,  who  was  of  Pilgrim 
stock,  was  born  in  the  town  of  Wareham, 
Mass. 

Stephen  Henry  was  reared  in  Stoughton,  and 
educated  in  the  public  schools.  He  learned 
the  millwright's  trade  with  his  father,  and  fol- 
lowed it  until  about  thirty  years  old,  then 
taking  up  the  study  and  practice  of  dentistry. 
In  i860  he  started  an  independent  practice, 
and  in  1861  he  opened  an  office  in  Marshfiejd. 
Added  to  his  natural  ability,  his  long  experi- 
ence has  perfected  his  skill ;  and  he  keeps  well 
up  with  the  progress  of  the  times,  noting  and 
profiting  by  every  new  discovery  in  his  profes- 
sion. 

Dr.  Henry  married  Miss  Jane  Weston,  a 
native  of  Marshfield,  and  daughter  of  Captain 
William    Weston,    a    former  resident    of    this 


372 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


town,  but  now  deceased.  They  have  one 
child  —  Helen  M.,  a  young  lady  of  rare  abil- 
ity, who  has  taken  the  degree  of  Doctor  of 
Dental  Surgery  at  the  Boston  Dental  College, 
and  is  now  practising  dentistry  in  Kingston, 
Mass.  Dr.  Stephen  Henry  votes  with  the  Re- 
publican party.  He  is  well  known  in  Plym- 
outh County,  and  has  many  friends. 


/^TeORGE  a.  woodward,  superin- 
\  i)  I  tendent  of  the  manufacturing  plant  of 
the  widely-known  Hub  Gore  Com- 
pany at  Rockland,  Mass.,  was  born  in  Derby- 
shire, England,  February  27,  1861,  a  son  of 
Albert  Charles  and  Esther  (Tetley)  Wood- 
ward. Albert  Woodward,  who  was  a  native  of 
Derby,  England,  died  in  Paterson,  N.J.,  at 
the  age  of  forty-five.  Mrs.  Woodward  was 
born  in  Derby,  England.  She  is  the  mother 
of  nine  children,  si.x  of  whom  are  living, 
George  A.  being  next  to  the  youngest. 

George  A.  Woodward  was  eleven  years  old 
when  he  came  to  this  country,  and  it  was  here 
that  he  acquired  his  education.  He  worked 
as  cash  boy  in  a  store  in  Boston  until  si.xteen 
years  of  age,  in  the  mean  time  attending  an 
evening  school.  Naturally  bright,  he  almost 
unconsciously  trained  himself  for  a  business 
career  through  his  associations  and  by  observ- 
ing the  ways  and  methods  of  successful  men. 
After  leaving  the  Boston  store  he  entered  a 
weaving  factory  in  Chelsea,  Mass.,  and  there 
he  remained  until  he  was  twenty-three,  learn- 
ing the  business  practically  and  thoroughly. 
He  was  subsequently  employed  by  weaving 
firms  in  Boston  and  in  Wallingford,  Conn., 
and  in  1890  he  removed  to  Rockland,  going 
to  work  in  the  factory  of  the  Hub  Gore  Com- 
pany. Here  his  ability  and  trustworthiness 
were  soon  recognized,  and  two  years  ago  he 
was  made    superintendent    of    the    factory    on 


Park  Street,  Rockland.  The  Hub  Gore  is 
widely  known  through  advertising,  and  the 
congress  shoes  fitted  with  this  gore  are  un- 
doubtedly the  best  in  the  market.  The  com- 
pany's principal  office  is  at  gi  Bedford  Street, 
Boston.  They  have  a  large  and  flourishing 
plant,  and  Mr.  Woodward's  position  is  one  of 
great  responsibility. 

Mr.  Woodward  was  married  in  1883  to 
Florence  Whitmore,  of  Chelsea,  Mass.,  and 
he  has  a  family  of  four  bright  and  promising 
children  —  Chester  Arthur,  Ernest  Carlton, 
Florence  Ethel,  and  Marion  Louise.  In  poli- 
tics he  favors  the  Republican  side.  Though 
in  Rockland  but  a  comparatively  short  time, 
he  stands  well  in  the  community,  and  may  be 
regarded  as  a  representative  citizen.  He  is  a 
member  of  Standish  Lodge,  177,  Independent 
Order  of  Odd  Fellows. 


/^TeORGE  GUSTAVUS  dyer,  late 
\^:5T  President  of  the  Old  Colony  Na- 
tional Bank,  who  died  at  his  home 
in  Plymouth  in  January,  1891,  was  during 
his  active  life  one  of  the  most  prominent  men 
in  the  financial  and  religious  circles  of  the 
town.  He  was  born  in  South  Abington,  now 
Whitman,  Mass.,  August  20,  1825.  He  was 
a  son  of  Christopher,  third,  and  Betsey  (Por- 
ter) Dyer,  and  grandson  of  Christopher,  sec- 
ond, and  Deborah  (Reed)  Dyer.  The  grand- 
father of  Christopher  Dyer,  second,  was  Will- 
iam Dyer,  of  Weymouth,  Mass.  On  the 
paternal  side  Mr.  George  G.  Dyer  claimed 
descent  from  Peregrine  White,  who  was  born 
on  the  "Mayflower"  in  Cape  Cod  Harbor. 

The  Dyer  family  dates  back  to  the  reign  of 
Alfred  the  Great  in  the  English  genealogical 
records,  and  some  of  its  members  are  now 
holding  titles  in  the  English  peerage. 
Among  the    first    of    the    name  who    came    to 


%k 


GEORGE    G.    DYER. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


375 


America  were  William  and  Mary  Dyer  (or 
Dyre)  ;  and  the  fate  of  the  latter  was  a  tragedy 
and  a  blot  upon  the  pages  of  Boston's  Colonial 
history,  for  there  on  the  Common  Mary  Dyer 
was  hanged  as  a  Quaker  in  1660.  She  left 
a  son  William,  a  son  Samuel,  a  Charles,  and 
other  children.  One  Thomas  Dyer  and  his 
wife  Agnes  arrived  in  Boston  in  1632,  and 
settled  in  Weymouth.  He  had  five  sons  and 
three  daughters.  The  family  motto  of  the 
Dyers  is:  "To  affright  I  would  not,  to  fear 
I  know  not,"  and  many  of  the  name  have 
lived  up  to  the  standard  of  the  couplet. 

George  G.  Dyer  was  educated  at  Andover 
Academy,  and  began  his  business  career  as  a 
book-keeper  in  the  wholesale  boot  and  shoe 
store  of  Samuel  Blake  in  Boston.  From  1852 
to  the  time  of  his  death  he  was  connected  with 
the  Old  Colony  National  Bank,  holding  the 
offices  of  Cashier,  Director,  and  President 
successively.  He  was  its  cashier  at  the  time 
of  his  marriage  in  1852  to  Miss  Mary  A. 
Bartlett  Sampson,  daughter  of  Schuyler  Samp- 
son and  Mary  Ann  (Bartlett)  Samjison.  Mrs. 
Dyer's  father,  Schuyler  Sampson,  was  a  lineal 
descendant  of  Abraham  Sampson,  who  came  to 
New  England  about  1629,  and  whose  brother 
Henry  came  in  the  "Mayflower"  in  1620,  but 
was  too  young  to  have  his  name  appear  on  the 
famous  compact  signed  by  the  Pilgrims  on  the 
27th  of  November.  Abraham  Sampson  was  a 
surveyor  of  highways  in  1648,  and  a  Constable 
of  Du.xbury  in  1653.  His  son  George  was  the 
father  of  George  (second)  and  grandfather  of 
Zabdiel,  whose  son  George  (third)  was  the 
father  of  Schuyler  Sampson.  As  the  second 
George  Sampson  married  Hannah  Soule,  a 
great-granddaughter  of  Captain  Miles  Stan- 
dish  and  of  John  Alden,  Mrs.  George  G.  Dyer 
counts  among  her  ancestors  the  famous  mili- 
tary commander  of  the  Plymouth  Colony  and 
John  and  Priscilla  Alden. 


The  family  history  abounds  in  interesting 
details,  of  which  a  few  may  here  be  noted. 
Deborah  Sampson,  a  great-granddaughter  of 
Isaac  Sampson,  son  of  Abraham,  is  renowned 
for  having  served  three  years  in  the  ranks  of 
the  Revolutionary  army  under  the  name  of 
Robert  Shurtleff.  Another  treasured  story  of 
heroism  is  told  of  Mrs.  Dyer's  great-grand- 
father, Zabdiel  Sampson,  who,  during  the 
French  and  Indian  War  of  1756,  was  taken 
prisoner  by  the  Indians  and  was  tied  to  a  tree 
as  a  target  for  tomahawks,  which  were  thrown 
at  him,  but  strange  to  say  did  not  inflict  fatal 
wounds.  His  life  was  preserved  through  that 
danger;  and  he  fell  as  a  brave  soldier  in  the 
Revolutionary  War,  some  years  after,  at  the 
battle  of  Harlem. 

Schuyler  Sampson  was  born  in  Plympton, 
Mass.,  January  16,  1797.  He  was  educated 
in  the  common  schools  of  that  town,  and 
started  out  in  life  as  a  merchant  in  Western 
Virginia,  where  he  was  engaged  in  business 
some  years.  Later  on  he  was  for  a  while  the 
store-keeper  of  the  Plymouth  Cordage  Com- 
pany, becoming  afterward  Collector  of  Cus- 
toms of  the  Port  of  Plymouth.  The  latter 
office  he  held  for  twelve  years;  and  he  was 
also  Superintendent  of  Plymouth  l^each  for 
three  years,  or  from  1852  to  the  date  of  his 
death,  March  31,  1855.  He  was  connected 
with  the  Old  Colony  Bank  from  the  time  of 
its  organization,  in  1832,  till  the  end  of  his 
life,  being  chosen  one  of  the  first  directors, 
then  cashier,  and  finariy_  President.  Mj. 
Sampson  filled  many  municipal  offices.  He 
was  a  Selectman  of  Plymouth  ;  a  charter  mem- 
ber of  Plymouth  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M., 
which  was  organized  in  1825;  and  a  Trustee 
of  the  Pilgrim  Society.  He  was  a  member  of 
the  Pilgrimage  Church,  in  which  he  was  ac- 
tively interested,  serving  as  its  Sunday-school 
Superintendent  for  a  number  of  years. 


376 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


He  was  married  August  13,  1823,  to  Miss 
Mary  Ann  Hartlett,  a  daughter  of  Captain 
Amasa  Hartlett,  of  I'lymnuth,  wheie  she  was 
born  September  g,  1798.  Mrs.  Mary  A.  Bart- 
lett  Sampson  passed  from  earth  on  the  3d  of 
September,  1825,  in  the  twenty-seventh  year 
of  her  age,  leaving  her  infant  daughter,  Mary 
Ann,  a  babe  of  five  months.  Schuyler  Samp- 
son married  September  30,  1827,  his  first 
wife's  sister,  Sarah  T.  (Bartlett)  Bishop, 
widow  of  William  Bishop,  of  Plymouth.  She 
died  August  23, 1848.  The  three  children  born 
of  this  second  marriage  were:  Sarah  T.  B.  ; 
George  S. ,  who  died  at  the  age  of  about 
one  year;  and  Hannah  B.  Miss  Mary  A.  B. 
Sampson  was  educated  at  Bradford  Academy 
and  in  the  private  schools  of  her  native  town, 
Plymouth.  .She  was  twenty-seven  years  of 
age  when  she  became  the  wife  of  Mr.  George 
G.  Dyer.  The  three  children  born  of  their 
union  were:  George  S.,  who  is  at  present 
Town  Treasurer  of  Plymouth  ;  Horace  White, 
who  died  at  about  two  years  of  age;  and  Mary 
Schuyler.  George  S.  Dyer  married  Ada  B. 
.Smith,  daughter  of  IDryden  .Smith,  M.  D. ,  of 
Biddeford,  Me.  They  have  two  children  : 
George  Webster,  born  May  21,  1888;  and 
Loring,  born  September  4,  iSgo.  Mary 
Schuyler  Dyer  was  married  June  11,  i8gi,  to 
James  W.  Cooper,  a  druggist.  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Coo]ier  have  one  child  —  Willard  Ashley,  now 
three  years  of  age. 

George  G.  Dyer  was  one  of  the  Trustees  of 
the  Pilgrim  Society  and  was  an  active  worker 
ill  the  Church  of  the  Pilgrimage,  with  which 
he  was  connected  by  membership  for  a  quarter 
of  a  century.  This  church  is  of  orthodo.x  doc- 
trine and  creed,  and  Mr.  Dyer  was  a  teacher 
in  its  Sunday-school  for  twenty  years,  and  a 
Deacon  for  twenty-five  years.  In  the  various 
relations  of  life  George  G.  Dyer  was  faithful 
and   diligent;   and  his    death,    at    the   age    of 


sixty-five  years  and  eight  months,  caused  uni- 
versal and  sincere  sorrow  among  the  citizens 
of  Plymouth,  for  he  was  popular,  admired,  and 
respected.  His  widow  is  still  a  resident  of 
the  old  town  in  which  for  so  many  generations 
her  own  as  well  as  her  husband's  family  has 
held  such  a  prominent  place. 


ALTON  HALL,  a  resident  of 
Marshfield,  was  born  in  this  town, 
March  3,  1856,  son  of  Tilden  and 
Hetty  (Jones)  Hall.  His  father,  Tilden  Hall, 
who  was  a  native  of  Marshfield,  in  early  man- 
hood followed  the  occupation  of  a  ship  carpen- 
ter, but  during  his  last  years  was  engaged  in 
shoemaking.  He  was  for  some  time  Postmas- 
ter at  Marshfield  Hills.  He  died  in  Marsh- 
field in  1888.  His  wife,  who  was  born  in 
Barnstable,  Mass.,  died  in  iSSg. 

Walton  Hall  was  educated  in  his  native 
town,  attending  school  until  fifteen  years  of 
age.  He  then  entered  the  employ  of  Whiton 
Brothers,  cordage  manufacturers,  of  Boston, 
for  whom  he  worked  nine  years,  at  the  end  of 
that  time  becoming  a  member  of  the  firm. 
Since  i8g5  the  house  has  been  known  as  P" ear- 
ing. Hall  &  Whiton.  They  act  mainly  as 
agents  for  mills.  Mr.  Hall  has  been  Presi- 
dent of  the  Marshfield  Agricultural  and  Horti- 
cultural Society  for  two  years.  In  1885  Mr. 
Hall  purchased  the  old  Daniel  Webster  estate, 
and  while  carefully  preserving  all  its  historic 
features,  he  has  made  many  improvements  in 
the  property,  materially  increasing  its  value. 
The  original  house  in  which  Webster  spent  so 
many  pleasant  hours  was  burned  in  1880.  The 
present  house  stands  far  back  from  the  road, 
and  the  grounds  in  front  are  shaded  by  mag- 
nificent trees,  standing  just  as  they  did  in  the 
great  stateman's  day.  The  estate  contains 
about  eight  hundred  acres,    and   to  the  fruit- 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


377 


trees  planted  in  Webster's  time  Mr.  Hall  has 
added  many  others,  so  that  he  is  now  owner  of 
one  of  the  finest  orchards  in  Plymouth  County, 
and  that  yields  in  a  fruit  year  two  thousand 
barrels.  He  has  in  his  possession  many  ar- 
ticles that  once  belonged  to  Webster. 


M 


EACON  NATHANIEL  ELLIS  is 
a  well-known  citizen  of  Plymouth, 
Plymouth  County,  Mass.,  and  by  oc- 
cupation a  farmer.  He  was  born  in  Ellisville, 
in  the  town  of  Plymouth,  November  i,  1818, 
a  son  of  Nathaniel  and  Remember  (Swift) 
Ellis.  He  is  a  representati\'e  of  an  old  and 
respected  family  of   Plymouth   County. 

From  the  Ellis  records  given  in  Mr.  Will- 
iam T.  Davis's  "Ancient  Landmarks,"  we 
gather  that  the  elder  Nathaniel,  who  was  mar- 
ried in  1 810,  was  the  seventh  child  of  Thomas 
and  Jerusha  (Clark)  I{!llis,  who  were  married 
in  1767.  Thomas,  born  in  1764,  is  said  to 
have  been  a  son  of  William  Ellis,  Jr.,  and 
grandson  of  William,  Sr. ,  who  was  "'perhaps 
son  of  Matthias  "  Ellis. 

The  first  Nathaniel  Ellis  had  his  birth  in 
this  famous  town,  and,  like  his  father,  fol- 
lowed here  during  all  of  his  mature  years  the 
honored  calling  of  a  farmer.  He  married  Miss 
Remember  Swift,  also  a  native  of  Plymouth, 
and  of  their  union  were  born  five  children, 
namely:  William,  who  is  now  deceased  ;  Cur- 
tis, also  deceased;  Nathaniel;  Betsy;  and 
Lucy.  Mr.  Nathaniel  Ellis,  Sr. ,  departed 
this  life  on  November  26,  1S58,  in  his  sixty- 
seventh  year,  and  his  wife  on  May  14,  1877, 
at  the  venerable  age  of  eighty-one  years. 

Their  son,  Nathaniel  Ellis,  now  Deacon 
Ellis,  attained  to  man's  estate  on  the  ances- 
tral farm  in  Plymouth,  enjoying  but  limited 
educational  privileges  in  his  youth.  On 
reaching   his  majority  he   began  life   for  him- 


self, shipping  on  a  coasting-vessel.  After 
remaining  on  board  that  craft  about  a  year  he 
sailed  for  half  a  dozen  years  on  a  steamboat, 
and  at  the  termination  of  that  period  he  came 
back  to  Plymouth,  where  he  has  made  his  home 
from  that  day  to  this.  He  owns  and  carries 
on  about  sixty  acres  of  land,  tilling  the  soil 
and  feeding  stock;  and  he  likewise  devotes 
considerable  attention  to  teaming.  On  No- 
vember 26,  1845,  he  married  Miss  Nancy 
Swift,  a  native  of  Plymouth,  and  a  daughter  of 
William  Swift.  One  child  was  born  to  them, 
a  son,  Wallace  H.  by  name,  who  passed  away 
in  his  seventeenth  year- 
Deacon  Ellis  has  ever  taken  an  active  inter- 
est in  the  civic  and  social  affairs  of  his 
community,  and  he  has  served  his  fellow- 
townsmen  for  four  years  in  the  capacity  of 
Road  Surveyor.  In  national  political  views 
he  is  identified  with  the  Republican  party. 
Religiously,  he  is  intimately  associated  with 
the  Congregational  church  of  Plymouth, 
which  he  serves  in  the  important  and  respon- 
sible position  indicated  by  his  title,  partici- 
pating freely  and  earnestly  in  its  Christian 
work. 


(gTr-LGERNON   S.    CHANDLER,    a  well- 

li-A       known  citizen   of   Kingston,  was   born 

^    '®V._^  in    Duxbury,    November    22,     1838, 


son  of  Captain  David  and  Edith  (Chandler) 
Chandler.  He  is  a  descendant  of  one  of  the 
early  settlers  of  Plymouth  County.  His 
grandfather,  Asa  Chandler,— was  a  resident  ©f 
Duxbury. 

Captain  David  Chandler,  father  of  Algernon 
S.,  was  born  in  Duxbury,  and  acquired  a  com- 
mon-school education.  In  his  earlier  years 
he  followed  the  sea,  and  as  master  of  vessels 
visited  many  parts  of  the  world.  He  served 
in  the  War  of  1812;  and,  after  his  retirement 
from   the   sea,  he  settled    in   his    native   town, 


378 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


where  he  presided  for  many  years.  He  took 
an  active  and  leading  part  in  local  affairs, 
being  especially  interested  in  educational 
matters;  and,  as  he  was  well  versed  in  com- 
mon law,  he  rendered  much  service  to  his 
neighbors  as  a  legal  adviser,  and  in  the  settle- 
ment of  estates.  Toward  the  latter  part  of  his 
life  he  moved  to  a  farm  in  Kingston,  where  he 
engaged  in  agricultural  pursuits.  He  also 
operated  a  mill  for  the  manufacturing  of  bo.x 
boards  and  shingles,  and  achieved  marked  suc- 
cess as  a  business  man.  In  politics  he  was 
originally  a  Whig,  but  later  joined  the  Repub- 
lican party.  In  his  religious  views  he  was  a 
Unitarian.  He  died  in  Kingston  in  his 
eighty-third  year.  His  wife,  Edith  Chandler, 
who  was  a  native  of  Kingston,  was  a  daughter 
of  Nathan  Chandler,  who  was  a  soldier  in  the 
War  of  1812.  Of  her  children  there  are  three 
survivors:  Rebecca,  widow  of  Francis  Sears, 
a  late  resident  of  Duxbury;  Algernon  S.,  the 
subject  of  this  sketch;  and  Edith,  who  is  the 
wife  of  Walter  Baker,  of  Kingston. 

Algernon  S.  Chandler  was  educated  in  the 
common  schools  of  his  native  town,  and  at 
the  age  of  sixteen  he  accompanied  his  parents 
to  Kingston.  He  assisted  upon  the  farm  and 
in  the  mill  until  his  father's  retirement,  when 
he  took  charge  of  the  business,  and  carried  it 
on  successfully  for  several  years.  Some  time 
since  he  retired  from  active  business  pursuits, 
and,  moving  to  the  village,  is  now  occupying 
a  pleasantly  located  residence  on  Main  Street, 
Mr.  Chandler  wedded  Sophia  Wright  Maglath- 
lin,  daughter  of  Elisha  Maglathlin,  late  of 
Kingston,  and  has  one  daughter,  Edith  W., 
who  is  the  wife  of  Preston  E.  Foss,  of  South 
Braintree,  Mass.  Politically,  Mr.  Chandler 
favors  the  Democratic  party,  but  votes  inde- 
pendently. He  has  served  with  ability  as 
Road  Surveyor,  and  is  numbered  among  the 
prominent  well-to-do  residents  of  Kingston. 


ILLIS  H.  CORNISH,  M.D.,  a  physi- 
cian of  Carver,  Plymouth  County, 
Mass.,  where  he  has  been  engaged  in 
the  practice  of  his  profession  for  nearly  thirty 
years,  was  born  in  Halifax,  this  county, 
August  24,  1S40,  being  a  son  of  Ellis 
Cornish,  a  citizen  of  that  place. 

He  was  reared  on  a  farm,  and  educated  in 
the  common  and  high  schools  of  his  native 
town.  After  finishing  his  general  studies  he 
taught  school  for  four  years,  during  the  winter 
terms,  in  the  mean  time  studying  medicine. 
He  was  for  some  time  under  the  tuition  of  Dr. 
Robert  Proran,  of  South  Boston,  Mass.,  and 
took  the  regular  course  at  the  Harvard  Med- 
ical School,  receiving  his  degree  in  March, 
1867.  After  practising  in  Boston  a  few 
months  he  located  in  Carver,  where  he  has 
since  conducted  a  successful  practice.  Dr. 
Cornish  worked  hard  to  qualify  himself  for  his 
profession,  and  he  has  worked  harder  still 
during  the  years  of  his  professional  life  in 
Carver.  He  is  well  known  throughout  the 
locality,  and  is  highly  esteemed,  not  only  by 
the  patients  who  owe  to  him  their  release  from 
bodily  ills,  but  also  by  those  whose  relations 
with  him  are  merely  social. 

January  i,  1868,  Dr.  Cornish  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Miss  Nancy  L.  Pratt,  of  Bridge- 
water.  He  has  had  thirteen  children; 
namely,  Ellis  C,  Virgina  H.,  Berenice  E., 
Anson  F. ,  William  E. ,  Gertrude  V.,  Nancy 
A.,  Solon  W.,  Paul  D.,  Blanche  E.,  Izette  A. 
and  Irene  A.  (twins),  and  Beulah  (deceased). 
In  politics  Dr.  Cornish  favors  the  Republican 
side,  but  has  not  sought  office,  his  professional 
work  demanding  all  his  time  and  attention. 
He  is  a  member  of  the  Baptist  church,  and, 
though  a  scientific  man  by  the  nature  of  his 
profession,  he  sees  no  conflict  between  science 
and  Christianity,  when  both  are  rightly  under- 
stood. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


379 


.  WILLIAM  LINCOLN  REED, 
retired  shoe  manufacturer  of  Brock- 
ton, Mass.,  is  well  known  in  Plym- 
outh County,  and  is  universally  loved  and  re- 
spected. He  was  born  in  Abington,  this 
county,  October  5,  1825,  a  son  of  Isaac  and 
Nancy  (Lincoln)    Reed.  The   common    an- 

cestor of  the  Reed  family  was  Brianus,  a 
noted  man  of  Lincolnshire,  England,  who  in 
1 1 39  was  registered  as  Brianus  de  Rede.  He 
had  three  sons:  Robert  of  Rede;  William, 
Bishop  of  Chichester;  and  Thomas,  of  Red- 
yale.  Passing  over  many  noted  names,  repre- 
sentatives of  different  generations  of  the 
family  in  England,  we  come  to  William 
Reade,  "supposed  to  be  the  son  of  William 
Reade  and  Lucy  Henage,"  born  in  1605,  who 
sailed  from  Gravesend,  England,  in  1635. 
He  settled  in  W'eymouth,  Mass.,  and  was 
made  freeman  September  2,  1635.  (See 
"History  of  the  Reed  Family,"  by  Jacob  W. 
Reed.      Published  in  1861.) 

From  William  Reed,  of  Weymouth,  the 
line  is  thus  traced:  William,  Thomas, 
Thomas,  Daniel,  Thomas,  and  Isaac,  to  Will- 
iam Lincoln  Reed,  of  Brockton,  who  is  of  the 
seventh  generation  from  his  Colonial  ancestor. 
His  grandfather,  Thomas  Reed,  who  was  the 
possessor  of  extensive  landed  estates,  was  a 
man  of  unusual  strength  of  character.  He 
had  a  large  frame,  standing  over  si.\  feet  in 
height,  and  was  endowed  with  great  powers  of 
endurance.  Isaac  Reed,  son  of  Thomas,  was 
a  well-to-do  farmer,  a  worthy  and  highly  re- 
spected citizen.  He  died  in  1847.  His  wife, 
Nancy,  who  was  a  daughter  of  Caleb  Lincoln, 
of  Taunton,  Mass.,  whose  ancestors  were 
among  the  early  and  prominent  settlers  of 
Taunton  and  Hingham,  died  in  1874. 

Their  son,  William  L.  Reed,  the  subject  of 
this  sketch,  received  a  common-school  educa- 
tion in    his  native  town.      His  first  work  was 


on  his  father's  farm ;  but  agricultural  labor 
was  not  to  his  taste,  and  he  learned  the  shoe- 
maker's trade,  which  he  followed  for  a  num- 
ber of  years.  In  1853  he  started  in  business 
as  a  shoe  manufacturer,  in  a  shop  connected 
with  his  house,  cutting  his  stock,  and  sending 
it  out  to  be  made  up.  Two  years  later  his  in- 
creasing business  demanded  more  commodious 
quarters,  and  he  moved  into  rooms  over  the 
store  of  Randall  Cook,  where  he  remained  five 
years.  In  i860  he  built  what  was  then  con- 
sidered a  large  factory,  near  the  railroad  sta- 
tion at  South  Abington  (now  Whitman) ;  and 
in  1866  he  formed  a  copartnership  with 
Joseph  Burrage,  of  Boston,  under  the  firm 
name  of  Burrage  &  Reed.  This  partnership 
lasted  si.K  years,  Mr.  Burrage  dying  in  1862; 
and  Mr.  Reed's  next  associate  was  David  B. 
Closson,  of  Boston.  Soon  after  changing  the 
firm  name  to  Reed  &  Closson,  he  enlarged  his 
factory,  and  in  1879,  a  further  addition  being 
required,  the  factory  was  lengthened  by 
eighty-two  feet.  It  was  then  two  hundred 
and  thirty-two  feet  long,  thirty-five  feet  wide, 
and  four  stories  high.  About  three  hun- 
dred hands  were  employed,  and  the  business 
amounted  annually  to  over  four  hundred  and 
fifty  thousand  dollars.  In  1883  the  factory, 
with  all  its  costly  machinery  and  a  large 
amount  of  raw  material,  was  destroyed  by  fire; 
and  Mr.  Reed  did  not  take  the  trouble  to  re- 
build. Since  that  time  he  has  not  been  in 
active  business.  He  was  engaged  in  manu- 
facturing for  thirty-five  yearsj. and  in  the  latt£r 
part  of  that  period  he  had  a  business  of  over 
half  a  million  dollars  a  year;  and  he  takes 
pride  in  the  fact  that  he  has  always  paid  dollar 
for  dollar. 

Mr.  Reed  has  been  twice  married.  His 
first  wife,  to  whom  he  was  united  June  6, 
1847,  was  Deborah  W'.,  daughter  of  Ziba 
Chessman,  of  Weymouth,  Mass.      She  died   in 


38o 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


Whitman  in  1884,  leaving  three  children: 
Walter  Lincoln  Reed,  who  lives  on  the  Reed 
homestead  in  Whitman;  Anna  Gertrude,  the 
wife  of  George  E.  Keith,  of  Campello;  and 
Sarah  Chessman,  who  married  the  Rev.  John 
T.  Blades,  a  former  pastor  of  the  South  Con- 
gregational Church  of  Campello,  and  after  his 
death  became  the  wife  of  Rufus  B.  Keith,  of 
Campello,  a  sketch  of  whom  may  be  found  on 
another  page.  Two  other  children,  an  infant 
daughter,  and  a  boy  of  six  years,  named  Will- 
iam Bradford,  died  before  the  mother  passed 
away.  On  June  15,  1887,  Mr.  Reed  was  again 
married,  to  Mrs.  Georgietta  A.  Richardson 
Clark,  of  Brockton,  formerly  of  Medford, 
Mass. ;  and  one  of  his  wedding  presents  was 
a  handsome  gold  watch,  presented  by  his 
townsmen  in  Whitman. 

Mr.  Reed  is  a  Republican,  and  has  been 
elected  to  several  important  positions  of 
public  trust.  He  was  in  the  State  legislature 
in  1858  and  1859,  representing  Abington,  and 
in  the  latter  year  served  on  the  Joint  Com- 
mittee on  Towns.  In  1865  he  was  elected  to 
the  State  Senate  from  the  Second  Plymouth 
District,  and  served  on  the  Standing  Com- 
mittee on  Leave  of  Absence,  the  Joint  Com- 
mittee on  Prisons,  and  the  Joint  Special 
Committee  on  Annexation  of  Roxbury  to  Bos- 
ton. He  was  returned  to  the  Senate  in  1866, 
and  served  as  Chairman  of  the  Joint  Com- 
mittee on  Prisons  and  the  Joint  Special  Com- 
mittee on  Cost  of  State  Aid;  and,  re-elected 
in  1867,  he  presided  as  Chairman  of  the  same 
committees,  and  was  a  member  of  the  Com- 
mittee on  the  Hoosac  Tunnel  and  the  Troy  & 
Greenfield  Railroad.  He  was  a  member  of 
Governor  Claflin's  Council,  from  the  Second 
Councillor  District,  for  i87oand  1871,  was  a 
member  of  Governor  Washburn's  Council  in 
1S72,  serving  on  the  Committees  on  Hoosac 
Tunnel,  Troy  &  Greenfield  Railroad,  Military 


Affairs,    and    the     Boston,    Hartford    &    Erie 
Railroad. 

He  is  prominent  in  the  Masonic  brother- 
hood, having  first  joined  in  1861  the  John 
Cutter  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Abington, 
from  which  he  withdrew  to  join  the  Puritan 
Lodge  at  South  Abington  (Whitman),  of 
which  he  is  a  charter  member.  He  belongs 
to  Pilgrim  Chapter,  Royal  Arch  Masons;  is  a 
charter  member  of  the  Old  Colony  Command- 
ery  of  Knights  Templars;  and  has  held  the 
chairs  of  Select  Master,  Royal  Master,  and 
Super-excellent  Master  in  the  Boston  Council 
of  Royal  and  Select  Masters.  He  withdrew 
from  the  Boston  Council  to  become  a  member 
of  the  Abington  Council.  Mr.  Reed  belongs 
to  the  Commercial  Club  of  Brockton,  an  asso- 
ciation of  prominent  business  men.  He 
attends  public  worship  at  the  New  Jerusalem 
church  (Swedenborgian) ;  and,  though  not  a 
professing  Christian,  in  his  life  he  has  always 
exemplified  the  essential  rules  of  Christian 
conduct,  and  he  has  been  a  liberal  contributor 
to  religious  projects. 

Endowed  with  a  keen  sense  of  honor  and 
actuated  by  sound  ethical  principles,  he  has 
acquired  popularity  even  among  his  political 
opponents;  and  his  genial  and  attractive  man- 
ners and  active  interest  in  all  local  improve- 
ments have  won  the  regard  of  his  townsmen. 
As  an  evidence  of  the  esteem  in  which  he  is 
held,  it  may  be  stated  that  after  the  burning 
of  his  factory  a  citizens'  meeting  was  called 
at  South  Abington  to  express  sympathy  for  his 
loss.  On  this  occasion  ex-Congressman  Ben- 
jamin W.  Harris  spoke  in  part,  as  follows: 
"  I  came  over  from  my  home  to  express  my 
deep  sympathy  for  my  friend,  the  Hon.  Will- 
iam L.  Reed.  I  have  known  Mr.  Reed  for 
more  than  thirty  years.  He  began  life  as  a 
mechanic  at  the  bottom  of  the  ladder,  and  by 
untiring  industry,  strict  economy,  and  unvary- 


AUGUSTUS    COLE. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


383 


iny;  integrity  has  won  his  way  up  to  his  high 
position  as  a  successful  business  man  in  the 
community.  He  is  entitled  to  active  and 
helpful  sympathy.  My  acquaintance  with  him 
has  been  largely  in  the  social  and  public  rela- 
tion. In  public  trust,  as  well  as  in  business 
relations,  he  has  made  an  honorable  and 
enduring  record.  During  his  long  public 
service  I  have  yet  to  hear  of  his  lacking  any- 
thing of  strict  integrity  and  honorable  pur- 
pose. In  his  business  life  he  has  attained  an 
equally  enviable  reputation."  Mr.  Reed  has 
many  friends  in  Wliitman,  where  he  resided 
for  si.xty  years,  where  his  first  wife  died,  and 
where  his  son  is  now  living. 


UGUSTUS  COLE,  formerly  of  the 
enterprising  firm  of  Cole  &  Jenkins, 
grain  dealers  at  Scituate  Harbor,  is 
now  engaged  in  farming  in  Scituate.  A  son  of 
Captain  Augustus  and  Sallie  J.  (Turner)  Cole, 
both  natives  of  this  town,  he  was  born  January 
I,  1828,  on  the  farm  on  which  he  now  resides. 
He  is  of  old  New  England  stock,  representing 
the  sixth  generation  in  this  country  of  his 
father's  family,  and  the  seventh  of  his 
mother's. 

The  first  of  his  paternal  ancestors  in  Plym- 
outh County  was  James  Cole,  a  native  of  Kent, 
England,  who  settled  in  Scituate  on  land  now 
owned  by  E.  Parker  Welch.  Captain  Augus- 
tus Cole  was  born  in  the  part  of  Scituate 
which  now  constitutes  the  town  of  Norwell, 
and  was  a  lifelong  resident  of  Scituate.  His 
title  was  conferred  upon  him  as  Commander  of 
a  company  of  militia.  He  was  well  known 
and  popular,  and  took  an  active  part  in  the 
councils  of  the  local  Democrats.  His  wife 
was  a  daughter  of  Nathaniel  Turner,  a  de- 
scendant of  Humphrey  Turner,  one  of  the 
pioneer  settlers   in   Scituate.     Of   their   chil- 


dren two  are  living:  Augustus,  whose  name 
appears  at  the  head  of  this  article;  and  Esther, 
wife  of  H.  G.  H.  Reed. 

Augustus  Cole,  as  he  grew  to  manhood, 
acquired  a  good  education  in  public  and  pri- 
vate schools  of  Scituate.  After  finishing  his 
studies  he  was  engaged  for  a  number  of  years 
in  general  farming  on  the  home  estate;  and 
then,  purchasing  a  grist-mill  at  Scituate 
Harbor,  he  developed  a  large  and  prosperous 
trade  in  grinding  and  selling  grain  of  different 
kinds,  and  trading  in  merchandise  between 
Scituate  and  New  York.  Mr.  David  S. 
Jenkins  was  associated  with  him,  the  firm 
name  being  Cole  &  Jenkins.  For  a  number 
of  years  they  conducted  a  successful  business; 
then  the  partnership  was  dissolved,  and  Mr. 
Cole  was  employed  for  some  time  as  purchas- 
ing agent  on  the  Milwaukee,  Lake  Shore  & 
Western  Railroad.  In  1883  he  retired  from 
business,  and  settled  on  his  farm  in  Scituate. 

In  November,  1849,  he  was  united  in  mar- 
riage with  Paulina  Brown,  daughter  of  the  late 
William  Brown,  of  Scituate.  Six  children 
have  blessed  their  union,  four  of  whom  are 
living;  namely,  Charles  A.,  Frank  H.,  Ed- 
ward A.,  and  Henry  T.  Mr.  Cole  votes  the 
Democratic  ticket.  He  is  a  member  of  the 
Masonic  fraternity,  belonging  to  Satuit  Lodge 
of  Scituate. 


TIS  WHITE,  a  well-to-do  farmer  of 
Duxbury,  was  born  in  the  house  he 
now  occupies,  ^OTember  12,  i§30, 
son  of  Briggs  and  Judith  (Ransom)  White. 
Mr.  White's  great-grandfather,  Carpus  White, 
is  believed  to  have  been  killed  in  one  of  the 
early  wars,  and  his  grandfather,  Joseph  White, 
was  a  resident  of  Duxbury. 

Briggs  White,  father  of  Otis,  was  a  lifelong 
resident  of  this  town,  and  owned  the  farm 
which    is  now  the   property  of    his    son.      For 


384 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


some  time  he  followed  the  trade  of  a  tanner; 
but  his  principal  occupation  was  general  farm- 
ing, and  he  tilled  the  soil  with  prosperity 
until  his  death,  which  took  place  in  1847. 
In  politics  he  supported  the  Whig  party,  and 
he  attended  the  Unitarian  church.  His  wife, 
Judith,  survived  him  for  many  years,  dying  in 
the  fall  of  1 88 1.  Of  her  children  there  are 
three  survivors,  namely:  Otis,  the  subject  of 
this  sketch:  Mary,  wife  of  William  T.Will- 
cott,  of  Duxbury;  and  Emma,  who  resides  in 
this  town. 

Otis  White  was  educated  in  the  common 
schools  of  Duxbury,  and  at  an  early  age  en- 
gaged in  agricultural  pursuits  at  the  home- 
stead. He  succeeded  to  the  ownership  of  the 
property,  which  consists  of  two  hundred  acres 
of  fertile  land,  and  he  devotes  his  attention  to 
general  farming.  Capable  and  industrious, 
he  has  attained  a  high  degree  of  prosperity, 
and  is  considered  by  his  fellow-townsmen 
as  one  of  the  most  wealthy  farmers  in  Dux- 
bury. Mr.  White  is  unmarried.  In  politics 
he  acts  with  the  Republican  party.  He  has 
witnessed  with  satisfaction  the  advance  and 
improvement  of  this  historic  town,  and  he 
possesses  in  high  measure  the  esteem  and  good 
will  of  his  fellow-citizens. 


vELEG  T.  BROOKS,  agent  for  the 
New  York  &  Boston  Despatch  Com- 
pany in  Kingston,  was  born  in  Dux- 
bury, Mass.,  in  May,  1830,  son  of  Nathan  and 
Caroline  (Tupper)  Brooks.  Mr.  Brooks's 
father  was  a  native  of  Scituate,  Mass.,  and  a 
descendant  of  an  early  settler  of  that  town. 
He  was  a  hatter  by  trade,  and  in  young  man- 
hood settled  in  iJuxbury,  but  some  time  later 
moved  to  Kingston,  where  he  resided  for  over 
fifty  years.  He  served  for  twenty -eight  con- 
secutive years  as  Town   Clerk,  Treasurer,  and 


Collector,  and  was  a  Representative  to  the 
legislature  for  one  term.  He  was  a  self-made 
man,  who  was  obliged  to  make  his  own  way  in 
life  from  early  boyhood,  and  by  his  death, 
which  took  place  in  1882,  Kingston  lost  one 
of  its  most  able  and  useful  citizens.  He  was 
for  many  years  identified  with  the  Unitarian 
church,  and  at  times  officiated  as  a  Deacon. 
His  wife,  Caroline  Tupper  Brooks,  was  a 
native  of  Kingston.      She  died  in  1877. 

Peleg  T.  Brooks  accompanied  his  parents  to 
Kingston  when  he  was  three  years  old,  and  his 
education  was  acquired  in  the  common  schools 
of  this  town.  In  early  manhood  he  learned 
the  shoemaker's  trade,  which  he  followed  for  a 
number  of  years.  Subsequently  relinquishing 
that  calling,  he  was  for  a  time  employed  in  a 
livery  stable  here.  He  was  later  engaged  in 
driving  a  stage  coach  from  Du.xbury  to  Kings- 
ton, which  he  continued  to  do  for  twenty 
years;  anil  during  this  time  he  established 
what  was  known  as  Brooks  Express,  for  the 
purpose  of  transporting  merchandise  between 
Duxbury  and  Boston,  by  the  way  of  Kingston. 
When  the  South  Shore  Railroad  was  extended 
through  Duxbury,  he  was  forced  to  abandon 
the  stage  business,  and  also  the  express  busi- 
ness, as  far  as  that  town  was  concerned,  but 
continued  to  attend  to  the  Kingston  branch  of 
his  line  until  he  consolidated  with  the  New 
York  &  Boston  Despatch  Company,  a  few 
years  ago.  Besides  being  the  agent  of  this 
company  in  Kingston,  he  has  a  financial  in- 
terest in  the  enterprise. 

Mr.  Brooks  is  a  Democrat  politically,  and 
has  long  been  identified  with  public  affairs  in 
Kingston.  For  a  number  of  years  he  served 
as  Registrar  of  Voters;  and  he  represented 
the  Second  Plymouth  District  in  the  legisla- 
ture for  the  years  1886  and  1887,  during  which 
time  he  was  a  member  of  the  Committee  on 
Roads    and     Bridges.       He    is    a    member    of 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


38s 


Corner  Stone  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Dux- 
bury;  is  a  charter  member  of  Adams  Lodge, 
Independent  Order  of  Odd  Fellows,  of  Kings- 
ton ;  and  is  widely  and  favorably  known  as  an 
upright,  intelligent,  and  useful  citizen. 


JB 


R.  GEORGE  L.  NICWCOMB  is  an 
old  and  reliable  physician  of  North 
Scituate,  having  been  in  active  prac- 
tice here  for  over  thirty  years.  Dr.  Newcomb 
obtained  his  initial  practice  in  surgery  in 
military  hospitals  at  the  time  of  the  war,  and 
has  the  skill  and  insight  peculiar  to  army  sur- 
geons. He  was  born  in  Scituate,  March  19, 
1832,  a  son  of  Captain  Levi  and  Joan  (Stud- 
ley)  Newcomb.  Levi  Newcomb  was  born  in 
Provincetown,  and,  like  most  of  the  boys  of 
the  old  Cape  town,  went  to  sea  when  quite 
young.  He  sailed  as  captain  for  a  number  of 
years,  and  then,  retiring,  settled  in  Scituate. 
In  politics  he  was  a  Republican.  Me  died  in 
1879,  aged  ninety-one.  Mrs.  Newcomb,  who 
was  born  in  Scituate,  was  a  daughter  of  Lewis 
and  Lucy  (Dunbar)  Studley.  Lewis  Studley 
was  a  house  carpenter,  a. well-known  citizen  of 
Scituate.  His  wife  was  a  daughter  of  Squire 
Jesse  Dunbar,  a  leading  man  of  Scituate 
Harbor.  Mrs.  Newcomb  lived  to  be  even 
older  than  her  husband,  attaining  the  great 
age  of  ninety-three.  She  passed  away  No- 
vember 13,   1895. 

George  L.  Newcomb  received  his  early  edu- 
cation in  the  public  schools  of  Scituate,  and 
after  leaving  school  was  employed  for  a  while 
as  clerk  in  a  store  in  Cohasset.  He  read 
medicine  for  two  years  before  the  breaking 
out  of  the  war  with  Dr.  Clark,  a  reputable 
physician  of  Scituate,  and  Dr.  Thomas  Deer- 
ing,  a  prominent  medical  practitioner  of 
Braintree,  Mass.  In  the  fall  of  1S62,  under 
a  special  call  from   President  Lincoln,  he  was 


enrolled  in  the  United  States  service  for  one 
year,  and,  assigned  to  the  hospital  depart- 
ment at  Washington,  was  on  duty  for  some 
time  in  the  Lincoln  and  Clifburne  Hospitals. 
The  experience  gained  here  was  of  much  value 
in  his  after  life,  the  quick  and  diligent  prac- 
tice availing  more  than  years  of  study  of  the- 
ory. After  returning  from  Washington  he 
attended  lectures  at  the  Harvard  Medical 
School  until  qualified  in  all  branches  of  his 
profession,  and  then  opened  an  office  at  St. 
Albans,  Vt.  In  1866  he  located  in  North 
Scituate,  his  home  since  that  time.  Besides 
his  local  visiting  list.  Dr.  Newcomb  has 
many  outside  patients.  He  is  widely  known, 
and  enjoys  the  confidence  and  esteem  of  the 
public.  In  politics  he  favors  the  Democratic 
side.  He  is  deeply  interested  in  the  welfare 
of  his  native  place,  and  always  ready  to  aid  its 
progress. 

OSEPH  ADAMS  NEWHALL,  a 
retireil  business  man  of  Hingham, 
Plymouth  County,  formerly  of  the 
well-known  manufacturing  firm  of  Ripley  &. 
Newhall,  was  born  in  Lynn,  Mass.,  on  June 
12,  1822.  His  parents  were  Allen  and  Martha 
(Adams)  Newhall,  and  his  paternal  grand- 
father was  Allen  Newhall,  Sr. ,  who  was  born 
in  Lynn,  March  6,  1771,  and  was  a  shoemaker 
by  trade. 

The  family  is  one  of  the  oldest  in  Essex 
County.  The  two  immigrant  progenitors  were 
Thomas  and  Anthony  Newhall,  brothers,  who 
came,  it  is  supposed,  from  England.  Ac- 
cording to  the  genealogical  record  of  the  early 
American  Newhalls  in  the  "Essex  Institute 
Historical  Collections,"  volumes  XVIII.  and 
XIX.,  Allen  Newhall,  Sr.,  above  mentioned, 
was  a  son  of  Hanson  Newhall;  and  from  him 
the  line  is  traced  back  through  Joseph,  who  is 
thought  to  have  been  the  father  of  Hanson; 


386 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


Samuel,  father  of  Joseph;  and  Thomas,  sec- 
ond, father  of  Saumel ;  to  Thomas,  first,  who 
settled  in  Lynn  about  1630.  Thomas,  sec- 
ond, is  said  to  have  been  the  first  child  of 
European  parentage  born  in  Lynn. 

Allen  Newhall,  son  of  Allen,  Sr.,  born  in 
Lynn,  Mass.,  on  December  7,  1793,  learned 
the  shoemaker's  trade,  which  he  followed  dur- 
ing the  greater  part  of  his  mature  life  in  Dor- 
chester, Mass.  Li  politics  he  was  a  Whig. 
He  married  Martha,  daughter  of  Joseph 
Adams,  of  Danvers,  Mass.  They  had  six 
children,  only  two  of  whom  are  liuing:  Joseph 
Adams,  the  subject  of  this  biography;  and 
Martha  Frances,  who  married  Waterman 
Thomas  Burrell,  of  Weymouth,  Mass.,  and  has 
two  children  —  Waterman  Thomas  and  Mary 
Waterman.  Allen  Newhall  died  in  Dor- 
chester, at  the  age  of  fifty-five;  and  his  wife, 
who  was  born  April  5,  1796,  died  in  Hing- 
ham,  Mass.,  in  1878,  aged  eighty-two  years. 
They  were  both  highly  respected  members  of 
the  Methodist  Episcopal  church. 

Joseph  A.  Newhall,  the  eldest  son  and  child 
of  his  parents,  acquired  his  education  in  the 
Dorchester  schools;  and  when  quite  young  he 
learned  the  cabinet-maker's  trade  in  Milton, 
Mass.,  where  he  remained  four  years,  working 
for  a  short  time  thereafter  in  Boston.  For  the 
next  two  years  he  was  located  in  Dorchester, 
and  the  year  following  in  Ouincy,  Mass.  In 
1840,  after  a  short  sojourn  in  Dorchester,  he 
came  to  Ilingham,  and  worked  one  year  at  his 
trade.  Then,  buying  a  half-interest  in  the 
N.  Ripley  &  Co.  firm,  he  engaged  in  the  man- 
ufacture of  all  kinds  of  first-class  furniture, 
the  firm's  name  becoming  Ripley  &  Newhall. 
This  partnership  lasted  nearly  forty  years,  Mr. 
Newhall  retiring  from  business  in  1880. 

Mr.  Newhall  was  first  married  to  Lucy  Ann 
Lincoln,  daughter  of  Marshall  and  Lucy 
(Stoddard)  Lincoln.      She  was  born  in  Hing- 


ham,  April  16,  1822,  and  died  September  3, 
1850,  at  the  age  of  twenty-eight,  leaving  one 
son,  Joseph  Adams,  who  died  in  infancy.  On 
October  28,  1851,  Mr.  Newhall  married  his  first 
wife's  sister,  Elizabeth  Waterman  Lincoln. 

Marshall  Lincoln,  the  father  of  the  two 
Mrs.  Newhalls,  was  a  son  of  Joseph  Lincoln, 
born  in  Hingham,  December  28,  1753,  who 
married  July  i,  1784,  Susanna  Marsh,  a 
daughter  of  Ephraim  Marsh,  of  this  town,  and 
had  a  family  of  seven  children,  Marshall  being 
the  second-born.  His  grandfather,  Joseph 
Lincoln,  Sr.,  served  in  the  War  of  18 12,  on 
the  armed  brig  "Hazard,"  and  was  taken 
prisoner  at  Halifa.x  in  18 14,  when  Canada  was 
invaded.     He  died  April  13,   1816. 

Stephen  Stoddard,  father  of  Mrs.  Lucy 
Stoddard  Lincoln,  was  born  in  Hingham,  Sep- 
tember 5,  1756,  and  died  October  6,  1835, 
aged  seventy-nine  years.  In  the  war  of  the 
Revolution  he  served  as  a  non-commissioned 
officer  in  Colonel  Greaton's  regiment,  in  1775 
at  Nantasket,  and  subsequently  in  New  York 
and  Rhode  Island.  He  was  present  at  the 
surrender  of  Burgoyne.  His  first  wife,  Lucy, 
died  in  1789,  aged  thirty-four  years;  and  his 
second  wife,  Mary,  died  November  12,  1854, 
aged  eighty-nine  years. 

In  politics  Mr.  Newhall  affiliates  with  the 
Republican  party.  Fraternally,  he  is  identi- 
fied with  Old  Colony  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M., 
of  Hingham,  officiating  as  one  of  the  Stew- 
ards. Personally,  he  is  a  man  of  sterling 
character,  highly  respected  as  merchant,  citi- 
zen, and  friend.  In  religious  belief  he  and 
his  wife  are  Lhiiversalists. 


(j^AMES  N.  TURNER,  a  resident  of 
Scituate,  and  a  descendant  of  one  of  its 
founders,  was   born    in   this  town.   May 

28,  1834,  son  of  Nathaniel  and   Mary  (Ellms) 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


387 


Turner.  His  parents  were  natives  of  this  town, 
as  was  also  liis  grandfather,  Nathaniel  Turner; 
and  the  famil)'  trace  their  lineage  directly  to 
Humphrey  Turner,  a  member  of  the  colony 
from  Kent,  England,  which  settled  here  soon 
after  the  establishment  of  the  Plymouth  Col- 
ony. Nathaniel  Turner,  father  of  James  N., 
followed  the  sea  for  more  than  twenty  years. 
He  passed  his  last  years  upon  the  farm  which 
is  now  occupied  by  his  son,  and  died  May  31, 
1872,  being  nearly  seventy  years  old.  His 
wife,  Mary  Ellms  Turner,  became  the  mother 
of  two  children:  James  N.,  the  subject  of  this 
sketch;  and  Mary,  who  is  no  longer  living. 

James  N.  Turner  was  educated  in  the  public 
schools  of  his  native  town.  At  the  age  of 
seventeen  he  began  to  learn  the  ship-carpen- 
ter's trade,  and  served  an  apprenticeship  of 
three  years  with  J.  T.  Foster,  a  ship-builder 
in  Medford,  Mass.  He  subsequently  followed 
that  trade  for  about  twenty  years.  A  short 
time  previous  to  his  father's  death  he  returned 
to  the  old  homestead  in  -Scituate,  and  has 
since  carried  on  the  farm.  He  owns  some 
forty  acres  of  fertile  land,  from  the  cultivation 
of  which  he  derives  a  good  income.  On  May 
17,  1859,  Mr.  Turner  married  Lizzie  W. 
Cottle,  a  native  of  Martha's  Vineyard,  and 
daughter  of  Charles  and  Mary  (Norton)  Cottle, 
also  natives  of  that  island.  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Turner  have  had  six  children,  four  of  whom 
are  living,  namely:  Nathaniel,  a  civil 
engineer,  and  engineer-in-chief  of  the 
Monterey  &  Mexican  Gulf  Railroad  in  l^ex- 
ico;  Charles  C,  a  contractor  and  builder  of 
Canton,  Mass.;  James  W.  and  George  F., 
who  are  residing  at  home.  The  deceased  are : 
Frederick  F.  and  Mary  E. 

Mr.  Turner  is  a  Republican  in  politics. 
He  is  a  thrifty  and  industrious  farmer,  a  man 
of  high  moral  character,  and  one  of  Scituate's 
most  esteemed  citizens. 


LBRIDGE  H.  CHANDLER,  a  member 
of  the  Board  of  Selectmen  of  Duxbury, 
Mass.,  was  born  in  this  town,  June 
17,  1842,  son  of  Elbridge  and  Martha  (Chand- 
ler) Chandler.  The  Chandler  family  of  Dux- 
bury  was  founded  in  America  by  Edmund 
Chandler,  an  Englishman,  who  settled  in  Du.x- 
bury  about  1633.  His  descendants  have  con- 
tinued to  reside  here,  and  are  traced  in  the 
line  we  are  now  considering,  as  follows:  Jo- 
seph, first,  son  of  Edmund,  the  original  set- 
tler, through  Joseph,  second,  Philip,  and 
Perez,  to  Wadsworth,  Elbridge  H.  Chandler's 
grandfather.  Wadsworth  Chandler  was  a  life- 
long  resident  of  Duxbur)',  but  some  of  his 
brothers  settled  elsewhere.  Two  of  them, 
Seth  and  Henjamin  Chandler,  both  of  whom 
were  doctors,  represented  the  district  of  Maine 
in  the  General  Court  of  Massachusetts,  before 
that  State  was  set  off  from  this  Common- 
wealth. 

lilbridge  Chandler,  son  of  Wadsworth,  was 
born  in  Duxbury,  October  15,  18 10.  He  at- 
tended the  town  schools  until  he  was  sixteen 
years  old;  and  he  then  engaged  in  farming, 
which  has  been  his  principal  occupation 
through  life.  Settling  upon  the  farm  where 
he  now  resides,  he  tilled  the  soil  successfully 
during  the  rest  of  his  active  period,  and,  aside 
from  his  legitimate  calling,  he  became  widely 
known  for  his  ability  and  activity  in  local 
public  affairs.  P'or  thirteen  years  he  was  a 
member  of  the  lioard  of  Selectmen,  of  which 
he  served  as  Chairman  for  a  considerable 
length  of  time.  He  held  other  town  offices, 
and  in  1855  he  represented  this  town  in  the 
legislature.  Li  politics  he  was  originally  a 
Whig,  but  has  acted  with  the  Republican 
party  since  its  formation,  and  for  many  years 
was  identified  with  all  measures  for  public 
improvement  in  this  town.  He  is  now  in  his 
eighty  -  seventh      year.       His      wife,     Martha 


388 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Chandler,  reared  two  children,  namely:  El- 
bridge  H.,  the  subject  of  this  sketch;  and 
Horace,  who  is  no  longer  living. 

Elbridge  H.  Chandler  began  his  education 
in  the  common  schools,  and  completed  his 
course  of  study  at  the  Duxbury  Academy. 
He  taught  school  for  a  short  time,  and  then 
learned  the  bricklayer's  trade,  which  he  fol- 
lowed for  a  number  of  years.  He  was  one  of 
the  contractors  engaged  in  building  the  Cord- 
age Company's  plant  in  Plymouth.  In  1872 
his  health  failed,  causing  him  to  relinquish 
his  business,  and  since  that  time  he  has  re- 
sided at  the  homestead  farm.  In  politics  he 
is  a  Republican.  He  is  now  serving  his  sec- 
ond year  as  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Select- 
men, has  been  a  member  of  the  School  Com- 
mittee for  several  years,  and  is  also  a  Justice 
of  the  Peace. 

Mr.  Chandler  married  Sylvia  15.  At  well, 
daughter  of  Samuel  Atwell,  late  of  Duxbury. 
They  have  three  children,  namely:  Martha  B., 
wife  of  Chester  A.  Baker,  of  Kingston; 
Henry  W.,  a  member  of  the  Whitman  Grain 
and  Coal  Company,  of  Whitman,  Mass.;  and 
Helen  B. 

As  an  honorable  and  straightforward  busi- 
ness man  Mr.  Chandler  has  gained  the  confi- 
dence and  esteem  of  his  fellow-townsmen,  who, 
in  testimony  of  their  faith  in  his  ability,  have 
elected  him  Treasurer  and  a  Trustee  of  the 
Du.xbury  Free  Library,  and  a  Trustee  of  the 
Partridge  Academy  Fund.  He  is  a  member 
and  Past  Grand  of  Mattakesett  Lodge,  Inde- 
pendent Order  of  Odd  Fellows. 


-OIIN  W.  DKLANO,  who  for  many 
years  has  been  closely  associatcil  with 
the  leading  interests  of  Marion,  Plym- 
outh County,  was  born  in  this  town  at  Upper 
Village,  April  16,  1852.      He  is  a  son  of  John 


Delano,  and  doubtless  a  descendant  of  Philip 
De  La  Noyc,  who  came  to  Plymouth  in  the 
"Fortune"  in  1623,  and  was  the  founder  of 
the  Delano  family  in  New  England. 

John  Delano  at  the  age  of  seventy-eight 
years  is  a  hale  and  vigorous  man.  He  has 
followed  the  trade  of  ship-builder  the  larger 
portion  of  his  long  and  useful  life,  although 
during  the  war  he  served  as  Quartermaster 
eighteen  months,  being  located  at  Charles- 
town,  Mass.  ;  and  he  was  for  a  time  employed 
as  constructor  of  the  Pacific  Guano  Company, 
near  Beaufort,  .S.  C.  His  wife,  whose  maiden 
name  was  Myra  l?enson,  was  a  native  of  New- 
burgh,  N.  Y.  She  bore  him  seven  children, 
namely:  William  H.  C,  now  a  manufacturer 
residing  in  Brooklyn,  N.Y.  ;  Lizzie  R.  ;  John 
W. ,  the  subject  of  this  brief  biographical 
sketch;  George  M.,  a  farmer  in  Marion; 
Robert  T.,  a  dentist  at  Wareham,  this  county; 
Adolphus,  who  was  accidentally  drowned  about 
thirty  years  ago;  and  Myra,  who  died  in 
infancy. 

John  W.  Delano  passed  his  boyhood  days  in 
Marion,  and  after  leaving  the  district  school 
attended  the  Rochester  Academy  for  a  time. 
At  the  age  of  fifteen  years  he  made  his  way  to 
Boston,  where  he  shipped  as  a  deck  hand  on 
board  a  vessel  bound  for  the  British  provinces. 
The  following  year  he  was  a  seaman  on  a 
whaling  vessel,  and  the  ne.xt  two  sunnners  was 
engaged  in  coasting.  He  then  spent  three 
years  as  an  apprentice  in  a  carpenter's  shop  in 
Boston,  after  which  he  worked  for  Norcross 
Brothers,  of  Worcester,  Mass.,  two  years.  In 
1876,  giving  up  carpentering,  Mr.  Delano 
entered  the  employ  of  Captain  A.  S.  Gurney, 
flour,  grain,  and  coal  merchant  in  Wareham, 
but  continued  his  residence  in  Marion. 

In  1887  Mr.  Delano  was  elected  Represen- 
tative to  the  State  legislature,  in  which  he 
served    two    consecutive  years.      In    1S90    he 


JOHN    W.    DELANO. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


391 


was  appointed  Deputy  Fish  Commissioner, 
and  the  duties  of  this  office  have  since  required 
his  entire  time,  he  being  acting  superinten- 
dent of  the  Hatching  Department  of  the  Mas- 
sachusetts Fish  and  Game  Commission.  He 
takes  an  active  part  in  the  management  of  local 
affairs,  and  is  at  the  present  time  serving  his 
second  term  as  Selectman  of  Marion.  In  poli- 
tics he  is  a  stanch  Democrat,  and  his  election 
to  prominent  offices  in  this  Kepuljlican  strong- 
hold is  a  gratifying  testimonial  to  his  popu- 
larity with  all  parties.  Mr.  Delano  is  a  mem- 
ber of  Pythagorean  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of 
Marion. 

Mr.  Delano  was  married  November  26, 
1875,  to  Miss  Estella  L.  Gurney,  who  is  a 
daughter  of  Captain  A.  S.  Gurney,  of  Marion, 
and  was  born  and  reared  in  this  town.  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Delano  have  three  children  —  Walter 
S.,  Estelle  R.,  and  Elmira  B.,  all  living  at 
home. 


YgTON.  CHARLES  GIDEON  DAVIS, 
r=rj  Judge  of  the  Third  District  Court  of 
-l!^  V  ^  Plymouth,  is  one  of  the  few  surviv- 
ing leaders  of  the  Abolition  movement.  He 
was  born  May  30,  1820,  in  Plymouth,  son  of 
William  and  Joanna  (White)  Davis.  His 
paternal  grandfather,  Thomas  Davis,  was  a 
son  of  Thomas  and  Catherine  (Wendell) 
Davis.  The  wife  of  Thomas  Davis,  Sr.,  be- 
longed to  the  Albany,  N.Y. ,  family  of  Wen- 
dells, to  which  Wendell  Phillips  and  Oliver 
Wendell  Holmes  were  related.  The  mother 
of  Judge  Davis  was  of  the  seventh  generation 
from  Peregrine  White,  who  was  born  on  the 
'"Mayflower."  By  the  death  of  her  husband  in 
1824,  she  was  left  a  widow  with  five  children. 
All  the  children,  except  Sarah,  who  died  in 
childhood,  reached  maturity.  The  Hon.  Will- 
iam T.  Davis,  the  younger  brother  of  Judge 
Davis,  has  also  won  a  distinguished  name. 


Charles  Gideon  Davis  was  sent  to  a  private 
school  in  Hingham  when  ten  years  of  age. 
After  finishing  his  studies  there  he  attended 
the  Plymouth  High  School  until  the  spring  of 
1836.  Then  he  went  to  Bridgewater,  and 
completed  his  preparation  for  college.  He  was 
graduated  from  Harvard  University  in  the 
class  of  1840,  and  throughout  the  following 
year  studied  law  in  the  office  of  the  Hon. 
Jacob  H.  Loud,  of  Plymouth.  He  further 
qualified  himself  for  the  legal  profession  by  a 
year's  attendance  in  the  Dane  Law  School  of 
Harvard,  and  a  year's  work  in  the  office  of 
Hubbard  &  Watts,  of  Boston,  after  which,  in 
August,  1843,  he  was  admitted  to  the  bar. 
Thereupon  he  opened  an  office  in  Boston  with 
William  H.  Whitman  as  partner.  Subse- 
quently he  was  associated  with  George  P. 
Sanger  and  Seth  Webb.  In  185 1  he  was 
obliged  to  abandon  the  Boston  office  on 
account  of  bronchial  trouble.  At  that  time 
he  purchased  a  farm  on  the  outskirts  of  Plym- 
outh, and  in  the  following  year  built  on  the 
property  the  house  in  which  he  still  lives. 
He  did  not  retire  from  practice  altogether  on 
that  occasion,  as  he  continued  to  do  a  little 
office  work.  Almost  as  soon  as  Judge  Davis 
was  qualified  to  exercise  the  right  of  suffrage, 
he  joined  in  the  anti-slavery  movement.  He 
was  associated  with  John  A.  Andrew,  the  war 
governor  of  Massachusetts,  F.  W.  Bird,  and 
others,  in  op[iosing  the  re-election  of  Robert 
C.  Winthrop  to  Congress  in  1846,  and  he 
offered  in  Faneuil  Hall  tlie  resolution  whirh 
first  nominated  Charles  Sumner  for  that  honor. 
He  attended  the  National  Whig  Convention 
of  1848,  held  in  Philadelphia,  which  nomi- 
nated General  Zachary  Taylor  for  President ; 
and  two  weeks  later  he  was  present  at  the 
"Barn-burners'"  Convention  in  Utica,  N.Y., 
which  nominated  Martin  Van  Buren  as  the 
Presidential     candidate    of     the      Free     Soil 


392 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


party.      Judge  Davis    subsequently  joined   the 
ranks   of   the   Free   Soilers.      During   all    this 
time    he   was  an   ardent   Abolitionist,    and    in 
1 85 1    he    was    tried    before   a    United     States 
Commissioner   for  assisting    in    the   rescue   of 
the    negro,    Shadrach,    claimed    as    a   fugitive 
slave.      He  was  a   delegate   to   the    Massachu- 
setts Constitutional  Convention,  held  in  1853; 
and  in  1854  and  1855  he  was  Chairman  of  the 
Republican    -State    Committee.       In     1856    he 
was  one  of  the  four  Massachusetts  members   of 
the  convention  at  Pittsburg  that  organized   the 
Republican    party;   and    in    June   of   the   same 
year  he  was  a  delegate  to  the  national   conven- 
tion which  nominated    Fremont   for  President. 
As  a  member  of  the  .State  legislature  in  1862, 
he  was  House  Chairman  of  the  Committee  on 
Agriculture.     He  was  appointed   Assessor  of 
Internal    Revenue    under    Lincoln,  and    subse- 
quently   held    that    ofifice    until    April,    1869. 
Shortly    after    that    date   he    sailed    with    his 
family  for  Europe,  and  remained   abroad   until 
August,  1^70.      His  next  appearance  in  public 
affairs  was  made  at  the  mass  convention   held 
in     Cincinnati,     which      nominated      Horace 
Greeley  for  the  Presidency.     At  that  time  he 
became  associated  with  the  Democratic  party, 
and  he  has  since   voted  with  the  Democratic 
party,    has    been    a    Democratic   candidate   for 
Congress,  and   has   served   on   the   Democratic 
State   Committee.      He  has  been  a  member  of 
the    Massachusetts    Board    of    Agriculture    for 
twenty-three  years,   and   the    President   of  the 
Plymouth     County    Agricultural     Society    for 
twenty  years.      Upon  the  incorporation   of  the 
Massachusetts   Agricultural    College   in    1862, 
he  was  appointed  a  Trustee  of  the  institution 
by  the  legislature,  and  subsequently  served  as 
such   until    1887.      He  was  a  Trustee  of  the 
Samoset    House   from    1S50  to   1869.      He  has 
been  a  Trustee  of  the    Pilgrim    Society   since 
1853,  and  was  elected  an  Overseer  of  Harvard 


in  1859.  While  a  student  at  Harvard  he  be- 
came a  member  of  the  Phi  Beta  Kappa.  He 
has  aided  materially  in  the  develoiiment  of 
Plymouth  by  erecting  many  business  blocks 
and  private  residences,  and  setting  out  over 
four  hundred  elms.  In  1874  he  was  appointed 
Judge  of  the  Third  District  Court  of  Plym- 
outh, over  which  he  has  now  presided  for 
twenty-two  years.  (For  the  facts  here  stated 
the  publishers  are  indebted  to  the  work  en- 
titled "One  of  a  Thousand.") 

Judge  Davis  was  married  in  Plymouth,  No- 
vember 19,  1845,  to  Hannah  S.,  daughter  of 
Colonel  John  B.  and  Mary  Howland  (Le 
Baron)  Thomas.  He  has  been  the  father  of 
four  children.  Of  these  •  there  are  living: 
Joanna  White,  now  the  wife  of  Richard  H. 
Morgan,  of  New  Bedford;  and  Charles  S.,  a 
resident  of  Plymouth,  and  a  promising  lawyer 
in  that  town. 


AMES  F.  HAMMOND,  of  Mattapoi- 
sett,  has  long  been  identified  with  the 
town  government,  acting  in  different 
official  capacities.  He  was  born  in  this  town, 
February  17,  1852,  a  son  of  William  and  Jane 
(Snow)  Hammond.  His  father  was  engaged 
in  the  manufacture  of  soap  at  one  time,  in 
which  line  he  did  quite  an  extensive  business. 
He  also  was  one  of  the  first  to  engage  in  the 
culture  of  cranberries  in  this  part  of  the  -State. 
James  F.  Hammond  was  educated  in  the 
public  schools  of  his  native  town.  When 
twenty-one  years  old  he  began  to  learn  the 
cabinet-maker's  trade,  and  was  employed  for 
six  years  in  New  Bedford,  part  of  the  time  as 
foreman  in  a  novelty  manufactory.  He  then 
returned  to  Mattapoisett,  where  he  has  since 
been  chiefly  engaged  in  cranberry  culture. 
He  is  a  man  of  ability  and  good  judgment 
and  has  been  successful  in  life. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


393 


Mr.  Hammond  was  married  in  1871  to  Miss 
Rebecca  Cowen,  daughter  of  Abner  and  Lydia 
Covven,  of  Mattapoisett.  He  has  one  child, 
William  H.  In  politics  he  is  a  Republican; 
and  he  votes  always  for  the  measures  that  are, 
in  his  judgment,  calculated  to  promote  the 
best  interests  of  the  town.  He  has  served  as 
Selectman  of  Mattapoisett  three  years,  as 
Assessor  and  as  Overseer  of  the  Poor;  and 
he  has  been  Postmaster  of  East  Mattapoisett 
five  years.  He  is  prominent  as  an  Odd 
P'ellow;  and  he  is  also  one  of  the  Charter 
members  of  the  Mattapoisett  Grange, No.  215, 
Patrons  of  Husbandry,  in  which  he  at  present 
holds   the  office  of  Treasurer. 


jAPTAIN      BENJAMIN      F.      GIBBS, 

Chairman  of  the  Iioard  of  Selectmen 
of  Wareham,  Mass.,  and  port  war- 
den of  Buzzard's  Bay  and  Vineyard  Sound, 
was  born  at  sea,  May  28,  1820.  His  father, 
Stephen  Gibbs,  was  a  seafaring  man,  and  his 
mother,  whose  maiden  name  was  Louisa  I'ear- 
ing,  sometimes  accompanied  her  husband  on 
a  voyage.  When  Benjamin  V.  was  two 
months  old  the  coujile  settled  in  Wareham, 
Mass.,  Stephen  Gibbs  then  retiring  from  the 
sea,  purchasing  a  homestead  in  this  town. 
Here  he  and  his  wife  died  and  are  buried. 
They  had  three  children:  Charles  Cjibbs, 
M.D.,  who  was  lost  when  the  steamship  "Cen- 
tral America"  went  down  in  1857;  a  child 
who  died  in  infancy;  and  Benjamin  F.,  the 
special  subject  of  the  present  sketch. 

Benjamin  V.  Gibbs  acquired  a  fair  educa- 
tion in  the  public  schools  of  Wareham.  When 
he  was  sixteen  years  of  age  he  took  to  his 
native  element,  the  sea,  shipping  on  a  whaling 
vessel  from  New  Bedford,  which  made  a  com- 
paratively short  voyage.  On  his  second  trip 
he  sailed  as  a  common  seaman  and  was  sjone 


two  years,  cruising  in  the  South  Atlantic 
Ocean.  He  ne.xt  went  as  boat  steerer  on  a 
whaling  expedition  to  the  Indian  Ocean,  and 
was  out  from  the  home  port  two  years.  By 
this  time  he  was  thoroughly  versed  in  naviga- 
tion, and  when  he  sailed  again  it  was  as  third 
mate  of  a  whaler  bound  for  the  Indian  and 
Pacific  Oceans.  He  rose  rapidly,  making  his 
next  voyage  as  second  mate,  and  the  next  on 
a  whaling  voyage  to  the  coasts  of  New  Zealand 
and  California  as  mate. 

In  1847  he  sailed  for  the  first  time  as  Cap- 
tain, and  for  fourteen  years  he  voyaged  back 
and  forth  between  New  Bedford  and  the  whal- 
■  ing  grounds,  each  time  as  master  of  a  vessel. 
He  sailed  in  the  Okhotsk  Sea  and  the  Arctic 
Ocean,  also  in  the  waters  of  Japan  before  the 
treaty  was  made  with  that  country;  and  he 
likewise  cruised  along  the  coast  of  California 
toward  the  northern  seas,  visiting  nearly  every 
quarter  of  the  globe,  passing  through  the  ex- 
treme heat  of  the  torrid  belts  and  running  the 
gauntlet  of  huge  icebergs  in  the  polar  regions. 
His  wife  accompanied  him  on  two  voyages  to 
the  Arctic  Ocean.  He  was  successful  and 
fortunate,  bringing  home  generous  cargoes  of 
whale  oil,  and  meeting  with  few  mishaps;  and, 
as  he  jnuchased  shares  in  the  vessels  which  he 
sailed,  he  realized  a  comfortable  income.  In 
1861  he  retired  from  the  sea,  settling  on  the 
farm  which  had  been  his  father's.  Captain 
Gibbs  at  one  time  owned  all  the  land  where 
Onset  is  now.  His  property  at  present  covers 
two  hundred  acres;  and  hisJarm,  on  which  I>e 
has  made  all  the  improvements,  is  a  very  val- 
uable one. 

In  politics  Captain  Gibbs  is  a  Republican. 
He  represented  Wareham  in  the  State  legis- 
lature in  1862  and  1863.  He  served  as  Se- 
lectman from  1862  to  1865,  and  was  re-elected 
in  i86g,  since  which  date  he  has  remained 
continuously  in  office,  and  has  been   Chairman 


394 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


of  the  board  sixteen  years.  He  has  served  as 
Assessor  and  Overseer  of  the  Poor,  and  has 
been  in  office  as  Justice  of  the  Peace  fifteen 
years.  He  is  well  known  throughout  Plym- 
outh County,  and  has  the  respect  of  all. 


JYRON  L.  KEITH,  Vice-President 
and  Superintendent  of  the  George 
E.  Keith  Company  shoe  fac- 
tory of  Brockton,  Mass.,  was  born  in  this  city, 
March  26,  1859,  son  of  I-'ranklin  and  Betsy 
(Bailey)  Keith. 

The  following  account   of  the  family  ances- 
try we  glean  from  the  "Keith  Memorial,"'  pre- 
pared and   published    by   the   Hon.  Ziba   Cary 
Keith  in    i88g.      Robert   Keith   is  mentioned 
in   Brown's    "Peerage"  as  a   chieftain   among 
the  Catti,  from  which  the  name  Keith  is  said 
to  be  derived.      In  1006  a.d.,  at  the   battle  of 
Panbridge,    Robert    slew   Comus,    the    Danish 
general,  for  which  service  King  Malcolm  drew 
red  .strokes  or  pales   on   his   shield,  which  was 
the    origin    of    their    armorial    bearings.       In 
loio    he    was    made    hereditary    Mareschal    of 
Scotland,    and    presented   with    a    barony   and 
the  Island  of  Inchkeith  in  the  Firth  of  Forth. 
Robert's  descendant,  Sir  William  Keith,  mar- 
ried a  daughter  of  the   Earl   of   Crawford,  and 
they  had  a  son,  also  named   William,  who  was 
created     Earl    Mareschal    previous    to     1458. 
The  title  descended  lineally  to  William,  third 
Earl,  who  was  the  father  of  two  sons  —  Robert 
and  William,  the  former  of  whom  was  slain  at 
the  battle  of  Flodden  Hill.      William  was  the 
father    of    a   son,    William,    the    fourth    Earl, 
whose  grandson,    George,    the  fifth   Earl,  was 
the  founder  of  Mareschal  College  in  Aberdeen. 
He  married  Lord  Hume's  daughter.      George, 
the     tenth     Earl,    was    a    Colonel    in     Queen 
Anne's    Guards.      His    brother    James    was    a 
Field    Marshal    in    the    service    of    Peter  the 


Great  of  Russia,  and  later  served  with  the 
same  rank  in  the  Prussian  Army,  being  killed 
at  the  battle  of  Hochkirch  with  the  Austrians 
in  1758.  The  king  of  Prussia  erected  a  mon- 
ument to  his  memory. 

The  Rev.  James  Keith,  the  founder  of  the 
family  in  America,  was  born  in  Aberdeen, 
Scotland,  in  1644,  and  came  to  this  country  in 
1662.  He  was  introduced  to  the  church  in 
Bridgewater,  Mass.,  by  Increase  Mather,  D.D., 
and  settled  over  that  parish  on  February  18, 
1664.  He  was  twice  married.  By  his  first 
wife,  with  whom  he  was  united  on  May  3, 
1668,  Susanna,  daughter  of  Deacon  Samuel 
Edson,  he  had  nine  children;  namely,  James, 
Joseph,  Samuel,  Timothy,  John,  Josiah,  Mar- 
garet, Mary,  and  Susanna.  Mrs.  Susanna 
Keith  died  October  16,  1705,  at  the  age  of 
si.\ty-five  years.  Mr.  Keith's  second  wife 
was  Mary,  widow  of  Thomas  Williams,  of 
Taunton,  Mass.  The  Rev.  James  Keith  died 
July  23,  1 7 19.  The  house  he  occupied  in 
Bridgewater  is  still  standing. 

Timothy,  the  fourth  son  of  the  Rev.  James 
Keith,  was  born  in  16S3.  He  married  Han- 
nah, daughter  of  Deacon  Edward  P"orbes,  and 
they  had  four  children — Timothy,  Abiah, 
Nathan,  and  Hannah.  The  father  died  No- 
vember 3,  1767.  Timothy,  second,  who  died 
in  1740,  at  the  age  of  twenty -nine  years,  mar- 
ried Bethiah,  daughter  of  William  Ames,  on 
June  2,  1737,  and  their  two  children  were 
Levi  and  Timothy.  Levi,  born  August  25, 
1738,  married  Jemima,  daughter  of  Mark  Per- 
kins, on  November  8,  1759.  Their  children 
were:  Bethiah,  Timothy,  Reuben,  Benjamin, 
Jemima,  Jemima,  second,  Molly,  Levi,  Molly, 
second,  and  Anna.  Levi  Keith  owned  a  tan- 
nery at  the  corner  of  Montello  and  Garfield 
Streets.  He  was  also  a  shoe  manufacturer, 
being  the  pioneer  of  that  industry  here.  His 
residence   was    on   the    corner    of    Maine    and 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


395 


Plain  Streets,  where  the  George  E.  Keith 
mansion  now  stands.  Levi  Keith  accumulated 
considerable  property,  and  was  an  influential 
citizen.      He  died  in  1813. 

Benjamin  Keith,  third  son  of  Levi,  owned 
an  extensive  tract  of  land,  on  Main  Street,  and 
engaged  principally  in  farming,  though  he 
also  made  shoes,  and  operated  his  father's 
tannery.  On  December  18,  1788,  he  married 
Martha,  daughter  of  Simeon  Gary,  by  which 
alliance  there  were  seven  children;  namely, 
Ziba,  Arza,  Bela,  Charles,  Polly,  Jason,  and 
Benjamin.  Mr.  Benjamin  Keith  died  Sep- 
tember 9,  1814.  His  wife  lived  until  June 
10,  1852,  dying  at  the  age  of  eighty-si.x 
years. 

Ziba  Keith,  son  of  Benjamin  and  Martha 
(Gary)  Keith,  was  born  November  10,  1789, 
at  the  old  homestead  on  Main  Street.  In 
early  life  he  was  a  shoemaker,  carrying  on  the 
business  in  the  old  Red  Shop  of  his  ancestors, 
where  he  also  instructed  his  sons  in  the  trade. 
On  May  29,  1816,  he  was  commissioned  by 
Governor  15rooks  as  Ensign  in  a  company  of 
the  Third  Regiment  of  Infantry;  and  on  De- 
cember 5,  1822,  he  was  promoted  to  Captain, 
which  title  he  retained  through  life.  Just 
and  upright  in  all  his  dealings,  and  a  kind 
neighbor,  he  was  much  respected. 

On  November  25,  1813,  Captain  Ziba  Keith 
married  Sally  Gary,  daughter  of  Jonathan 
Cary,  by  which  union  there  were  nine  chil- 
dren: Benjamin;  Franklin;  Martha  C; 
Martin,  who  died  in  infancy;  Martin  L. ; 
Nancy,  who  died  in  early  life;  David  and 
Jonathan,  twins,  the  former  of  whom  died  in 
infancy;  and  Levi  W.  Mrs.  Sally  G  Keith 
died  September  26,  1832.  On  March  13, 
1834,  Captain  Keith  married  Polly,  daughter 
of  Daniel  Noyes,  of  Abington.  By  his  sec- 
ond marriage  there  were  three  sons  —  Daniel 
N.,  Edwin,    and   Ziba   Cary.      The  father  died 


September  28,   1862,  and  the  mother,  June  14, 
1882. 

Franklin,  the  second  son  of  Ziba  Keith, 
was  born  January  28,  18 16.  After  acquiring 
a  common-school  education,  he  engaged  in 
the  shoe  business  with  his  brother,  Martin  L. 
During  the  Civil  War  they  dissolved  partner- 
ship, Mr.  Franklin  Keith  carrying  on  the 
business  alone  until  within  a  few  years  of  his 
death,  which  occurred  April  7,  1877,  at  the 
age  of  sixty-one  years.  He  served  as  Select- 
man, and  in  other  offices.  On  October  8, 
1840,  he  married  Betsy  Bailey,  of  Sidney, 
Me.,  by  which  union  there  are  six  children: 
the  Rev.  A.  F.  Keith,  who  is  now  located  in 
California;  Helen  Maria;  Plavel  B. ;  George 
E.  ;  D.  Gary;  and  Myron  L.,  the  subject  of 
this  biography.  Mr.  Franklin  Keith  was  a 
member  of  the  South  Congregational  Church, 
of  which  he  officiated  as  Collector  and  Treas- 
urer, and  as  a  member  of  the  Parish  Commit- 
tee. Exemplary  in  his  walk  and  conversation, 
he  was  highly  respected.  He  was  the  head  of 
a  family  which  has  figured  conspicuously  in 
the  business  history  of  Campello,  and  was  the 
progenitor  of  sons  whose  careers  have  been 
marked  in  the  mercantile  world,  and  in  vari- 
ous spheres  of  social  and  moral  activity. 

Myron  L.  Keith,  after  completing  his  edu- 
cation in  the  Brockton  schools,  served  as  book- 
keeper in  the  shoe  factory  of  his  brother, 
Flavel  B.,  with  whom  he  remained  until 
March,  1883.  He  then  entered  the  employ  of 
his  brother,  George  E.,  as  superintendent  of 
his  large  shoe  factory.  In  January,  1897,  the 
business  of  George  E.  Keith  was  formed  into 
a  corporation,  under  the  laws  of  Massachu- 
setts, with  a  capital  of  two  hundred  and  fifty 
thousand  dollars,  called  the  George  E.  Keith 
Company.  Myron  L.  became  one  of  the 
stockholders,  and  was  elected  Vice-President 
and    a    Director    of     the    same.       Their    shoe 


396 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


factory,  which  is  located  at  Campello,  near 
the  railroad  station,  is  the  largest  in  the  city, 
and  employs  some  seven  hundred  hands. 

On  January  6,  1886,  he  was  married  to  L. 
Ada,  daughter  of  Henry  Cummings,  of  Boston, 
by  which  alliance  there  has  been  a  daughter, 
Edith,  born  April  23,  1889,  who  died  in  in- 
fancy. In  1885  Mr.  Keith  built  a  residence 
on  Plain  Street  near  Main,  where  he  still  re- 
sides. 

In    politics    Mr.    Keith   affiliates    with    the 

Republican  party,  and  for  a  number  of  years 

was  clerk  of  the  Republican  City  Committee 

of  Brockton.      Officially,  he   is  a  Director  in 

the  Boot  and   Shoe  Sole-Laying  Company  of 

Boston,   and    a   Trustee   in  the  Brockton   City 

Hospital.      Fraternally,  Mr.  Keith  is  a  Mason, 

and  at  the  present  time  he   is   Senior  Warden 

of   St.    George   Lodge,    A.    F.    &    A.    M.,    of 

Campello;  a  member  of  Satucket  Royal  Arch 

Chapter;  Organist  of  Brockton  Council,  Royal 

and    Select    Masters;    and    Senior   Warden  of 

Bay    State    Commandery,   Knights   Templars, 

all   of  Brockton.      In   religious  belief  he  is  a 

Congregational ist,    being    a    member    of    the 

South   Church  and   Parish.       In   the  parish  he 

has    officiated    as    clerk    for    the    last    twelve 

years. 

«.•••.> 

(SHAMES  A.  VAUGHN,  Postmaster  and 
Town  Treasurer  of  Carver,  Plymouth 
County,  Mass.,  was  born  on  the  Vaughn 
homestead  in  this  town,  April  26,  1849.  He 
is  a  son  of  Thomas  and  Mercy  Carver  (Sher- 
man) Vaughn,  both  natives  of  Carver.  His 
parents  had  nine  children,  of  whom  si.\  are 
living;  namely,  Theodosia  B.,  Christiana  C, 
Mercy  J.,  James  A.,  Edwin  A.,  and  Theodore 
T.  Theodosia  B.  Vaughn  married  Augustus 
L.  Thomas,  and  resides  in  Middleboro,  Mass. ; 
Mercy  C.  became  the  wife  of  Andrew  F. 
Barrows,  who  died  December  17,  1880;  Edwin 


A.  Vaughn  is  a  resident  of  Whitman.  The 
homestead  came  into  possession  of  Thomas 
Vaughn,  father  of  the  subject  of  this  sketch, 
in  1837. 

James  A.  Vaughn  was  reared  on  the  home 
farm,  obtaining  his  early  education  in  the 
public  schools.  Though  he  went  to  work 
when  quite  young,  he  did  not  consider  his  ed- 
ucation finished,  but  took  up  special  studies 
when  twenty-two  years  of  age,  attending  a 
business  college  in  Boston.  He  began  to 
support  himself  when  seventeen  years  of  age, 
selling  nursery  stock  for  Mr.  Watson,  of 
Plymouth,  in  whose  employ  he  remained  three 
years;  and,  after  finishing  his  commercial 
course  of  study  at  Boston,  he  went  into  the 
nursery  business  himself  on  the  homestead, 
where  he  remained  until  1883.  In  that  year 
he  removed  to  his  present  location,  purchasing 
twenty-five  acres  of  land;  and  his  business 
prospered  to  such  an  extent  that  a  few  years 
later  he  bought  one  hundred  acres  more  adjoin- 
ing his  first  purchase.  His  land  includes  some 
fine  meadows;  and,  in  addition  to  his  nursery 
business,  he  is  extensively  engaged  in  cran- 
berry culture,  and  also  does  some  lumbering 
in  a  small  way.  As  a  nurseryman  he  controls 
an  extensive  trade,  selling  besides  well-started 
trees  and  plants,  seeds  of  all  kinds.  Thrifty 
and  enterprising,  he  has  developed  an  exten- 
sive business,  where  another  man  would  be 
likely  to  meet  with  failure,  and  has  won  from 
his  fellow-men  the  respect  always  given  to 
merited  success. 

Mr.  Vaughn  was  married  October  3,  1883,  to 
Miss  Desire  A.  Osborn,  daughter  of  Captain 
James  C.  and  Achsa  Anna  Osborn,  of  Edgar- 
town,  Mass.  They  have  one  child,  an  adopted 
son,  Henry  Herbert  Vaughn.  In  political 
matters  Mr.  Vaughn  is  independent,  voting 
for  the  candidate  that  he  considers  best  quali- 
fied to  serve  the  interests  of  the  people.     He 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


397 


was  chosen  Town  Treasurer  in  1893,  to  fill 
the  vacancy  caused  by  the  death  of  Mr. 
Griffiths,  and  proved  so  efficient  that  he  has 
been  retained  in  office  ever  since;  and  he  has 
been  Postmaster  of  Carver  since  March  10, 
i8go.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Vaughn  are  members 
of  the  Baptist  church,  and  he  is  very  active 
in  church  work,  and  has  served  as  clerk  and 
as  Deacon.  He  is  a  representative  citizen  of 
Carver,  active  in  business,  political,  and  re- 
litrious  affairs. 


/^^TiToRGE  S.  RANDALL,  of  Marsh- 
V  p  I  field  Hills,  whose  violin-case  factory 
at  Sea  View  is  one  of  the  important 
industrial  plants  of  this  locality,  has  long  been 
interested  in  the  manufacture  of  musical  in- 
struments; and  before  the  piano  had  sup- 
planted the  cabinet  organ  in  the  homes  of  the 
people,  he  made  many  organs  for  the  music 
trade.  He  was  born  in  Winthrop,  Me.,  No- 
vember II,  1833,  a  son  of  Penuel  and  Emily 
(Baker)  Randall. 

Penuel  Randall  was  a  son  of  Asa  Randall, 
one  of  the  pioneer  settlers  in  the  State  of 
Maine.  It  is  said  that  Asa  Randall's  wife, 
Mr.  George  S.  Randall's  grandmother,  was 
taken  by  the  Indians  when  ten  years  old,  dur- 
ing one  of  their  raids  on  the  white  settle- 
ments, when  they  carried  into  captivity  all 
whom  they  did  not  butcher.  She  was  held  by 
them  until  twenty-one  years  of  age,  and  then, 
tomahawking  seven  of  the  savages  while  they 
were  asleep,  she  made  her  escape,  and  found 
her  way  through  the  wilderness  to  a  white 
settlement  Penuel  Randall  was  a  native  of 
the  Pine  Tree  State.  A  natural  mechanic,  he 
earned  a  livelihood  by  expert  and  skilful  man- 
ual labor,  his  fine  workmanship  insuring  him 
constant  employment.  He  was  also  a  music 
teacher  of  note.      He  died  in   1847,  during  the 


Mexican  War.  Mrs.  Randall,  after  her  hus- 
band's death,  married  a  Mr.  Adams,  and  is 
still  li\ing. 

George  S.  Randall  in  his  boyhood  attended 
the  common  schools  of  Winthrop,  Me.,  and 
when  he  was  seven  years  old  he  also  began  to 
work  at  shoemaking.  Thrown  on  his  own  re- 
sources at  the  age  of  fourteen  by  the  death  of 
his  father,  at  the  age  of  seventeen  he  was 
a  skilled  workman  in  the  "gentle  craft  of 
leather."  At  nineteen  he  began  to  learn  the 
trade  of  cabinet  and  chair  making,  which  he 
followed  for  a  number  of  years.  In  April, 
1856,  he  went  to  Ansonia,  Conn.,  to  learn  to 
tune  organs;  and  the  following  year  his  em- 
ployer, Mr.  Fisk,  took  him  into  partnership, 
the  firm  becoming  Fisk  &  Randall.  They 
engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  organs  and 
melodeons  for  six  years  at  Woodbridge, 
Conn.,  and  then  removed  to  New  Haven, 
where  they  built  a  large  factory.  A  few 
years  later  Mr.  Randall  disposed  of  his  busi- 
ness in  New  Haven  to  the  Schoeninger 
Organ  and  Melodeon  Company,  and  removed 
to  Providence,  R.I.  There  was  formed  the 
firm  of  Baker  &  Randall,  cabinet  organ  manu- 
facturers, with  which  he  was  connected  about 
four  years. 

In  1872  he  removed  to  Marshfield,  and  with 
his  brother,  William  W.  Randall,  under  the 
firm  name  of  Randall  Brothers,  established  a 
cabinet  organ  manufactory.  In  1S84  the 
plant  was  destroyed  by  fire,  and  Mr.  Randall's 
brother  retired  from  the  busiaess,  Mr.  Randall- 
himself  erecting  the  Sea  View  factory,  of 
which  he  is  sole  proprietor.  Here  he  carries 
on  a  flourishing  business,  and  employs  a 
number  of  hands,  in  the  busy  season  working 
over  time.  Mr.  Randall  is  considered  one  of 
the  finest  mechanics  in  the  State,  whether  in 
wood,  iron,  or  steel,  but  particularly  excelling 
in    wood-work.      He  has  been  verv  successful 


398 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


as  a  business   man,    perseveringly  working  his 
way,  and  surmounting  all  difficulties. 

He  was  married  September  8,  1856,  to 
Marion  A.,  daughter  of  Joel  and  Caroline 
(Cook)  Wilkinson,  of  Connecticut,  her  native 
State.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Wilkinson  died  some 
years  ago.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Randall  have  one  of 
the  pleasantest  homes  in  the  village  of  Marsh- 
field  Hills,  where  pretty  residences  are  the 
rule.  Mr.  Randall  votes  the  Republican 
ticket.  He  is  a  public-spirited  citizen,  es- 
pecially interested  in  the  cause  of  education, 
and  is  a  zealous  advocate  of  good  schools. 


PARKER  WELCH,  a  retired  busi- 
ness man  and  prominent  farmer  of 
Scituate,  Mass.,  was  born  in  this 
town,  November  5,  1833,  son  of  Michael  and 
Sarah  (Brown)  Welch.  His  father  was  a  na- 
tive of  Ireland,  and  his  mother  a  descendant 
of  an  old  New  England  family. 

Michael  Welch  emigrated  to  America  about 
the  year  1815.  He  landed  at  St.  John's, 
Newfoundland,  where  he  was  engaged  in  fish- 
ing for  one  summer,  and  he  subsequently 
worked  for  a  short  time  in  the  coal  mines  of 
Nova  Scotia.  From  the  latter  province  he 
came  to  the  United  States,  and  for  four  years 
was  employed  at  the  United  States  Marine 
Hospital  in  Chelsea,  Mass.,  then  under  the 
charge  of  Colonel  Charles  Turner.  About  the 
year  1830  he  settled  in  South  Scituate,  now 
Norwell,  where  he  purchased  a  small  farm; 
and,  after  residing  there  for  several  years,  he 
bought  the  old  Turner  farm  in  Scituate, 
where  his  son,  E.  P.  Welch,  now  resides. 
Michael  Welch  was  an  industrious  farmer,  and 
an  honorable,  upright  citizen.  In  the  latter 
part  of  his  life  he  supported  the  Republican 
party  in  politics.  He  lived  to  reach  his  nine- 
tieth   year,    and    died    in    1892.       His    wife. 


Sarah  Brown,  who  was  a  native  of  Scituate, 
died  in  1884.  She  was  of  patriotic  and  mili- 
tary stock.  Her  great-grandfather  and  grand- 
father lost  their  lives  while  fighting  in  the 
Revolutionary  struggle  for  American  indepen- 
dence; and  her  father  was  a  soldier  in  the 
War  of  1812.  Of  her  children  there  are  two 
survivors,  namely:  E.  Parker,  the  subject  of 
this  sketch;  and  Sarah  E.,  who  resides  in 
Bridgewater,  Mass. 

E.  Parker  Welch  was  but  a  child  when  his 
parents  removed  to  the  farm  which  he  now 
owns,  and  he  was  here  reared  to  manhood. 
After  acquiring  his  education  in  the  schools 
of  Scituate  he  worked  at  farming.  He  later 
engaged  in  trade,  and  was  for  a  number  of 
years  senior  member  of  the  firm  of  E.  P. 
Welch  &  Son,  dealers  in  lumber,  furniture, 
and  agricultural  tools.  In  i8gi  he  retired 
from  the  business,  which  is  now  conducte'd  by 
his  son,  George  F. ,  and  has  since  devoted  his 
attention  exclusively  to  agricultural  pursuits. 
The  farm  of  one  hundred  and  fifty-eight  acres 
which  he  occupies  is  one  of  the  historical  es- 
tates in  Scituate.  It  is  a  part  of  a  grant  given 
to  a  colony  of  settlers  from  Kent,  England, 
and  consists  of  two  allotments.  The  part  on 
which  the  residence  now  stands  was  allotted 
in  1628  to  Humphrey  Turner,  and  upon  the 
other  portion  of  the  jM-operty  one  William 
Gilson  erected  a  wind-mill,  which  was  the  first 
of  its  kind  in  Scituate. 

In  1858  Mr.  Welch  married  Mary  L. 
Collier,  a  native  of  Scituate.  Her  father, 
Captain  Peleg  Collier,  who  was  a  ship-master,' 
was  lost  at  sea.  Mrs.  Welch  died  in  1895, 
leaving  six  children,  as  follows:  Charles  P.; 
George  F. ;  William  H.;  Mary  E. ,  wife  of 
George  Walbach:  Minnie  L. ;  and  Edith, 
wife  of  Ansel  Sevan. 

Mr.  Welch  is  an  earnest  advocate  of  tem- 
perance and  total   abstinence,  in   practice   sets 


I 


r 


E.    PARKER    WELCH. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


401 


a  good  example,  having  never  used  intoxicat- 
ing liquors  or  tobacco.  For  a  number  of 
years  he  has  been  associated  with  the  Massa- 
chusetts Humane  Society,  as  agent  of  several 
stations  along  the  coast,  and  he  takes  a  great 
interest  in  this  work.  He  attends  the  Metho- 
dist Episcopal  church,  and  in  politics  he  acts 
with  the  Republican  party. 


EORGE  G.  WALBACH,  of  Scituate, 
5 1  who  has  a  beautiful  residence  at 
First  Cliff,  is  well  known  as  a  mem- 
ber of  the  legal  fraternity  of  Boston.  A  son 
of  Captain  Louis  A.  B.  and  Penelope  R. 
(Williams)  Walbach,  he  was  born  in  Pikes- 
villc,  Md.,  September  29,   1852. 

His  grandfather,  Brevet  Brigadier-General 
John  B.  Walbach,  was  an  Alsatian,  born  in 
1766.  On  coming  to  this  country  he  joined 
the  regular  army,  and  in  1799  was  commis- 
sioned Lieutenant  of  Cavalry.  During  the 
War  of  1812  he  was  in  action  at  various 
places,  notably  Chrystler's  farm;  and  he  was 
in  command  of  the  forces  at  Portsmouth, 
N.H.,  during  and  after  that  war.  It  was.  he 
who  built  the  Walbach  Tower  in  Portsmouth. 
He  was  promoted  through  the  various  grades 
of  military  rank,  retaining  his  connection  with 
the  army  up  to  the  time  of  his  death  in  1856. 

Louis  A.  B.  Walbach  was  born  in  Ports- 
mouth, N.H.  He  was  graduated  from  the 
military  academy  at  West  Point,  and  was 
commissioned  Second  Lieutenant  in  the 
Fourth  United  States  Artillery,  being  after- 
ward commissioned  First  Lieutenant  of  Artil- 
lery and  Captain  of  Ordnance.  He  saw  much 
active  service,  fighting  in  the  Seminole  War 
in  Florida,  and  in  the  Mexican  War.  His 
death  occurred  in  June,  1853.  Captain  Wal- 
bach's  wife,  a  native  of  Boston,  was  a  daugh- 
ter   of    Samuel    K.    and     Elizabeth    Winslow 


(Whitman)  Williams.  Samuel  K.  Williams 
was  born  in  Taunton,  Mass.,  in  November, 
1785,  was  educated  for  the  bar,  and  began  the 
practice  of  law  in  Boston  in  1804.  He  was  a 
resident  of  that  city  until  his  death  in  Novem- 
ber, 1874.  Mrs.  Williams  was  born  in  Pem- 
broke, Mass. 

George  G.  Walbach  was  reared  in  the  home 
of  his  maternal  grandfather,  Samuel  K.  Will- 
aims,  in  Boston.  He  attended  the  Boston 
public  schools,  being  in  the  primary  school 
two  years,  in  the  Brimmer  School  three  years, 
and  in  the  Latin  School  six  years,  and,  enter- 
ing Harvard  University  in  1869,  was  gradu- 
ated in  1873,  having  taken  the  regular  course. 
He  studied  law  with  Chandler,  Ware  &  Hud- 
son, of  Boston,  and  subsequently  at  the 
Boston  Law  School,  graduating  in  1879.  Ad- 
mitted to  the  Massachusetts  bar  in  1880,  he 
began  to  practise  in  Boston  in  that  year.  Mr. 
Walbach  had  from  boyhood  been  accustomed 
to  visit  Scituate  in  the  summer  time,  and  in 
1888  he  became  a  permanent  resident,  moving 
into  his  pleasant  dwelling  at  First  Cliff.  In 
politics  Mr.  Walbach  is  a  Republican.  He 
was  married  June  2,  1888,  to  Mary  E.,  daugh- 
ter of  E.  Parker  Welch,  an  extensive  farmer 
and  prominent  business  man  of  Scituate. 


"ORACH  E.  BAKER  is  one  of  the 
foremost  men  of  Marshfield,  a  suc- 
cessful contractor  and  builder,  and  a 
popular  member  of  society.  He  was  born  in 
Duxbury,  Mass.,  October  27,  1831,  a  son  of 
Captain  Otis  and  Sally  (Sampson)  Baker. 

Otis  Baker  was  born  in  Duxbury,  and  at- 
tended school  in  that  town  until  fourteen 
years  of  age.  He  began  to  follow  the  sea 
when  quite  young,  and  sailed  for  a  number  of 
years,  commanding  different  vessels  sailing 
from  Duxbury.     During  the  War  of   1812   he 


402 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


was  in  the  United  States  service.  He  event- 
ually retired  from  the  sea,  and,  purchasing  a 
farm  at  Marshfield  Neck,  devoted  the  rest  of 
his  life  to  the  pursuit  of  agriculture.  He 
married  Sally,  daughter  of  Oliver  Sampson, 
whose  father,  Anthony  Sampson,  of  Duxbury, 
was  a  great-grandson  of  Henry  Sampson,  one 
of  the  "Mayflower"  Pilgrims.  (See  "Samp- 
son Genealogy.")  In  politics  Captain  Baker 
was  a  Democrat.  Mrs.  Sally  S.  Baker,  who 
is  a  native  of  Kingston,  Mass.,  and  is  now  in 
her  ninety-eighth  year,  is  to-day  one  of  the 
few  surviving  pensionaries  on  account  of  ser- 
vices in  the  War  of  1812,  her  late  husband's 
claim  having  been  recognized  by  the  govern- 
ment. Four  of  her  children  are  living: 
Leonard  C. ;  Horace  E.  ;  Henry  A. ;  and  Ann 
Maria,  widow  of  Charles  A.  Walker,  of 
Marshfield. 

Horace  E.  Baker  was  educated  in  the  com- 
mon schools  of  Marshfield,  his  parents  remov- 
ing to  this  town  when  he  was  about  five  years 
old.  His  schooling  was  limited,  being  con- 
fined to  attendance  in  the  winter  season  only, 
and  ending  when  he  was  seventeen  years  old. 
At  that  age  he  began  to  learn  the  carpenter's 
trade,  at  which  he  served  an  apprenticeship  of 
three  years  with  John  Gray,  a  well-known  con- 
tractor and  builder  of  North  Bridgewater.  He 
was  away  from  home  some  ten  years  in  all, 
following  his  trade,  and  then  settled  where  he 
now  resides.  In  Marshfield  he  worked  for 
some  time  as  a  journeyman,  finally  establish- 
ing himself  in  business  as  a  contractor  and 
builder.  He  has  now  been  thus  engaged  for  a 
number  of  years,  and  has  been  very  successful, 
erecting  a  great  many  residences  at  Brant 
Rock  and  elsewhere  in  this  vicinity.  His 
business  is  seldom  dull,  and  he  keeps  a  num- 
ber of  workmen  employed  both  summer  and 
winter. 

Mr.   Baker  was    married    in    1845    to   Miss 


Julia  A.  S.  Eldridge,  a  native  of  Cape  Cod. 
Her  father.  Captain  Sylvester  D.  Eldridge, 
commander  of  the  brig  "Gustavus,"  while  sail- 
ing from  Smyrna  to  Boston  was  lost  at  sea, 
the  brig  foundering,  and  all  on  board  finding 
a  watery  grave.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Baker  have  two 
children:  Horace  E.,  in  Somerville,  Mass.; 
and  Florence,  wife  of  Joshua  Brewster,  of 
Whitman,  Mass.  In  politics  Mr.  Baker  is  a 
Democrat.  He  is  a  member  of  Tremont 
Lodge,  No.  15,  Independent  Order  of  Odd 
Fellows,  with  headcjuarters  at  515  Tremont 
Street,  Boston.  He  has  a  wide  circle  of  ac- 
quaintance, and  is  esteemed  by  all  who  know 
him. 


/^T^ERAL  SILVANUS  LAZELL, 
\  f5  I  one  of  the  most  active  and  progres- 
sive citizens  of  East  Bridgewater 
in  the  early  part  of  the  nineteenth  century, 
was  born  May  28,  1753,  in  what  was  then  the 
East  Parish  of  the  old  town  of  Bridgewater, 
Mass.,  now  East  Bridgewater,  and  died  here 
October  10,  1827.  He  was  a  son  of  Isaac 
Lazell.  Commencing  life  with  few  advan- 
tages, by  energy  and  industry  he  attained  to  a 
position  of  prominence  in  the  county,  and  ac- 
quired a  handsome  estate.  His  ideas  were  far 
in  advance  of  his  time,  and  he  engaged  in 
many  enterprises  conducive  to  the  business 
growth  and  prosperity  of  the  town.  He  was 
largely  influential  in  the  construction  of  the 
turnpike  from  New  Bedford  to  Weymouth, 
which  connects  with  the  turnpike  running 
from  Weymouth  to  Boston.  In  the  State  mil- 
itia he  held  for  some  time  the  rank  of  Briga- 
dier-General, being  placed  in  command  of  the 
Plymouth  County  Brigade   in  18 10. 

General  Lazell  and  Miss  Abigail  Robinson, 
a  native  of  East  Bridgewater,  were  married  in 
1775.  They  became  the  parents  of  three 
daughters,    namely :  Lucy,    who  married  Ben- 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


403 


jamin  Hobart,  of  South  Abington,  Mass.,  and 
died  without  issue;  Betsy,  who  became  Mrs. 
Bartholomew  Brown,  of  East  Bridgewater,  and 
the  mother  of  five  children;  and  Nabby,  who 
was  married  to  Judge  Nahum  Mitchell  (author 
of  the  "History  of  the  Early  Settlement  of 
Bridgewater"),  to  whom  she  bore  five  chil- 
dren, as  follows:  Harriet,  Silvanus  Lazell, 
Mary  Orr,  Elizabeth  Gushing,  and  James 
Henry. 

Harriet  Mitchell,  born  in  1796,  married  the 
Hon.  Nathaniel  Morton  Davis,  of  Plymouth, 
Mass.,  in  181 7,  and  passed  away  in  1847; 
Silvanus  Lazell  Mitchell,  born  in  1798,  was 
graduated  at  Harvard  College,  and  in  1820 
wedded  Miss  Lucia,  a  daughter  of  Judge 
Ezekiel  Whitman,  of  Portland,  Me. ;  Mary 
Orr  Mitchell,  born  in  1801,  married  in  1827 
David  Ames,  of  Springfield,  Mass. ;  Elizabeth 
Gushing  Mitchell,  born  in  1S07,  now  de- 
ceased, became  the  wife  of  Nathan  D.  Hyde,  a 
resident  of  Bridgewater;  and  James  Henry- 
Mitchell,  born  in  1812,  and  deceased  in  1871, 
prepared  for  Harvard  Gollege  at  Exeter  Acad- 
emy, and  married  in  1833  ]\Iiss  Harriet 
Lavinia,  a  daughter  of  John  and  Lavinia 
(Hathaway)  Angier,  of  Belfast,  Me.  The 
Angler  family  was  an  old  one,  settling  origi- 
nally in  East  Bridgewater.  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
James  Henry  Mitchell  had  seven  children; 
namely,  Henry  Hedge,  Grace  Webster,  Helen 
Angier,  Sophia  Ripley,  Jennet  Orr,  William 
Davis,  and  Lavinia  Hathaway. 

Henry  Hedge  Mitchell,  who  was  born  in 
1839,  ■  received  his  education  abroad.  He 
served  in  the  Givil  War  as  assistant  surgeon, 
and  later  as  Surgeon  in  Massachusetts  regi- 
ments, and  also  in  regiments  of  colored 
troops.  In  1864  he  married  Miss  Mary  T. 
Whitehurst,  of  Norfolk,  Va. ;  and  at  his  de- 
cease in  1887  he  left  a  widow  and  two  daugh- 
ters—  Maud     Ansier    and     Harriet     Lavinia. 


The  former  became  the  wife  of  Gharles  Gas- 
kins,  of  Philadelphia,  and  is  the  mother  of  two 
children  —  Grace  Chandler  and  Oliver  Bruce. 

Grace  Webster  Mitchell  in  1865  was  united 
in  marriage  with  Horace  Parker  Chandler, 
son  of  the  Hon.  Peleg  W.  and  Martha  (Cleve- 
land) Chandler,  of  Boston,  Mass.  They  have 
six  children  —  Cleveland  Angier,  Grace, 
Whitman  Mitchell,  Ellen,  James  Mitchell, 
and  Peleg  Whitman.  Helen  Angier  Mitchell 
married  in  1822  Thomas  B.  Hedge,  a  son  of 
Thomas  and  Lydia  Hedge,  of  Plymouth, 
Mass.,  but  in  the  same  year  Mr.  Hedge  passed 
away.  Sophia  Ripley  Mitchell  in  1875  be- 
came the  w'lie  of  Frederick  Westwood,  of 
England,  to  whom  she  bore  one  child,  a  son, 
Arthur  by  name,  who  died  in  1886. 

Jennet  Orr  Mitchell  in  1872  married 
Gharles  White  Copeland,  a  son  of  Pardon  and 
Alice  (Ames)  Copeland,  of  West  Bridge- 
water.  Her  husband  departed  this  life  in 
1893.  Mrs.  Jennet  O.  M.  Copeland,  now  a 
widow,  has  one  daughter,  Alice  Ames  by 
name,  who  in  1894  became  the  wife  of  James 
Sumner  Draper,  a  son  of  Thomas  B.  and  Sarah 
(Turner)  Draper,  of  Canton,  Mass.,  and  is 
the  mother  of  a  daughter,  Ruth  Sumner. 
William  Davis  Mitchell  died  in  1870,  at  East 
Bridgewater.  Lavinia  Hathaway  Mitchell  in 
1880  became  the  wife  of  Theodore  Winthrop 
Stedman,  a  son  of  Daniel  and  Miriam  Sted- 
man,  of  Boston,  Mass.  At  his  decease  in 
1885  Mr.  Theodore  W.  Stedman  was  survived 
by  a  widow  and  two  children;  namely,  Helen 
Mitchell  and  Theodore  Winthrop. 

The  handsomest  residence  in  East  Bridge- 
water  was  erected  by  General  Lazell,  and  con- 
stituted his  home.  Here  all  his  children  were 
born,  also  several  grandchildren  and  great- 
grandchildren. After  his  decease  it  became 
the  home  of  Judge  Nahum  Mitchell,  and  it  is 
now  the  property  of  Henry  Hobart,  Esq. 


404 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


T^APTAIN  JOSEPH  E.  HADLEY, 
I  VX     after  following  the  sea  nearly  half  a 

V,i£__^  century,  the  greater  part  of  the  time 
as  ship  commander,  is  now  living  retired  at 
his  home  in  Marion,  Plymouth  County,  Mass. 
He  was  born  February  17,  1817,  in  that  part 
of  Rochester,  Mass.,  that  is  now  Marion,  a 
son  of  Joseph  and  Susan  (Delano)  Hadley. 
His  parents  reared  four  children,  as  follows: 
Elizabeth,  who  died  in  1887;  Stephen  D. ,  a 
sea  captain,  who  died  in  March,  1894;  Joseph 
E. ,  the  special  subject  of  this  sketch;  and 
Andrew  J. 

Joseph  E.  Hadley  was  but  four  years  old 
when  his  father  died,  and,  being  obliged 
when  young  to  partly  depend  upon  his  own  re- 
sources, his  educational  advantages  were  neces- 
sarily limited.  At  the  age  of  sixteen  he  went 
on  board  a  merchant  vessel  as  a  seaman,  in 
which  position  he  sailed  to  foreign  ports 
three  years.  On  his  next  voyage  he  went  as 
second  mate,  and  on  the  succeeding  trip  as 
first  mate.  In  1842  he  was  made  master  of  a 
vessel,  and  from  that  time  until  his  retire- 
ment he  occupied  the  same  prominent  position 
in  the  merchant  marine  service.  During  his 
years  of  seafaring  Captain  Hadley  became 
familiar  with  every  capital  city  of  Europe, 
twice  circumnavigated  the  globe,  and  visited 
all  the  countries  of  the  earth,  excepting  China 
and  Japan.  P"ifty  times  or  more  he  crossed 
the  Equator,  eight  times  doubled  Cape  Horn, 
and  four  times  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope.  With 
few  exceptions  the  Captain  sailed  from  New 
York,  and  in  most  cases  was  part  owner  of 
the  vessel  which  he  commanded.  He  met 
with  varied  experiences,  both  on  land  and 
water.  In  1875  he  lost  a  vessel  on  Rocas 
Reefs,  near  the  coast  of  Brazil,  but  saved  the 
entire  crew,  his  ship  running  aground  on  ac- 
count of  an  error  in  the  chart.  In  1875  he 
erected   his  present   comfortable   residence  at 


Marion,  in  which,  since  1879,  he  has  lived  re- 
tired from  active  pursuits,  enjoying  the  fruits 
of  his  many  years  of  venturesome  toil  and  re- 
sponsibility. 

On  May  9,  185 1,  Captain  Hadley  married 
Miss  Mary  Miller  Leonard,  who  died  March 
19,  1879,  leaving  no  issue.  On  July  9,  1885, 
he  married  Mrs.  Georgiana  Leonard  Luce, 
daughter  of  Seth  C.  Leonard,  and  widow  of 
the  late  Alfred  Luce  of  Marion. 

Politically  a  sound  Republican,  Captain 
Hadley  is  a  man  of  sterling  character,  highly 
respected  by  all  who  know  him.  He  is  a 
self-made  man,  having  won  his  way  up  the 
ladder  of  prosperity  by  his  own  persistent 
energy.  On  his  first  trip  to  New  York,  then 
a  beardless  youth,  he  worked  his  passage,  and, 
on  returning  a  few  years  later,  he  came  as  the 
master  of  the  ship  —  a  significant  fact,  show- 
ing the  ambitious  diligence,  ability,  and  suc- 
cess with  which  he  pursued  his  calling  from 
the  betrinnin";. 


YDNEY  T.  NELSON,  one  of  the 
prominent  citizens  of  Lakeville, 
Mass.,  a  Selectman  and  a  member 
of  the  School  Board,  was  born  in  this  town, 
August  12,  1845.  The  son  of  Job  P.  and 
Fatima  (Baker)  Nelson,  he  belongs  to  one  of 
the  old  New  England  families,  tracing  his  de- 
scent from  William  Nelson,  an  Englishman 
who  came  to  America  in  163  i,  and  settled  in 
Plymouth.  From  William  Nelson  the  line  is 
continued  through  William  (second),  three 
Thomases,  and  Abiel,  to  Job,  the  father,  above 
named.  The  farm  on  which  .Sydney  T.  Nel- 
son was  born  was  purchased  in  171 3,  and  is 
still  in  the  possession  of  the  family.  It  was 
tilled  by  Job  Nelson,  who  spent  his  life  and 
reared  his  children  there.  Of  these  children 
there  were  four  besides  Sydney  T. ;   namely. 


ANSEL    S.    GURNEY. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


407 


Abiel,  Elizabeth  P.,  Thomas  M.,  and  Car- 
oline. 

Sydney  T.  Nelson  was  educated  in  the  dis- 
trict school  and  Peirce  Academy.  He  took 
charge  of  the  homestead  in  his  twenty-fourth 
year,  and  managed  it  until  1879,  living  on 
the  premises.  In  1880  he  moved  to  his  pres- 
ent abiding  place,  a  good  farm  of  twenty  acres, 
where  he  has  since  been  successfully  engaged 
in  general  husbandry.  He  is  one  of  the  lead- 
ing farmers  of  the  locality,  and  is  a  member 
of  Nemasket  Grange,  Patrons  of  Husbandry. 

Mr.  Nelson  was  married  in  1872  to  Miss 
Emma  Parkhurst,  who  died  in  1881,  leaving 
three  children — -Thomas  S.,  Maude  B.,  and 
Clifton  W.  These  children  are  the  sixth 
generation  born  on  the  ancestral  homestead. 
In  1886  Mr.  Nelson  married  a  second  wife, 
Miss  Lizzie  Parkhurst.  By  this  union  he  has 
no  children. 

In  politics  Mr.  Nelson  favors  the  Republi- 
can side,  and  he  has  been  elected  to  several 
offices  of  trust.  He  has  been  Selectman  and 
Assessor  some  si.v  years,  a  member  of  the 
School  Bqard  fifteen  years;  and  he  was  in  the 
Massachusetts  legislature  in  1888.  He  is  a 
man  of  much  force  of  character  and  good  judg- 
ment, and  has  the  respect  of  all  who  know 
h  i  m . 


jAPTAIN  ANSEL  S.  GURNEY,  now 
engaged  in  general  farming  and  cran- 
berry raising  in  the  town  of  Marion, 
Plymouth  County,  where  he  owns  ninety  acres 
of  land,  was  in  his  earlier  days  identified  with 
the  fishing  and  commercial  interests  of  this 
section  of  New  England.  His  birth  occurred 
in  Marion,  near  Rochester,  November  6,  1823, 
he  being  one  of  a  family  of  six  sons  and  three 
daughters  born  in  the  early  part  of  the  century 
to  Captain  Sullivan  and  Jenny  (Whitney) 
Gurney.      His  paternal  grandfather,  who  bore 


the  name  of  Levi,  was  a  son  of  Stephen 
Gurney.  Levi  Gurney  formerly  owned  the 
farm  now  in  possession  of  the  Captain,  and 
here  spent  the  larger  part  of  his  long  life, 
death  leaving  him  uncalled  for  till  some  time 
in  his  ninety-eighth  year. 

Ansel  S.  Gurney  was  reared  and  educated 
in  Marion,  attending  the  public  schools  until 
eleven  years  old,  when  he  went  on  board  one 
of  the  coasting-vessels  as  cook.  His  promo- 
tion to  higher  positions  was  rapid,  being  in 
each  case  well  merited;  and  he  passed  through 
the  various  grades  of  seamanship  to  the  posi- 
tion of  Captain  by  the  time  he  attained  his 
majority.  Henceforth,  until  1861,  Captain 
Gurney  was  master  and  part  owner  of  each 
vessel  in  which  he  sailed,  his  seventeen  years 
as  commander  being  fraught  with  success. 
With  the  thrift  and  enterprise  characteristic 
of  the  true-born  New  Englander,  the  Captain, 
while  yet  a  follower  of  the  sea,  embarked  in 
the  grain  business,  succeeding  so  well  in  this 
venture  that  in  1857  he  opened  a  grain  store 
in  Wareham,  hiring  a  man  to  take  charge  of  it 
while  he  was  away  from  home.  His  business 
was  affected  by  the  financial  panic  of  that 
year,  which  caused  the  failure  of  several  firms 
with  which  he  had  dealings,  and  was  more  or 
less  disastrous  to  all.  Captain  Gurney,  how- 
ever, withstood  the  storm,  and,  meeting  all 
his  obligations,  received  a  just  meed  of  praise 
for  his  honesty  of  purpose  so  faithfully  carried 
into  action.  Since  that  time  he  has  increased 
his  mercantile  business,  becam-ing  one  of  the" 
largest  dealers  in  flour,  feed,  hay,  wood,  and 
coal,  in  this  locality.  Soon  after  his  mar- 
riage Captain  Gurney  bought  the  homestead 
property  of  his  paternal  grandfather;  and  here, 
in  addition  to  general  farming,  he  is  paying  a 
good  deal  of  attention  to  the  culture  of  the 
cranberry,  which  has  proved  such  a  prolific  and 
profitable  fruit  crop  in  this  region. 


4o8 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


Captain  Gurney  was  married  March  15,  1849, 
to  Miss  Lovicy  B.  Hathaway,  daughter  of 
Rufus  F.  and  Ruth  (Sampson)  Hathaway,  of 
VVareham.  Of  the  children  born  to  Captain 
and  Mrs.  Gurney,  the  following  is  the  record: 
listella,  the  first-born,  is  the  wife  of  John  W. 
Delano,  of  whom  a  short  sketch  appears  on 
another  page  of  this  volume;  Gilbert  died  in 
infancy;  and  Ruth  S.  is  the  wife  of  George 
M.  Delano.  Politically,  Captain  Gurney  is 
an  earnest  supporter  of  the  principles  of  the 
Republican  party.  Religiously,  he  and  his 
wife  may  be  numbered  among  the  followers  of 
Wesley,  being  members  of  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  church. 


HRNEST  LINCOLN  COOK,  of  Bridge- 
water,  manufacturer  of  building,  sewer, 
and  paving  brick,  was  born  in  Mil- 
ford,  Mass.,  July  22,  1865,  a  son  of  Levi  A. 
and  Sylvia  (Holbrook)  Cook.  The  Cooks  are 
an  old  New  England  family,  originally  of 
Plymouth  County.  Francis  Cook,  the  first  of 
this  surname  here,  was  one  of  the  "  May- 
tlower  Pilgrims."  Mr.  Ernest  L.  Cook's  im- 
mediate ancestors  settled  about  a  century  ago 
in  Mendon,  Mass.  His  father,  Levi  A.  Cook, 
who  is  at  present  residing  in  Milford,  was  in 
the  coal  and  wood  business  in  that  town  for  a 
number  of  years. 

Ernest  L.  Cook  acquired  his  education  in 
the  public  schools  of  Milford.  When  about 
eighteen  years  of  age  he  began  to  learn  the 
machinist's  trade  in  Providence,  R.I.,  where 
he  was  engaged  for  four  years  in  the  Rhode 
Island  Locomotive  Works.  He  was  subse- 
quently in  the  employ  of  George  Draper  & 
Sons,  of  Hopedale,  Mass.,  manufacturers  of 
cotton  machinery,  setting  up  their  machines 
in  various  places.  He  then  began  to  manu- 
facture   brick    in     a    small    way,    employing 


about  twenty-five  men  at  first;  and  he  has  been 
so  successful  that  he  has  been  obliged  to  more 
than  double  his  force.  In  1S91  he  established 
his  plant  near  the  State  Farm  in  Bridgewater, 
and  here  he  has  every  facility  for  successfull}' 
carrying  on  his  work.  He  has  installed  the 
latest  improved  machinery,  of  which  he  is  a 
competent  judge,  being  a  practical  machinist 
himself;  and  his  equipment  includes  a  valu- 
able steam  drying-plant.  The  works  are  ad- 
mirably managed,  and  the  plant  is  second  to 
none  in  the  State.  Mr.  Cook,  though  a  young 
man,  is  gifted  with  ripe  judgment  and  unusual 
executive  ability,  and  is  worthy  of  a  place  in 
the  front  rank  of  Bridgewater's  successful 
manufacturers.  In  political  matters  he  afifili- 
ates  with  the  Republican  party.  He  belongs 
to  one  social  organization,  the  Masonic 
brotherhood,  being  a  member  of  Fellowship 
Lodge,  of  15ridgc\vater,  and  is  an  attendant  of 
the  First  Unitarian  Church  of  this  town. 

On  October  26,  1896,  he  was  married  to 
Georgiana  M.  Wrisley,  of  Orange,  Mass. 
Since  that  time  he  has  resided  in  the  Alden 
homestead  on  Titicut  Street. 


"J^ATHANIEL    TAYLOR,    Secretary  of 
the  Board  of  Selectmen  of  Marshfield, 

-  X^  _,  was  born  in  this  town,  January  28, 
1840.  His  parents  were  William  and  Eliza 
S.  (Kent)  Taylor  —  the  former  a  native  of 
Scituate,  Mass.,  the  latter  of  Marshfield. 
Mr.  Taylor's  paternal  grandfather  was  Richard 
Taylor,  a  citizen  of  Scituate,  whose  father  was 
an  Flnglishman. 

William  Taylor  was  a  master  ship-builder, 
a  skilled  mechanic,  who  took  pride  in  making 
his  work  of  the  finest,  and  had  charge  of  the 
building  of  several  costly  vessels.  He  was 
well  endowed  mentally,  and  kept  step  with  the 
progress  of  his  time   in   industrial  and   social 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


409 


matters.  For  some  time  he  was  connected 
with  the  State  militia.  In  politics  he  was  a 
Democrat.  He  died  in  Marshfield  in  Decem- 
ber, 1889,  in  his  ninety-fourth  year,  having 
survived  his  wife,  who  passed  away  in  1875, 
fourteen  years.  Of  their  children  nine  are 
dead,  and  the  following  are  living:  Elizabeth, 
wife  of  Captain  John  J.  Cook,  of  Province- 
town  ;  Christiana,  wife  of  Edward  Arnold,  of 
Rockland,  Mass.  ;  Captain  William  H.,  in 
Marshfield;  Captain  Smith  Taylor,  in  the 
same  town;  and  Nathaniel. 

Nathaniel  Taylor  was  educated  in  the  dis- 
trict schools  of  his  native  tovifn,  attending 
regularly  until  twelve  years  of  age;  and  then, 
until  he  was  seventeen,  attending  only  the 
winter  sessions,  doing  farm  work  the  rest  of 
the  year.  At  the  age  of  seventeen  he  shipped 
as  a  sailor,  and  was  for  some  time  engaged  in 
the  Grand  Banks  fisheries,  and  subsequently  in 
the  foreign  merchant  service  and  whaling  ex- 
peditions in  the  Atlantic.  He  followed  the 
sea  fifteen  years  in  all,  and  during  the  last 
twelve  years  was  an  officer  on  different  ves- 
sels. About  1872  he  retired,  settling  in  his 
present  home  in  Marshfield ;  and  since  that 
time  he  has  occupied  himself  with  carpentry 
and  farming.  He  was  married  September  26, 
1867,  to  Mary  A.  Cook,  a  native  of  Whitman, 
Mass.,  daughter  of  Asa  and  Mary  J.  (Lewis) 
Cook.  Mr.  Cook  was  born  in  Whitman  Mass., 
his  wife  in  Marshfield.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Taylor 
have  been  bereft  of  two  children,  and  have  one 
living,  a  daughter,  Martha  E.  She  is  a  grad- 
uate of  the  State  Normal  School  at  Bridge- 
water,  has  taught  school  for  eight  years,  and 
at  the  present  time  is  engaged  as  clerk  in  the 
Massachusetts  Bureau  of  Statistics  of  Labor  in 
Boston. 

Mr.  Taylor  votes  the  Republican  ticket. 
He  is  serving  his  fourth  term  as  Secretary  of 
the  Board  of  Selectmen,  and  by  virtue  of  his 


Selectman's  office  is  also  Assessor  and  Over- 
seer of  the  Poor.  He  and  his  estimable  wife 
and  daughter  are  members  of  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  church  of  Marshfield,  of  which  he 
is  Recording  Steward  and  Treasurer. 


(5  I  HERON  M.  COLE,  a  prosperous  mill- 
^1  owner  of  Carver,  was  born  October  13, 
1843,  on  the  farm  he  now  occupies,  son 
of  Harrison  and  Lucy  (Chase)  Cole.  His 
great-grandfather,  who  was  the  first  member  of 
the  family  to  locate  in  Carver,  owned  consid- 
erable land  here.  Hezekiah,  the  paternal 
grandfather,  established  the  box  and  saw  mills, 
which  are  now  operated  by  his  grandson,  the 
subject  of  this  memoir.  He  was  married 
twice,  and  was  the  father  of  twelve  children, 
four  sons  and  eight  daughters,  of  whom  four 
yet  survive.  He  passed  away  February  17, 
1843,  in  his  si.xty-si.xth  year;  and  his  wife, 
Jane,  died  March  6,  1825,  aged  forty-five 
years. 

Harrison  Cole  was  born  on  the  paternal  es- 
tate, and  there  spent  his  entire  life.  He  also 
entered  twice  into  matrimony.  His  first  wife, 
Lucy  P.  (Chase)  Cole,  a  daughter  of  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Levi  Chase,  of  Carver,  where  she  was 
born  in  18 19,  died  December  8,  1874.  She 
gave  birth  to  seven  children;  namely,  Hannah 
L.,  Theron  M.,  Sarah  A.,  Emma,  Henry  H., 
Horace  C,  and  Elmer  B.  Hannah  L.  and 
Emma  are  now  deceased.  The  mother  passed 
away  November  4,  1873.  The  father's  second 
marriage  was  contracted  with  Miss  Rebecca 
Richards,  who  is  now  living.  He  departed 
this  life  at  Carver  in  November,  1886,  at  the 
age  of  si.Kty-nine  years. 

Theron  M.  Cole  attained  to  man's  estate  on 
the  ancestral  farm,  acquiring  his  education  at 
the  public  schools  of  his  native  town.  In 
his  early  youth   he  began   to  assist  his  father 


4IO 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


in  the  woik  of  the  farm;  and  he  was  still  a 
boy  when  he  took  charge  of  the  box  and  saw 
mills.  Both  mills  ultimately  came  into  his 
possession,  and  he  has  operated  them  uninter- 
ruptedly to  the  present  time.  In  the  box-mill 
he  manufactures  cranberry  boxes  and  barrels, 
and  in  the  saw-mill  he  manufactures  lumber. 

Mr.  Cole  likewise  has  been  twice  married. 
In  1866  he  wedded  Miss  Nancy  B.  Chandler, 
a  native  of  Carver,  and  a  daughter  of  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Job  Chandler,  of  Carver.  She  died  in 
1881,  and  in  1SS5  Mr.  Cole  entered  his  second 
marriage  with  Miss  Annie  H.  Robbins, 
daughter  of  Benjamin  W.  and  Lydia  F. ,  of 
Carver.  By  the  last  wife  he  became  the 
father  of  four  children;  namely,  Philip  S., 
Frank  H.,  Elsie  L. ,  and  Annie  H.  The 
mother  died  November  11,  1896.  Mr.  Cole's 
political  principles  are  those  of  the  Demo- 
cratic party.  In  religious  faith  and  sympathy 
he  is  in  fellowship  with  the  Congregational 
church  of  Carver,  in  which  he  ofificiates  in 
the  responsible  capacity  of  Treasurer. 


NSLOW  VV.  MAGLATHLIN,  a  resi- 
dent of  Silver  Lake,  and  senior  mem- 
ber of  the  firm  of  O.  VV.  Maglathlin  & 
Co.,  tack  manufacturers  of  North  Hanson,  was 
born  in  Kingston,  November  4,  1846,  son  of 
Peter  VV.  and  Marcia  (Bradford)  Maglathlin. 
The  Maglathlin  family,  which  is  one  of  the 
oldest  ill  Kingston,  was  founded  in  this  coun- 
tj-y  by  John  Maglathlin,  a  native  of  Scotland. 
Some  of  his  descendants  in  a  direct  line  have 
resided  in  Kingston  up  to  the  present  day. 

Peter  VV.  Maglathlin,  the  father,  above 
named,  was  a  lifelong  resident  of  Kingston. 
He  was  twice  married,  and  Mr.  Maglathlin's 
mother,  whose  maiden  name  was  Marcia 
Bradford,  was  a  native  of  Turner,  Me.  There 
are  now    living    seven    children    of    the    late 


Peter  W.  Maglathlin,  and  they  are  as  fol- 
lows: Harvey  W.,  Hanover,  Mass.;  Phile- 
mon W.,  Onslow  VV.,  the  subject  of  this 
sketch,  Eldwin  L. ,  antl  Horace  B.  —  all  of 
whom  reside  in  Kingston;  Angle,  wife  of 
Elliott  Blanchard,  of  Turner,  Me.  ;  and 
Helen  A.,  who  married  Barker  Baker,  of 
North    Hanson,    Mass. 

Onslow  W.,  the  third  son  as  here  given, 
acquired  his  education  in  the  public  schools  of 
Kingston.  He  was  engaged  in  various  kinds 
of  employment  until  reaching  the  age  of 
twenty-one,  when  he  began  to  serve  an  ap- 
prenticeship of  three  years  at  the  tack-maker's 
trade,  one  year  of  which  he  served  under  Porter 
C.  Reed,  at  Silver  Lake.  After  finishing  his 
trade  with  his  brother,  Horace  B.  Maglathlin, 
he  worked  for  a  number  of  years  as  a  journey- 
man, and  in  1883  he  became  a  member  of  the 
firm  of  L.  I*;.  Ford  &  Co.,  of  Kingston.  In 
January,  1885,  he  withdrew  from  the  firm,  and, 
in  company  with  Barker  Baker,  engaged  in  the 
same  business  in  North  Hanson.  The  firm  of 
O.  W.  Maglathlin  &  Co.  manufacture  all 
kinds  of  shoe  tacks,  which  find  a  ready  market 
in  the  various  shoe-manufacturing  centres, 
their  travelling  salesman  and  rejiresentative 
being  Ira  VV.  Drake,  of  East  Bridgewater. 

On  March  31,  1870,  Mr.  Maglathlin  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Hattie  J.  Bradford, 
a  native  of  Turner,  Me.,  daughter  of  Philemon 
W.  and  Lydia  J.  Bradford.  Her  father  is  no 
longer  living,  but  her  mother  is  still  residing 
in  Turner.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Maglathlin  ha\'e 
two  children  —  Edna  and  Wallace  L. 

Although  Mr.  Maglathlin  favors  the  Repidj- 
lican  party  he  votes  independently,  and  pre- 
fers to  be  directed  in  voting  by  the  character 
and  ability  of  the  candidates  for  office.  As  a 
business  man  he  is  widely  and  favorably 
known  throughout  this  locality,  and  his  suc- 
cess is  the  result  of  his  own  unaided  efforts. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


411 


f^'l 


APTAIN    ALBERT    T.    SPRAGUE, 


a  retired  ship-master,  one  of  the  lead- 
><£_^  ing  town  officers  of  Marshfield,  was 
born  here,  June  18,  1843,  a  son  of  Captain 
Seth  F.  and  Jane  (P'ord)  Sprague.  His  father 
and  mother  were  natives  of  Marshfield,  as  was 
also  his  paternal  grandfather,  Luther  Sprague. 
Seth  F.  Sprague  followed  the  sea  for  some 
twenty  years,  during  which  he  was  master  of 
different  vessels.  He  died  in  1891,  in  the 
ninety-third  year  of  his  age.  In  politics  he 
was  formerly  a  Whig,  but  in  later  years  affili- 
ated with  the  Republican  party.  Of  his  three 
children  by  his  second  wife,  Jane  Ford,  only 
Albert  T.  survives. 

Albert  T.  Sprague  was  born  in  the  house  in 
Marshfield  village  where  he  resides.  He 
attendeil  public  and  private  schools,  and  later 
was  a  student  of  Phillips  Academy.  In  his 
seventeenth  year  he  went  to  sea  as  a  cabin 
boy,  and  through  successive  promotions  rose  to 
be  ship-master  when  twenty-seven  years  of 
age,  having  prior  to  that  time  been  on  board  a 
number  of  different  vessels.  The  first  of 
which  he  was  Commander  was  the  "Annapo- 
lis," a  Baltimore  packet  that  was  refitted  for 
the  California  trade,  and  carried  merchandise 
of  various  kinds  between  .San  ]'"rancisco  and 
Europe  and  China.  He  was  with  the  "An- 
napolis" several  years,  after  which  he  was 
Captain  of  otiiers,  among  them  being  the  clip- 
per "Derby."  During  his  nautical  career  he 
doubled  Cape  Horn  twenty-si.x  times,  and 
visited  the  Philippine  Islands,  and  many  of 
the  largest  seaports  of  the  world.  In  1875  he 
retired  from  the  sea,  and  for  three  years  was 
assistant  wharfinger  at  Constitution  Wharf, 
Boston.  Since  that  time  he  has  resided  in 
Marshfield,  where  he  has  been  chosen  to  fill 
many  of  the  principaP  town  offices.  He  has 
served  as  Selectman  a  number  of  years  at  in- 
tervals, and  is  one  of   the  present   board.      In 


1896  he  represented  this  district  in  the  lower 
house  of  the  State  legislature.  He  is  a  mem- 
ber of  the  School  Committee,  one  of  the 
special  Commissioners  of  Plymouth  County, 
Chairman  of  the  Board  of  Assessors,  and  an 
Overseer  of  the  Poor.  He  is  also  a  member 
of  the  Railroad  Sinking  Fund  Commission  of 
Marshfield,  and  Secretary  of  the  Board.  In 
political  affiliation  Captain  Sprague  is  a 
Republican. 

On  April  6,  1865,  Captain  Sprague  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Rosella  F. 
Hatch,  daughter  of  Israel  and  Abigail  (Ames) 
Hatch.  Five  children  were  born  to  them,  of 
whom  four  are  living,  namely:  Rosa  M.,  the 
librarian  of  the  Free  Library  of  Marshfield; 
Albert  T. ,  Jr.,  a  Civil  Plngineer  on  the  Boston 
&  Maine  Railroad;  Seth  F.,  who  is  connected 
with  the  wholesale  grocery  business  of  Charles 
¥.  Moody  &  Co.,  of  Boston;  and  Willard  II., 
who  is  employed  in  the  Charles  River  National 
Bank  at  Cambridge,  Mass.  Mrs.  Sprague  is  a 
member  of  the  Congregational  church,  and 
both  she  and  her  husband  are  popular  in  social 
circles. 


HARLES  MANSON,  Town  Clerk  of 
.Scituate,  was  born  in  this  place,  July 
22,  1845.  His  parents.  Captain 
Joel  L.  and  Mary  (Jenkins)  Manson,  were  also 
born  in  Scituate.  The  Manson  family  is  of 
English  origin,  and  has  been  known  and  re- 
spected in  Scituate  for  generations.  Captain 
Joel  L.  Manson 's  grandfather,  John  Manson, 
having  settled  here  considerably  more  than  a 
century  ago. 

John's  son  Nehemiah,  Charles  Manson's 
grandfather,  was  a  sea  captain  of  Scituate,  and 
a  soldier  in  the  Revolutionary  War.  His  son. 
Captain  Joel  L.  Manson,  was  also  a  master 
mariner.  He  died  in  1851.  Mrs.  Mary 
Jenkins    Manson's    father,    Coleman    Jenkins, 


412 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


who  was  a  well-to-do  farmer,  was  a  member  of 
an  old  Scituate  family.  The  first  of  this  sur- 
name in  the  town  was  Edward  Jenkins  in 
1646.  Of  the  children  of  Captain  Manson 
and  his  wife,  two  are  living:  Charles,  the  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch;  and  Horace,  in  South 
Boston,  Mass. 

Charles  Manson  was  reared  on  the  farm 
which  he  at  present  occupies  —  originally,  the 
property  of  his  maternal  grandfather,  Coleman 
Jenkins  —  and  was  educated  in  the  public 
schools  of  Scituate.  He  has  been  engaged  in 
general  farming  since  early  manhood,  and 
has  been  very  successful.  Gifted  with  sound 
judgment  and  good  executive  ability,  he  does 
well  whatever  he  undertakes.  Mr.  Manson 
votes  the  Republican  ticket.  He  was  first 
elected  Town  Clerk  in  1886,  and  has  been 
honored  with  re-election  every  year  since. 

On  September  8,  1893,  Mr.  Manson  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Emma  B.  Pentz,  of 
Meadville,  Fa.,  daughter  of  William  and  Mary 
(Campbell)  Pentz.  Mr.  Pentz,  who  was  born 
in  York,  Pa.,  has  been  Trial  Justice  for  about 
twenty  years.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Manson  have  two 
children:  a  son,  Joel,  born  August  30,  1894; 
and  a  daughter,  Ruth,  born  November  23, 
1896.  Mr.  Manson  and  his  wife  arc  members 
of  the  Unitarian  church;  and  he  has  held  the 
office  of  parish  clerk  for  seventeen  years. 


"]C]DMUND  HERSEY,  2d,  is  a  well- 
pi  known  boot  and  shoe  dealer  of  Hing- 
ham,  Plymouth  County,  Mass.  He 
was  born  July  7,  1829,  son  of  George  and 
Lydia  (Marsh)  Hersey,  and  is  a  lineal  de- 
scendant of  one  of  the  early  settlers  of  this 
ancient  town,  where  the  family  has  continu- 
ously been  represented  by  enterprising  and  in- 
fluential citizens. 

The  surname  Hersey,  also  written  in  former 


days  Hersee,  Harsie,  and   Hearsey,    is  a  very 
ancient  one. 

The  earliest  record  of  the  Hersey  family 
that  can  be  obtained  is  the  name  of  a  certain 
Malvicius  de  Hercy,  in  the  year  12 10.  The 
family  appears  to  have  come  originally  from 
Flanders,  and  a  Hughe  de  Hersey  was  gov- 
ernor of  Trou  Normandy  in  1204.  Edward  I. 
held  another  Hugh  when  a  minor;  i.e.,  took 
all  his  rents  till  he  came  of  age.  There  is  a 
Count  Herce,  Maine,  France,  running  from 
the  year  1500.  Sir  Malvicius  married  Theo- 
phania,  daughter  of  Gilbert  de  Arches,  Baron 
of  Grove;  and  from  him  descended  the  family 
of  Hercy  of  Grove,  one  of  the  first  families  in 
the  county  of  Nottingham.  In  Warwickshire 
there  is  a  village  which  still  bears  the  name 
of  Pillerton  Hercy,  or  Hersey.  The  name  also 
frequently  appears  in  Berkshire. 

In  the  year  1635  Richard  Hercy,  aged 
twenty-two  years,  sailed  from  London  for  Vir- 
ginia in  the  ship  "America";  and  in  the  same 
year  William  sailed  for  New  England.  Will- 
iam was  the  son  of  Nathaniel,  who  died  in 
Reading,  Berkshire,  England,  in  1629.  Will- 
iam settled  in  Hingham,  Mass.  ;  and  the 
records  of  the  town  clearly  show  his  identity. 
Thus  the  present  American  branch  of  the 
Hersey  family,  who  descended  from  William, 
are  able  to  establish  their  connection  through 
Nathaniel  with  the  English  Berkshire  family, 
and  to  trace  their  ancestry  back  to  Sir  Malvi- 
cius, who  lived  in  the  reign  of  King  John. 

William  Hersey,  the  progenitor  of  all  the 
descendants  who  bear  the  name  in  Hingham 
and  vicinity,  came  to  New  England,  as  above 
stated,  in  1635,  and  early  in  the  autumn 
located  in  this  town.  On  July  3,  1636,  a  five- 
acre  house  lot  was  granted  him  on  what  is  now 
South  Street,  nearly  opposite  West  Street. 
This  lot  included  within  its  limits  the  estate 
now  owned  by  the  heirs  of  the  late   Ebenezer 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


413 


Gay,  Esq.  At  the  time  of  the  trouble  about 
the  election  of  officers  for  the  train  band, 
1644-45,  William  Hersey  was  assessed  a 
heavy  fine  for  supporting  the  views  of  the  Rev. 
Peter  Hobart  and  his  friends;  and  the  family 
rate  toward  the  erection  of  the  new  meeting- 
house was  the  largest  one  on  the  list. 

He  and  his  wife,  Elizabeth,  had  six  chil- 
dren. He  was  by  occupation  a  husbandman. 
He  was  made  a  freeman  in  1638,  officiated  in 
the  Board  of  Selectmen  in  1642,  1647,  and 
1650,  and  was  a  member  of  the  Artillery  Com- 
pany in  1652.  He  died  here  March  32, 
1657-8.  His  wife  lived  until  October  8, 
1 67 1.  Their  fifth  child,  John  Hersey,  who 
was  baptized  in  Hingham,  August  9,  1640, 
was  a  tailor  by  occupation,  and  served  as  Con- 
stable in  1 701.  He  and  his  wife,  Sarah,  whom 
he  married  on  May  18,  1669,  in  Dedham,  it  is 
said,  resided  on  South  Street,  Hingham,  where 
their  eleven  children  were  born.  He  died 
August  7,  1726;  and  his  wife,  surviving  him, 
died  on  January  17,  1731,  at  eighty-two  years 
of  age. 

Jeremiah,  their  youngest  child,  was  born 
June  18,  1697.  He  was  a  cooper,  and  his 
home  also  was  on  South  Street.  On  Decem- 
ber 8,  1726,  he  married  Elizabeth,  who  is 
thought  to  have  been  a  daughter  of  Nathaniel 
and  Judith  Gilbert.  By  this  alliance  there 
were  eleven  children,  who  were  all  born  in 
Hingham.  The  mother  died  here  on  January 
21,  1775,  at  the  age  of  about  si.xty-four  years, 
while  the  father  liv^ed  until  P'ebruary  9,  1790. 
Jeremiah,  Jr.,  their  eighth  child,  baptized 
October  18,  1741,  was  a  trader,  and  resided 
on  South  Street.  On  December  31,  1772,  he 
was  united  in  marriage  with  Mary  Hersey, 
daughter  of  Isaiah  and  Margaret  (Sprague) 
Hersey.  Ten  children  blessed  their  union. 
The  father  died  October  7,  1796;  and  the 
mother,  born   in   Hingham,   October  9,    1755, 


died  August  13,  1833,  having  been  a  widow 
nearly  twenty-seven  years.  George,  their 
seventh  child,  was  born  October  19,  1787. 
During  his  active  manhood  he  was  engaged  in 
trade  on  North  Street.  On  October  11,  1821, 
he  married  Lydia,  daughter  of  Lot  and  Lydia 
(French)  Marsh.  Three  children  —  Mary, 
George,  ^nd  Edmund  —  were  the  fruit  of  their 
union.  The  mother,  Mrs.  Lydia  Marsh 
Hersey,  who  was  born  here,  October  15, 
1787,  died  February  15,  1864.  The  father, 
George  Hersey,  lived  until  May  31,  1871. 

Edmund  Hersey,  2d,  their  youngest  born,  a 
bright,  precocious  child,  was  educated  in  the 
public  schools.  At  the  age  of  sixteen  he 
commenced  his  business  career,  being  vari- 
ously employed  until  he  became  a  dealer  in 
boots  and  shoes,  which  enterprise  he  still  con- 
tinues. In  politics  he  affiliates  with  the  Re- 
publican party.  Officially,  he  has  been  a 
member  of  the  School  Committee  for  over 
twenty  years.  Overseer  of  the  Poor  for  twelve 
years,  which  office  he  still  holds,  and  Rep- 
resentative in  1886-S7.  Mr.  Hersey  is  a 
Director  of  the  Hingham  National  Bank,  on 
the  Board  of  Investment  of  the  Hingham  In- 
stitution for  Savings,  and  also  Director  of  the 
Hingham  l'"ire  Insurance  Company.  Frater- 
nally, he  belongs  to  Old  Colony  Lodge,  A.  F. 
&  A.  M.,  which  he  has  served  as  Chaplain  for 
years.  He  has  also  been  active  in  promoting 
public  improvements. 

Mr.  Hersey  has  been  twice  married.  His 
first  wife,  formerly  Adelaide  Waters,  died 
May  I,  1857,  leaving  a  daughter,  Adelaide 
W.,  now  wife  of  Frederick  W.  Howard,  of 
Boston  Highlands,  and  mother  of  one  child, 
Freddie  L.  Howard.  His  second  wife,  whose 
maiden  name  was  Mary'  Howard,  died  three 
years  ago.  She  had  one  child,  Howard  P. 
Hersey,  now  clerk  of  the  Hingham  Savings 
Institution.     He  married   Ruth   Lane,  daugh- 


414 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


ter  of  Morallus  Lane;  and  they  have  two  chil- 
dren—  Ethel  L.  and  Celia  Howard.  In 
religion  Mr.  Edmund  Mersey,  2d,  is  a  Univer- 
sal ist;  and,  being  a  man  of  strong  convic- 
tions, he  is  "able  to  give  to  every  man  a 
reason  for  the  faith  that  is  in  him." 


'ON.  GEORGE  BARTLETT  DUN- 
BAR, formerly  a  well-known  con- 
tractor of  Brockton,  was  born  in 
Plymouth,  Plymouth  County,  Mass.,  July  16, 
1809.  His  family  belonged  in  Halifax,  this 
county;  and  his  father,  William  Dunbar,  and 
his  father's  brothers,  were  seafaring  men. 
William  IDunbar  married  Jerusha  Holmes,  of 
Plymouth;  and  they  had  five  children,  not  any 
of  whom  are  now  living. 

George  B.  Dunbar  acquired  a  common- 
school  education  in  his  native  town,  and  then 
learned  the  carpenter's  trade  in  East  Bridge- 
water.  He  subsequently  formed  a  copartner- 
ship with  Oakes  S.  Soule,  under  the  style  of 
Dunbar  &  Soule,  which  continued  for  twenty- 
eight  years.  They  were  at  first  contractors 
for  building,  but  afterward  engaged  in  the 
lumber  business  During  the  latter  part  of  his 
life,  after  the  partnership  was  dissolved,  Mr. 
Dunbar  was  engaged  in  the  real  estate  busi- 
ness. 

In  politics  he  was  a  Republican,  being  also 
a  man  of  pronounced  temperance  views.  He 
served  the  town  on  the  Liquor  Prosecuting 
Committee  for  a  time;  and  he  had  the  honor 
to  represent  his  district  in  the  State  legisla- 
ture one  term,  only  missing  a  second  election 
by  a  few  votes,  this  loss  being  probably  due 
to  his  temperance  principles.  He  originally 
affiliated  with  the  Sons  of  Temperance,  but 
later  with  Fraternal  Lodge,  No.  24,  Inde- 
pendent Order  of  Good  Templars,  in  which 
he   was   active,   influential,    and   popular.      He 


was  a  faithful  member  of  the  Porter  Cong:res;a- 
tional  Church. 

Mr.  George  B.  Dunbar  died  on  May  30, 
1875,  in  the  si.xty-si.xth  year  of  his  age.  He 
had  been  married  three  times.  His  first  wife, 
Sylvia  Davis,  daughter  of  Jethro  Davis,  of 
Fairhaven,  Mass.,  bore  him  three  children  — 
William  Henry,  Mary  A.,  and  Sarah  Jane 
—  all  of  whom  died  unmarried.  By  his  sec- 
ond wife,  Betsey  Kingman,  daughter  of  Abel 
Kingman,  he  had  one  daughter,  Betsey  K., 
who  was  married  to  Daniel  B.  Littlefield  in 
1864,  and  resides  in  Brockton. 

Mr.  Dunbar  is  survived  by  his  third  wife, 
formerly  Mary  B.  Richards,  with  whom  he 
was  united  on  December  22,  1850.  Her 
parents  were  Luther  and  Mary  (Sawin)  Rich- 
ards, of  Dover,  Mass.  The  children  born  of 
this  union  were:  Frederick  B.  and  Emma  L. , 
who  died  in  infancy;  and  Maria  N.,  who  was 
married  on  April  iS,  1877,  to  Austin  F. 
Gurney.  This  daughter  and  son-in-law  make 
their  home  with  Mrs.  Dunbar. 


f'^^^JEORGE  HUNT,  M.D.,  physician  and 
yj5  I  surgeon,  is  one  of  the  leading  profes- 
sional men  of  Bridgewater,  Mass.  A 
son  of  David  F.  and  Rebecca  C.  (Jenkins) 
Hunt,  natives  of  Rockland,  Mass.,  he  was  born 
in  that  town,  March  12,  1855.  The  Hunts, 
who  are  of  English  origin,  have  been  domi- 
ciled in  New  England  a  great  many  years,  the 
first  of  the  race  having  settled  here  in  the 
seventeenth  century.  On  the  maternal  side 
also  Dr.  Hunt's  lineage  runs  back  to  the  in- 
fancy of  Massachusetts,  his  mother  being  a 
descendant  of  Governor  Bradford  of  the  Plym- 
outh Colony. 

George  Hunt  attended  school  in  Rockland, 
graduating  from  the  high  school.  He  subse- 
quently took  a  thorough   course  in  medicine  at 


GEORGE    B.    DUNBAR. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


417 


Boston  University,  and  he  received  his  degree 
in  1 88 1.  He  commenced  practice  in  Brock- 
ton, this  county,  where  he  remained  one  year. 
Then  he  moved  to  West  Bridgewater,  and 
there  was  for  some  time  associated  with  Dr. 
James  C.  Swan.  In  1884  he  started  an  inde- 
pendent practice  in  East  Bridgewater,  and  in 
1892  he  located  in  Bridgewater.  He  now  has 
a  large  and  lucrative  business  in  the  Bridge- 
waters  and  Brockton,  where  he  is  well  and 
favorably  known.  In  1884  he  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Lillian  A.  Browne,  who  was 
born  in  Abington,  Mass. 

The  founder  of  the  Browne  family  in  Abing- 
ton is  thus  mentioned  in  Hobart's  History: 
"Richard  Brown,  a  remote  descendant  of  An- 
thony Brown,  emigrated  to  this  country  from 
England  with  Edith,  his  wife,  and  settled  in 
Newbury,  Mass.,  in  1633."  Although  the 
pedigree  of  Richard  has  not  been  traced,  many 
interesting  particulars  concerning  the  English 
Browns  of  former  generations  have  been  gath- 
ered, partly,  doubtless,  from  tradition,  partly 
from  records.  The  original  Sir  Anthony 
Browne  is  said  to  have  been  knighted  at  the 
coronation  of  King  Richard  II.  in  1377,  and 
to  have  received  the  title  Lord  Viscount  of 
Montague.  His  sons  were:  Robert,  who  suc- 
ceeded to  the  title;  and  Stephen,  who  was 
Lord  Mayor  of  London  in  1439.  Sir  An- 
thony's grandson,  a  second  Anthony,  was  suc- 
ceeded by  his  son,  Anthony,  third,  his  grand- 
son, Anthony,  fourth,  a  George,  and  others 
later  bearing  the  title.  Old  Sir  Anthony 
Browne  is  mentioned  in  Volume  II.  of  Miss 
Strickland's  "  Lives  of  the  Queens  of  Eng- 
land." What  is  known  of  this  line  of 
worthies  is  of  a  nature  to  stimulate  further 
genealogical  research.  Mrs.  Hunt's  family 
have  in  their  possession  a  copy  of  the  original 
coat-of-arms  which  appertain  to  Sir  Wolstan 
Browne,  who  in  15 10,  while   in   the  service  of 


King  Henry  VIII.,  was  knighted  by  the  king 
of  Arragon.  This  coat-of-arms  was  brought 
to  Abington  by  Mrs.  Hunt's  ancestor,  the 
Rev.  Samuel  Brown  (son  of  Richard),  who 
was  a  graduate  of  Harvard  College,  and  the 
first  minister  in  Abington,  where  he  was 
settled  in  1712.  It  has  been  handed  down 
since  his  day  from  father  to  son. 

Mrs.  Hunt  has  borne  her  husband  four  chil- 
dren—  William  E.,  Marion  B.,  Harold  D., 
and  Reginald  S.  In  politics  Dr.  Hunt  favors 
the  Republican  side.  Prominently  interested 
in  Masonry,  he  is  a  Past  Master  of  the 
Masonic  Lodge  of  East  Bridgewater.  He 
takes  an  active  interest  in  the  welfare  of 
liridgewater,  where  his  friends  are  legion. 


,ISS  TRYPHENA  WHITING,  now 
residing  in  Hanover,  her  birthplace, 
was  for  many  years  successfully 
engaged  as  an  instructor  in  the  public  schools 
of  different  towns  in  Plymouth  County  and  in 
the  West.  She  is  a  daughter  of  William  and 
Cynthia  (Curtis)  Whiting,  being  the  eldest  of 
four  sons  and  four  daughters.  Her  father, 
William  Whiting,  was  a  farmer  and  merchant 
trader  during  the  years  of  his  business 
activity.  He  at  one  time  served  as  Selectman 
of  the  town.  He  died  at  the  age  of  seventy- 
five  years,  his  wife  being  fifty-nine  at  the  time 
of  her  death. 

Tryphena  Whiting  grew  to  womanhood  on 
the  farm  which  is  now  her  home,  and  was  edu' 
cated  in  the  public  schools,  Hanover  Acad- 
emy, and  the  academy  at  Lunenburg,  Mass. 
-She  began  teaching  at  eighteen,  her  first 
school  being  in  the  town  of  Hanson,  after 
which  she  taught  in  Pembroke  for  a  year,  and 
in  Norwell  and  Hanover  schools  for  several 
years.  Going  then  to  St.  Joseph,  Mo.,  she 
became  a  teacher  in  the  public  schools  of  that 


4i8 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


place,  where  she  remained  for  sixteen  years,  a 
part  of  which  time  she  was  principal  of  the 
grammar  school.  She  then  returned  to  Han- 
over, and  until  three  years  ago,  1893,  con- 
tinued to  engage  in  her  chosen  vocation. 
Though  she  no  longer  presides  over  the  school- 
room, the  boys  and  girls  grown  to  men  and 
women,  whose  minds  she  has  helped  to  train, 
are  living  lives  of  greater  usefulness,  and 
striving  for  the  accomplishment  of  higher  aims 
through  having  come  under  the  influence  of 
her  instruction  and  example.  Her  interest  in 
educational  work  still  continues;  and,  as  she 
has  been  a  member  of  the  School  Committee 
for  the  past  fifteen  years,  it  has  often  found 
expression  in  many  helpful  ways.  Miss  Whit- 
ing is  a  communicant  of  the  Baptist  church  of 
Rockland,  Mass. 


-r^UTHER  A.  DOUGLAS,  a  successful 
Ijj  merchant  in  Hingham,  Mass.,  where 
' —  ^  he  has  been  located  for  twenty-three 
years  as  a  dealer  in  gentlemen's  furnishing 
goods,  was  born  in  Sandwich,  Mass.,  July  25, 
1847.  His  parents  were  Luther  and  Lucy  S. 
(Gibbs)  Douglas. 

The  earliest  progenitor  of  this  branch  of 
the  family  in  America  was  John  Douglas,  a 
native  of  Scotland,  who  was  kidnapped  in 
London,  it  is  said,  and  brought  to  America  in 
a  merchant  vessel,  when  he  was  twelve  years 
of  age,  being  subsequently  bound  out  in 
Middleboro,  Mass.  He  married  Eunice  Rat- 
liffe,  of  that  town;  and  they  had  three  children 
—  Elijah,  John,  and  George.  John,  second, 
born  about  1722,  married  Mary  Hraley.  At 
the  breaking  out  of  the  Revolutionary  War  he 
volunteered  his  services,  and  was  in  the  battle 
of  Bunker  Hill. 

John  and  Mary  Braley  Douglas  had  seven 
children,  the  first  of  whom  was  John,  Jr.,  born 


March,  1752,  who  married  Lydia  Southworth, 
born  June  12,  1759,  and  had  thirteen  children. 
One  of  this  large  family  was  John  Douglas, 
fourth,  a  native  of  Middleboro,  a  farmer  and 
school-teacher,  who  removed  to  South  Plym- 
outh, and  taught  the  first  school  there.  He 
served  his  country  in  the  Revolutionary  War, 
being  Orderly  Sergeant  at  Bunker  Hill.  He 
lived  to  an  advanced  age.  His  son  Ephraim, 
the  grandfather  of  the  subject  of  this  biog- 
raphy, was  born  in  Middleboro,  but  removed 
thence  to  New  Hampshire  for  a  short  time, 
going  thereafter  to  Plymouth.  He  was  a 
farmer,  and  lived  to  be  eighty-seven  years  of 
age.  He  volunteered  in  the  War  of  181 2, 
and,  serving  under  General  Brown,  was  in  the 
Indian  skirmish  at  Bridgewater,  N.Y. 

Luther  Douglas,  son  of  Ephraim,  was  a  sea- 
faring man,  and  is  now  a  resident  of  Sand- 
wich. He  married  Lucy  S.  Gibbs,  daughter 
of  Josiah  and  Jane  (Swift)  Gibbs,  of  Sand- 
wich, Mass.  By  this  union  there  were  nine 
children,  five  of  whom  are  living:  Luther  A. ; 
Ansel  G.,  a  travelling  salesman  for  a  furni- 
ture house;  Millard  F.,  of  Lynn,  who  is  in 
the  same  business;  Charles  E.,  an  engineer; 
and  Mary  M.',  wife  of  Charles  Sherman,  of 
Kingston,  Mass.  The  mother  died  at  the  age 
of  forty-six  years. 

Luther  A.  Douglas  received  but  a  limited 
common-school  education,  being  obliged  when 
he  was  very  young  to  work  upon  the  farm. 
For  a  number  of  years  he  lived  with  his  grand- 
father. At  the  age  of  twenty  he  went  to 
Plymouth,  where  he  became  the  clerk  and 
manager  of  the  Samoset  House,  remaining 
four  and  a  half  years.  He  then  went  to  Clin- 
ton, Mass.,  and  had  served  as  manager  of  the 
Clinton  House  for  one  year,  when  he  came  to 
Hingham.  At  the  Gushing  House  he  offici- 
ated as  clerk  for  four  years,  subsequently  tak- 
ing charge  of  the  cafe  at  Downer's   Landing, 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


419 


which  he  managed  efficiently  five  years.  In 
the  mean  while  he  had  established  in  a  small 
way  his  present  business,  which  gradually  in- 
creased until  it  required  his  entire  time  and 
attention.  In  politics  he  has  been  an  inde- 
pendent most  of  the  time  since  he  first  voted, 
but  he  is  now  a  Republican.  Fraternally,  he 
belongs  to  Old  Colony  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M. ; 
Royal  Arch  Chapter;  and  South  Shore  Com- 
mandery,  Knights  Templars. 

Mr.  Douglas  was  united  in  marriage  with 
Ella  Brewer,  of  Brewer,  Me.  Her  parents 
were  Francis  F.  and  Mary  S.  (Howes)  Brewer. 
Her  great-grandfather  was  Colonel  John 
Brewer,  for  whom  the  town  was  named  He 
was  the  first  Postmaster,  the  first  Sheriff,  and 
one  of  the  most  influential  men  in  the  county. 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Douglas  have  one  child,  Alice 
B.  In  religious  belief  they  are  Unitarians. 
Personally,  Mr.  Douglas  is  popular  socially 
and  as  a  citizen.  He  takes  great  interest  in 
genealogy,  and  has  a  penchant  for  collecting 
old  curios. 


EBENEZER  CRANP:,  who  has  followed 
farming  in  Lakeville,  Plymouth  County, 
since  early  manhood,  winning  by  his 
industry  and  uprightness  the  respect  and  es- 
teem of  his  townsmen,  was  born  in  Berkley, 
Bristol  County,  Mass.,  on  November  2,  1820. 
His  parents  were  Gershnm  and  .Sallie  (.Strow- 
bridge)  Crane,  the  mother  a  native  of  JLake- 
ville.  His  parents  also  had  two  daughters  — 
Caroline  and  Betsey;  but  he,  the  only  son,  is 
the  only  one  of  the  family  now  living. 

When  but  five  years  old,  Ebenezer  Crane 
was  brought  to  Lakeville  by  his  parents,  who 
settled  on  the  farm  where  he  now  resides. 
As  a  boy,  he  attended  the  district  schools,  and 
later  was  a  student  at  Peirce  Academy  in 
Middleboro.  The  farm,  of  which  he  has  had 
charge  since  about  the  time  of  leaving  school, 


is  the  old  Strowbridge  homestead.  It  con- 
tains about  fifty  acres,  and  besides  this  he 
owns  a  wood  lot  in  Lakeville.  He  is  success- 
fully engaged  in  general  husbandry.  In  poli- 
tics Mr.  Crane  is  a  Republican. 


/!> 


1':0RGP:  O.  ALLEN  is  a  representa- 
\  p  I  five  citizen  of  Scituate,  a  member  of 
an  old  family  long  prominent  in 
Plymouth  County.  He  was  born  in  Scituate, 
May  17,  1838.  His  parents  were  George  M. 
and  Hannah  E.  (Otis)  Allen.  His  grand- 
father, the  Rev.  Morrill  Allen,  was  born  in 
Dover,  Mass.,  an  early  home  of  this  branch  of 
the  Allen  family.  A  college  graduate,  he  was 
ordained  to  the  Unitarian  ministry,  and  took 
charge  of  a  church  in  Pembroke,  Mass.,  in  his 
early  manhood,  being  one  of  the  first  ministers 
of  that  town,  where  he  was  settled  for  forty 
years.  He  was  widely  known  and  esteemed. 
Owning  an  extensive  farm  in  Pembroke,  he 
was  actively  interested  in  agriculture,  and  was 
a  recognized  authority  on  that  subject.  He 
was  a  member  of  the  Whig  party,  which 
elected  him  to  the  State  legislature.  The 
Rev.  Morrill  Allen  died  in  1870,  his  ninety- 
fifth  year.  His  wife  lingered  even  longer 
here  below,  being  in  her  ninety-eighth  year 
when  called  to  the  life  immortal. 

Their  son,  George  M.  Allen,  was  born  in 
Pembroke,  Mass.,  and  reared  to  manhood  in 
Plymouth  County.  He  was  well  educated, 
and  taught  school  for  a  while;  but,  shortly 
after  attaining  his  majority,  he  engaged  in 
mercantile  business  in  Scituate,  and,  being 
very  successful,  followed  that  line  for  a  num- 
ber of  years.  He  was  also  interested  in  ship- 
ping. A  man  of  strong  character  and  more 
than  average  intelligence,  he  was  prominent 
as  a  member  of  the  Republican  party,  and  was 
many  years  Selectman   of   Scituate.      He  also 


420 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


represented  the  town  in  the  legislature  of  the 
State.  He  was  a  strong  supporter  of  schools 
and  churches,  and  was  for  a  number  of  years 
connected  with  the  Unitarian  society.  He 
died  in  1878,  and  was  succeeded  in  business 
by  his  brother,  William  P.  Allen,  who  also 
was  a  well-educated  man,  a  school-teacher  in 
his  youth,  and  for  many  years  a  member  of 
the  Scituate  School  Committee.  William  P. 
Allen  died  in  1891.  Mr.  George  M.  Allen's 
wife,  who  was  born  in  Scituate,  died  August 
28,   1889. 

George  O.  Allen  was  educated  in  the  public 
schools  of  Scituate  and  at  Plympton  Academy. 
He  has  been  engaged  since  early  manhood  in 
agricultural  pursuits,  owning  an  extensive 
landed  property ;  and  he  is  one  of  the  wealth- 
iest and  most  progressive  farmers  of  this  vi- 
cinity. He  was  married  December  8,  18S0, 
to  Deborah  N.,  daughter  of  the  late  Thomas 
M.  Hatch,  of  Scituate.  In  politics  Mr.  Allen 
is  a  Republican.  He  is  a  generous-minded 
man,  always  ready  to  promote  worthy  objects 
and  to  aid  in  well-considered  public  improve- 
ments. Mr.  Allen  is  Chairman  of  the  Parish 
Committee  of  the  Unitarian  church. 


T^APTAIN  ALEXANDER  WADS- 
I  St^     WORTH,  one  of  the  most  venerable 

V,i£_^  and  highly  esteemed  citizens  of 
Du.xbury,  a  retired  ship-master,  was  born  in 
this  old  Plymouth  County  town  on  August  22, 
1808,  son  of  Ahira  and  Deborah  (Sprague) 
Wadsworth.  The  Wadsworth  family  is  of 
English  origin;  and  this  branch  of  the  family 
in  America  descends  from  Christopher  Wads- 
worth, its  founder,  who  came,  it  is  thought, 
on  the  ship  "Lion  "  in  1632,  and  who  was  one 
of  the  earliest  settlers  in  Du.xbury,  where  his 
name  appears  on  the  records  in  1633.  Cap- 
tain Wadsworth's  grandfather  was  Lieutenant 


Seneca  Wadsworth,  a  native  of  Du.xbury,  who 
served  in  the  Continental  army  during  the 
Revolutionary  War. 

Ahira  Wadsworth,  son  of  Seneca,  was  in 
his  earlier  years  a  seafaring  man,  and  sailed  as 
master  of  a  vessel  engaged  in  the  merchant 
service.  He  finally  retired  from  the  sea,  and 
was  engaged  in  mercantile  business  here  until 
his  death,  which  took  place  some  thirty  years 
ago.  His  wife,  whose  maiden  name  was  Deb- 
orah Sprague,  was  born  in  this  town.  Her 
father,  the  Hon.  Seth  Sprague,  was  formerly 
a  prominent  and  influential  citizen  of  Du.x- 
bury, and  for  several  years  a  member  of  the 
State  Senate. 

Alexander  Wadsworth  acquired  his  educa- 
tion in  the  common  schools,  which  he  at- 
tended until  he  was  fifteen  years  old.  At  the 
age  of  seventeen  he  became  a  sailor,  shipping 
before  the  mast,  and  advancing  step  by  step 
until  he  was  twenty-five,  at  which  age  he  com- 
manded his  first  vessel.  He  was  engaged  in 
the  foreign  trade  nearly  thirty  years;  and  dur- 
ing that  time  he  visited  almost  every  part  of 
the  civilized  world,  and  commanded  eighteen 
different  ships,  all  of  which  were  first-class 
sea-going  vessels.  In  1861  he  retired  from 
the  sea  after  a  career  of  unusual  prosperity, 
both  for  himself  and  his  owners;  and  he  has 
since  resided  in  Duxbury. 

Captain  Wadsworth  wedded  for  his  first 
wife  Beulah  Holmes,  who  became  the  mother 
of  two  sons:  Frank  G. ,  who  is  now  First 
Lieutenant  of  the  cutter  "William  Windom," 
in  the  United  States  revenue  service;  and 
Alexander  S. ,  who  was  born  in  the  Bay  of 
Bengal,  and  is  now  in  the  em])loy  of  Dame, 
Stoddard  &  Kendall,  wholesale  hardware  mer- 
chants of  Boston.  He  married  in  1857  Selina 
Hilton,  his  present  wife,  a  native  of  Lincoln 
County,  Maine,  and  a  daughter  of  Joshua  and 
Abigail  B.   (Keene)  Hilton. 


HORATIO    CHANDLER. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


423 


Although  fast  approaching  his  ninetieth 
birthday,  the  captain  is  well  preserved  and 
exceedingly  activ^e  for  one  of  his  advanced 
years.  His  generation  of  the  family  has  a 
somewhat  remarkable  record  for  longevity,  as 
he  has  one  sister,  Catherine,  widow  of  the  late 
Francis  G.  Ford,  who  is  now  in  her  ninety- 
fourth  year,  and  another,  Deborah,  who  is 
nearly  eighty-four. 

Captain  Wadsworth  is  one  of  the  few  master 
mariners  left  who  commanded  vessels  during 
the  palmy  days  of  the  American  merchant  ser- 
vice, and  he  honored  the  flag  under  which 
he  sailed.  His  many  sterling  qualities  and 
his  unfaiHng  courtesy  have  endeared  him  to 
his  fellow-townsmen,  most  of  whom  are  of  a 
younger  generation  than  himself;  and  he  re- 
mains as  a  connecting  link  between  the  sturdy 
old  navigator  of  the  past  and  the  younger,  but 
no  more  efficient,  commander  of  the  present 
day.  His  residence  is  one  of  the  handsome 
and  commodious  dwellings  which  contribute 
to  the  attractiveness  of  Duxbury  as  a  summer 
resort. 


"ORATIO  CHANDLER,  of  Duxbury, 
has  achieved  success  in  three  distinct 
lines  of  industry — agriculture,  man- 
ufacturing, and  fish  culture  —  his  trout  breed- 
ing especially,  which  has  passed  the  experi- 
mental stage,  yielding  most  gratifying  results. 
Mr.  Chandler  was  born  in  Duxbury,  Mass., 
August  20,  1835,  a  son  of  Nathaniel  L.  and 
Sallie  (Sampson)  Chandler.  He  belongs  to 
one  of  the  old  Duxbury  families,  tracing  his 
descent  from  Edmund  Chandler,  an  English- 
man, who  settled  in  this  town  in  1633. 

From  Edmund  the  line  of  descent  was  con- 
tinued by  Joseph,  Joseph,  second,  IMiilip,  Asa, 
Asa,  second,  to  Nathaniel,  the  father  above 
named,  who  was  a  native  and  lifelong  resident 
of  Duxbury.      He  was  a  thrifty  and  enterpris- 


ing man,  who  cultivated  a  farm,  and  at  the 
same  time  worked  at  the  stone  mason's  trade. 
He  was  at  first  a  Whig,  and  later  a  Republi- 
can in  politics,  and  was  elected  to  a  number 
of  town  offices.  His  death  occurred  July  14, 
1890.  His  wife,  a  native  of  Kingston,  Mass., 
had  passed  away  some  years  previous.  Of 
their  children,  three  are  dead  —  Sarah  T., 
Nancy  D.,  and  Martha  J.  —  and  the  following 
are  living:  Nathaniel  L.  ;  Emmons  A.,  in 
West  Duxbury;  Horatio,  in  Duxbury;  Julia 
W. ,  wife  of  Jason  H.  Randall,  of  Duxbury; 
and  Willard  R. 

Horatio  Chandler,  the  subject  of  this 
sketch,  grew  to  manhood  in  his  present  home, 
acquiring  his  education  in  the  public  schools 
of  Duxbury.  His  first  business  venture  was 
in  the  manufacture  of  box  boards,  he  purchas- 
ing a  share  in  the  Howland  box  board  mill  on 
Pine  Brook,  his  father  at  the  same  time  buy- 
ing a  share,  and  Captain  H.  B  Maglathlin  two 
shares.  The  stock  company  thus  formed  fur- 
nished the  funds  for  the  enterprise,  which 
from  that  time  to  the  present  has  been  con- 
ducted in  Horatio  Chandler's  name,  and  has 
been  very  successful.  Mr.  Chandler  likewise 
has  a  good  farm  of  one  hundred  and  twenty 
acres,  much  of  which  is  under  cultivation. 
The  most  fascinating  of  his  pursuits,  however, 
is  raising  trout.  In  April,  1890,  he  estab- 
lished a  "hatchery"  on  his  farm,  beginning 
with  about  ten  thousand  trout  fry,  and  in  the 
spring  of  1891  a  most  promising  second  crop 
was  started.  The  place  must  he  well  adapted 
for  trout  culture,  as  the  fish  have  continued  to 
increase  from  year  to  year;  and  it  is  well 
worth  the  tourist's  while  to  visit  the  Chandler 
farm,  and  see  the  trout  in  their  home.  Mr. 
Chandler  deems  it  a  pleasure  to  explain  to  the 
visitor  the  various  important  features  con- 
nected with  trout  breeding,  and  his  enthusiasm 
is  infectious. 


424 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


Mr.  Chandler  was  married  February  i8, 
1873,  to  Rosa  Spaulding  Avery,  a  native  of 
Montpelier,  Vt.,  daughter  of  Ebenezer  and 
Rosamond  (Spaulding)  Avery.  Her  parents 
were  natives  of  New  Hampshire.  Her  grand- 
father, George  Avery,  who  was  a  Revolution- 
ary soldier,  was  taken  captive  by  the  Indians, 
and  held  in  confinement  for  some  time,  being 
finally  exchanged.  His  last  days  were  spent 
on  a  farm  in  New  Hampshire.  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Chandler  have  two  daughters:  Rosa  A.,  born 
September  11,  1875;  and  Mabel  M.,  born  Oc- 
tober 18,  1877,  both  graduates  of  Partridge 
Academy  at  Duxbury.  Mr.  Chandler  is  a 
Democrat  in  political  affiliation.  He  has 
served  for  some  time  as  Surveyor  of  Highways 
in  Duxbury,  and  has  been  solicited  to  occupy 
higher  ofificial  positions.  He  and  his  wife 
and  daughters  are  esteemed  members  of  Dux- 
bury society. 


RANCIS  COLLAMORE,  M.D.,  a 
practising  physician  of  Pembroke, 
Mass.,  is  one  of  the  best  known  and 
most  highly  respected  citizens  of  this  town,  of 
which  he  is  a  native.  He  was  born  December 
7,  1825,  son  of  Horace  and  Laura  (Briggs) 
Collamore.  His  paternal  grandfather  was 
Enoch  Collamore,  of  Scituate.  Horace 
Collamore'  son  of  Enoch,  was  born  in  Scitu- 
ate in  1791.  He  was  educated  in  the  public 
schools  of  Scituate  and  at  Hanover  Academy. 
Upon  starting  out  in  life  for  himself,  he  was 
first  employed  in  Boston  as  a  clerk;  and  he 
afterward  entered  into  business  in  that  city  as 
a  merchant.  Subsequently  he  removed  to 
North  Pembroke,  where  he  erected  a  brick 
building,  and  engaged  in  a  general  mercantile 
business,  which  he  continued  until  his  death 
on  August  27,  1867.  He  was  a  member  of 
the    Massachusetts    legislature    in     1841    and 


1842.  His  wife,  Laura,  was  born  in  Pem- 
broke, and  was  a  daughter  of  Elisha  and 
Laurentia  (Hall)  Briggs.  Her  maternal 
grandfather,  Dr.  Jeremiah  Hall,  served  in  the 
American  forces  as  a  surgeon  during  the 
French  and  Indian  War,  was  a  member  of  the 
Provincial  Congress  held  in  Massachusetts  in 
1774,  and  was  subsequently  a  Colonel  in  the 
Revolutionary  War,  having  command  of  a 
Rhode  Island  regiment.  Dr.  Hall  was  a  na- 
tive of  New  Hampshire,  whence  he  came  to 
Plymouth  County,  Massachusetts.  He  mar- 
ried Elizabeth  Bailey,  of  Hanover.  Mrs. 
Laura  B.  Collamore  died  at  the  age  of  seventy- 
three  years.      She  had  reared  ten   children. 

Francis  Collamore  was  educated  at  Hanover 
Academy.  When  seventeen  years  old,  he 
began  teaching  school,  which  occupation  he 
followed  for  a  number  of  terms.  At  the  age 
of  eighteen  he  began  the  study  of  medicine 
with  his  uncle,  Dr.  Anthony  Collamore,  who 
practised  in  Pembroke  for  about  forty  years. 
He  subsequently  attended  lectures  at  the 
Harvard  Medical  School,  and  later  at  the 
Medical  Department  of  Dartmouth  College, 
where  he  was  graduated  in  the  fall  of  1846. 
The  young  Doctor  first  practised  in  Brain- 
tree  for  about  six  months;  but  upon  the  death 
of  his  uncle.  Dr.  Anthony,  in  .September, 
1847,  he  came  to  Pembroke,  succeeded  to  his 
uncle's  practice,  and  has  since  resided  here. 
He  has  kept  well  up  with  the  advance  of  his 
profession,  being  familiar  with  all  the  wonder- 
ful discoveries  made  during  the  last  few  years 
in  medicine  and  surgery,  in  bacteriology  and 
kindred  sciences,  and  he  has  gained  a  wide 
reputation  as  a  thoroughly  competent  and  skil- 
ful practitioner.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Mas- 
sachusetts Medical  Society  and  of  the  Plym- 
outh District  Medical  Society.  Aside  from 
the  pursuit  of  his  regular  calling  he  has  been 
actively  engaged  for  many  years  as  a  man  of 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


42s 


affairs,  and  as  an  incumbent  of  public  office, 
in  which  capacity  his  ample  talents  have  been 
devoted  to  promoting  the  interests  of  the 
town,  and  pushing  forward  every  practical 
scheme  for  the  betterment  of  the  community. 
He  was  Town  Clerk  for  twelve  years,  for  over 
thirty  years  a  member  of  the  School  Commit- 
tee; and  he  is  now  Town  Treasurer,  and  is 
also  Secretary  and  Treasurer  of  the  Marshfield 
Agricultural  Society.  He  has  been  a  Repub- 
lican in  politics  since  the  formation  of  that 
party.  In  1881  he  was  a  member  of  the  State 
legislature. 

On  A]5ril  g,  1849,  Dr.  Collamore  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Priscilla  Joslyn 
Mann,  daughter  of  John  C.  and  Sylvia  (Hedge) 
Mann,  of  Pembroke.  The  Doctor  and  his 
wife  have  reared  one  son  and  one  daughter, 
namely:  PVancis,  Jr.,  who  married  Florence 
A.  Whitman,  and  resides  at  East  Bridgewater; 
and  Fiorina  M.,  who  is  living  at  home  with 
her  parents.  The  Doctor  has  led  a  careful 
life,  and  is  still  hale  and  active  to  a  greater 
extent  than  many  a  younger  man.  He  is 
widely  known,  and  wields  a  strong  influence 
for  good  in  the  community. 


«^«^> 


"ON.  HENRY  BARSTOW,  ex-State 
Senator,  is  a  well-known  business 
man  residing  in  Mattapoisett,  where 
he  owns  box  and  board  mills.  He  was  born 
in  this  town,  December  3,  1817,  a  son  of  Ben- 
jamin and  Rebecca  (Hammond)  Barstow. 
His  father,  who  was  born  in  Duxbury,  was 
a  ship-builder  of  New  Bedford  and  Mat- 
tapoisett. He  died  on  March  2,  1867.  His 
mother  died  February  13,  1865.  There  were 
eight  children  in  the  family,  and  two  are  now 
living,  namely:  the  subject  of  this  sketch; 
and  Susan  C,  who  married  David  H.  Cannon, 
of  Mattapoisett,  now  deceased. 


Henry  Barstow  was  given  a  limited  school- 
ing in  his  native  town,  and  is  mainly  self-ed- 
ucated. He  began  to  work  at  ship-building 
with  his  father  when  fourteen  years  of  age, 
and  in  1849  was  an  expert  at  his  trade.  In 
that  famous  year  he  made  one  of  a  company 
of  seventy-three  who  purchased  the  whaling 
vessel  "  Oscar "  at  Sag  Harbor,  Long  Island, 
and  started  for  California.  They  sailed 
around  Cape  Horn,  and  were  somewhat  over 
five  months  on  the  voyage.  Arriving  at  San 
Francisco,  Mr.  Barstow  disposed  of  bis  inter- 
est in  the  vessel;  and,  there  being  few  ship- 
builders on  that  coast  willing  to  work,  and  the 
wages  being  far  in  advance  of  anything  he  had 
ever  known,  he  decided  that  the  surest  road  to 
fortune  was  by  way  of  his  trade.  The  second 
year  he,  in  connection  with  two  others,  con- 
ducted a  business  of  his  own,  building  a  num- 
ber of  vessels.  In  the  fall  of  1853  he  returned 
to  Mattapoisett,  and,  opening  a  lumber  yard, 
engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  spars.  At  the 
breaking  out  of  the  war  he  was  appointed  to  a 
position  in  the  Charlestown  Navy  Yard,  which 
he  retained  until  the  summer  of  1863,  when 
he  was  elected  a  member  of  the  Massachusetts 
Senate.  He  was  in  the  Senate  two  terms, 
finishing  his  service  in  1865;  and,  on  return- 
ing to  Mattapoisett,  he  established  the  box 
and  board  mills  which  are  yet  under  his 
supervision.  In  all  that  he  has  undertaken  he 
has  commanded  success,  and  his  course  in  life 
has  been  such  as  to  win  respect  and  con- 
fidence. 

Mr.  Barstow  was  married  in  1842  to  Miss 
Mary  Southworth,  who  died  April  6,  1892. 
She  was  the  mother  of  two  children  —  Henry 
and  Sarah,  who  have  both  passed  away. 

Mr.  Barstow  has  long  been  identified  with 
the  Republican  party.  As  stated  above,  he 
served  in  the  State  Senate  in  1864  and  1865; 
and  he  was  also   in  the  legislature   in    1884. 


426 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


For    several  years  he  was  a    member    of   the 
Mattapoisett  School  Committee. 


7TXAPTAIN  WILLIAM  BATES,  of 
I  Vp  Scituate,  is  one  of  the  best-known 
V>r  ^  citizens  of  this  part  of  Plymouth 
County,  and  highly  popular  by  reason  of  his 
genial,  whole-souled  disposition.  He  was 
born  in  Scituate,  August  16,  1828,  a  son  of 
Captain  John  and  Sallie  (Northey)  Bates. 

Captain  John  Bates,  who  was  born  on  the 
Cape,  was  a  seafaring  man,  and  commanded  a 
number  of  fishing  schooners  and  coasting 
vessels.  His  wife  was  born  in  Scituate,  on 
the  farm  immortalized  by  Samuel  Woodworth 
in  "The  Old  Oaken  Bucket,"  now  owned  by 
H.  H.  Northey.  Three  of  their  children  are 
living  to-day,  namely:  Betsey,  widow  of  Jo- 
seph Tuttle,  residing  in  Chicago,  111.  ;  Will- 
iam, the  subject  of  this  sketch;  and  Coleman, 
in  North  Ellsworth,  Me. 

William  Bates  was  educated  in  the  common 
schools  of  Scituate.  While  still  a  boy,  he 
often  accompanied  his  father  on  fishing  trips; 
and  ships  and  sailors  became  vital  parts  of  his 
life.  He  went  to  Boston  when  he  was  twenty- 
one  to  learn  the  trade  of  calking  and  graving, 
and,  after  finishing  his  apprenticeship  of  two 
years,  obtained  employment  as  a  journeyman. 
He  followed  his  trade  exclusively  for  ten 
years,  and  then,  returning  to  Scituate,  en- 
gaged in  fishing,  also  entertaining  fishing 
parties  in  the  summer  season  and  building 
boats  in  the  winter.  In  this  way  he  has  now 
been  occupied  for  a  great  many  years;  and  he 
is  well  known  to  the  fishermen  of  the  South 
Shore,  and  to  the  summer  excursionists  who 
come  here  for  recreation.  Captain  Bates  is  a 
Grand  Army  man,  having  served  in  Company 
D,  Forty-second  Regiment  of  Massachusetts 
Volunteer  Infantry.     During  the  greater  part 


of  his  term  of  service  he  was  on  military 
police  duty  at  Alexandria,  Va.  He  belongs 
to  George  W.  Perry  Post,  Grand  Army  of  the 
Republic,  No.  31,  of  Scituate. 

He  has  been  twice  married.  His  first  wife, 
who  was  Miss  Sarah  A.  Pepper,  of  Boston, 
Mass.,  left  two  children:  Emma,  wife  of 
Charles  A.  Cole,  of  Oshkosh,  Wis.  ;  and 
Walter  C. ,  a  resident  of  Boston,  Mass.  His 
second  wife,  formerly  Miss  Ermina  T.  Earley, 
is  a  native  of  Queen's  County,  Nova  Scotia, 
daughter  of  Benjamin  P.  and  Hannah  F. 
(Ringer)  Earley.  She  has  one  child,  William 
C.  Bates.  Captain  Bates  votes  the  Republi- 
can ticket.  He  takes  an  active  interest  in 
local  affairs,  and  ranks  among  the  foremost 
citizens  of  the  place. 


Tlp^OBERT  T.  DELANO,  D.D.S.,  a 
I  |^~Y  popular  dentist  of  Wareham,  Mass., 
JL!^  V_  _j  was  born  in  the  town  of  Marion, 
this  State,  July  13,  1S57.  His  parents  were 
John  and  Elmira  (Benson)  Delano,  his  father 
being  a  native  of  Marion,  Mass.,  and  the 
mother  a  native  of  Newburg,  N.Y.  They  had 
seven  children,  of  whom  five  are  now  living: 
William  H.  C.  ;  Lizzie  R. ;  John  W.  ;  George 
M.  ;  and  Robert  T. ,  the  subject  of  this  sketch. 
Robert  T.  Delano  acquired  his  first  knowl- 
edge of  books  in  the  district  school,  and  after- 
ward attended  Peirce  Academy  in  Middleboro. 
He  began  to  study  for  his  profession  when 
eighteen  years  of  age,  entering  the  prix'ate 
office  of  Dr.  PI  V.  McLeod  in  New  Bedford, 
where  he  was  employed  for  a  year.  He  then 
entered  the  Philadelphia  Dental  College;  and, 
after  a  year's  close  application  to  study  there, 
he  went  back  to  New  Bedford  for  a  while, 
subsequently  I'eturning  to  the  college,  where 
he  was  graduated  in  1879.  Immediately  after 
receiving  his  diploma,  he  opened  an  office  in 


AUGUSTUS    PRATT. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


429 


Wareham ;  and,  with  the  exception  of  two 
years,  1886  and  1887,  spent  in  Gardner, 
Mass.,  he  has  since  followed  his  profession  in 
this  town.  Dr.  Delano  is  a  skilful  dentist, 
and  has  a  large  practice.  He  is  also  engaged 
in  cranberry  culture,  owning  meadows  in  the 
town  of  Marion. 

He  was  married  June  26,  1886,  to  Miss 
Mary  L.  Davis,  of  Falmouth,  Mass.,  daughter 
of  John  VV.  and  Susan  Davis.  Dr.  and  Mrs. 
Delano  have  two  children  :  Florence  L.,  born 
April  13,  1887;  and  Mildred  E.,  born  March 
22,  1896. 

In  politics  Dr.  Delano  is  a  Republican. 
He  is  a  man  of  much  practical  ability,  and 
has  won  the  respect  of  his  townsmen,  who 
have  kept  him  in  office  as  Town  Auditor  for 
four  years.  He  has  been  Master  of  Social 
Harmony  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Ware- 
ham,  for  three  years,  and  Past  Grand  of 
Wankinquoah  Lodge,  Independent  Order  of 
Odd  Fellows,  being  very  prominent  in  frater- 
nal circles. 


UGUSTUS  PRATT,  an  enterprising 
and  public-spirited  citizen  of  North 
Middleboro,  was  born  in  Wareham, 
Mass.,  May  24,  1829,  son  of  Jared  and  Jemima 
Williams  (King)  Pratt.  His  father,  Jared 
Pratt,  who  was  a  native  of  Bridgewater,  early 
in  life  removed  to  North  Middleboro,  where 
he  began  a  successful  business  career  in  a 
country  store.  F"rom  North  Middleboro  he 
removed  to  Wareham,  and  began  the  manu- 
facture of  cut  nails,  which  was  one  of  the  first, 
if  not  the  first,  established  industry  of  the 
kind  in  the  country.  This  business,  which 
grew  to  extensive  proportions,  was  first  car- 
ried on  under  the  firm  of  I.  &  J.  Pratt,  and 
was  afterward  incorporated  as  the  Wareham 
Iron  Company.  Mr.  Jared  Pratt  was  the  man- 
aging agent   and    treasurer    of    both  of    these 


firms  until  1836,  when  he  purchased  extensive 
iron  establishments  in  Harrisburg  and  I'air- 
view,  Pa.,  which  were  devoted  to  the  manu- 
facture of  boiler  plate  and  nails.  About  the 
same  time  he  purchased  a  large  farm  in  North 
Middleboro,  and  removed  with  his  family  to 
this  place.  He  began  in  Harrisburg  what 
proved  a  very  successful  business,  forming  a 
partnership  with  his  oldest  son,  Christopher 
C.  K  Pratt,  the  firm  being  known  under  the 
name  of  Jared  Pratt  &  Son.  He  divided  his 
time  between  his  farm  at  North  Middleboro 
and  his  iron  establishments  at  Harrjsburg. 

Augustus  Pratt,  who  was  the  second  son  of 
his  parents,  was  educated  at  the  public  schools 
of  Middleboro,  Peirce  Academy,  Middleboro, 
and  Bridgewater  Academy.  Preferring  an 
agricultural  to  a  mercantile  life,  he  was, 
when  very  young,  given  the  management  of 
the  farms  at  North  Middleboro,  and  has  con- 
ducted them  successfully  for  fifty  years.  He 
enjoys  an  agricultural  life,  and  is  satisfied 
with  the  soil  of  New  England,  having  never 
felt  any  desire  to  try  Western  farming.  He 
has  long  taken  an  active  interest  in  the  success 
of  the  Plymouth  County  Agricultural  Society, 
has  been  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Trustees 
for  many  years,  and  was  President  of  the  so- 
ciety for  the  years  1894  and  1895.  He  has 
been  elected  by  the  Board  of  Tru.stees  for 
three  successive  terms,  of  three  years  each,  as 
a  member  of  the  State  Board  of  Agriculture, 
and  at  the  present  time  holds  that  position. 
Through  an  election  by  the_, State  Board  oL 
Agriculture,  he  has  been  for  several  years  a 
member  of  the  Committee  for  the  Suppression 
and  Extermination  of  the  Gyjisy  Moth,  the 
Board  being  legally  intrusted  with  that  work. 
Since  early  manhood  Mr.  Pratt, has  been  inter- 
ested in  the  planting  of  both  fruit  and  forest 
trees.  In  1850  he  gathered  and  planted  white 
pine  seed  on  a  large  tract  of  barren  waste  land, 


43° 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


and  for  the  last  few  years  has  been  cutting 
valuable  pine  logs  for  timber  and  boards,  this 
proving  an  excellent  way  to  make  use  of  such 
unproductive  land. 

Mr.  Pratt  is  a  Republican,  and  has  taken  an 
active  part  in  politics  since  the  first  election 
of   Abraham    Lincoln.      In    1869    he    had    the 
honor  of  representing  the  town  in  the  legislat- 
ure.     In    religion   he   is  a   Congregationalist, 
having    united     with     the     church     at     North 
Middleboro  in   1868.      In    1883   he  was  elected 
Deacon,  and  has  served  in  that  office  up  to  the 
present  time.     When  the  church  edifice  was 
destroyed   by   fire    in    1893,    a  parish    meeting 
was  called  for   the    purpose  of   rebuilding   it; 
and  a  committee  of   five  was   chosen,  of  which 
he  was  made  Chairman.      He  was  very  active 
in  raising  funds  for  the  purpose,  contributing 
one  thousand  dollars  himself.     Mr.   Pratt  has 
all  his  life  been  interested  in  the  cause  of  ed- 
ucation.      When    the    Hon.    Plnoch    Pratt,    of 
Baltimore,  established  and  endowed  the   insti- 
tution  known  as  the  Pratt   Free   School,    Mr. 
Augustus  Pratt  was  appointed  by  the  donor  as 
a  member  of  the  Board  of  Five  Trustees,  with 
power  to  fill  vacancies  as  they  should   occur. 
P'or  the  last  twenty  years  he  has  been   Presi- 
dent of  the  Board   of  Trustees.      He  has  also 
served  eleven  years  as  a  member  of  the  School 
Board  of  the  town  of  Middleboro;  and  he  was 
a  member  of  the  Building  Committee  of   Five 
chosen  by  the  town  to  contract  for  the  erection 
of  the  high  school  building. 

Mr.  Pratt  was  married  in  185  i  to  Emily  M. 
Eaton,  daughter  of  Colonel  Oliver  and  Diana 
W.  Eaton.  Their  children  are:  Herbert  Au- 
gustus, born  February  28,  1854;  Emma 
Louisa,  born  June  9,  1862.  Herbert  A. 
Pratt  has  been  for  more  than  twenty  years  en- 
gaged in  the  manufacture  of  shoes  in  company 
with  N.  W.  Keith,  the  firm  being  known  as 
Keith  &  Pratt.      He  married   Lucy  E.    Rich- 


mond, and  has  two  children  —  Alton  Gerard 
and  Harold  Maxwell.  Emma  L.  Pratt  mar- 
ried Theodore  A.  Richmond. 


THAN  E.  PIERCE,  a  farmer  of  Lake- 
ville,  was  born  in  this  town,  June  24, 
1824.  He  is  the  eighth  in  line  of 
descent  from  Abraham  Pierce,  the  immigrant 
ancestor,  who  joined  the  Plymouth  Colony  in 
1623,  the  line  being  as  follows:  Abraham, 
Abraham,  Jr.,  Isaac,  Isaac,  Jr.,  Job,  lilkanah, 
Ethan,  Ethan  E.  The  elder  Ethan  Pierce, 
who  was  a  farmer  by  vocation,  married  Miss 
Fanny  Hoard,  and  to  them  five  children  were 
born:  Elizabeth;  Elkanah;  Ethan  E.,  the 
subject  of  this  sketch;  Job;  and  a  son  who 
died  in  infancy.  Of  this  family  only  two, 
Elkanah  and  Ethan  E.,  are  now  living. 

Ethan  E.  Pierce  was  sent  to  the  district 
schools  in  his  boyhood,  and  also  to  Peirce 
Academy  at  Middleboro,  and  thus  acquired  a 
fair  education.  In  his  early  manhood  he  as- 
sumed the  charge  of  the  paternal  estate,  and, 
with  the  exception  of  fourteen  years  spent  in 
Berkley,  his  entire  life  has  been  passed  in  his 
native  locality.  By  judicious  management 
and  wise  investment  he  has  become  an  exten- 
sive land-owner,  possessing,  besides  one  hun- 
dred acres  of  the  farm  settled  by  the  founder 
of  the  Pierce  family  in  Plymouth  County, 
two  hundred  and  fifty  acres  in  this  county, 
and  also  lands  in  Bristol  County.  In  addition 
to  general  farming  Mr.  Pierce  has  engaged  in 
the  business  of  marketing  lumber,  and  has 
also  devoted  a  great  deal  of  time  to  cultivating 
strawberries,  an  industry  of  recent  date  in  this 
part  of  the  country. 

On  December  31,  the  last  day  of  the  year, 
1857,  Ethan  E.  Pierce  was  united  in  marriage 
with  Miss  Rhoda  M.  W.  Pierce,  daughter  of 
Alvin    T.    and     Loda    (Williams)    Pierce,    of 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


431 


Taunton,  Mass.  P'ive  children  were  born  of 
this  union:  Eliza  M.,  who  is  a  teacher;  Will- 
iam Chester;  Rhoda  W.,  wife  of  David  S. 
Hoard,  of  New  Bedford;  Ethan  Alvin,  named 
for  his  two  grandfathers;  Fanny  B. ,  the  wife 
of  S.  N.  Stoples,  of  Berkley.  There  is  but 
one  grandchild  in  the  family,  Luther  B. 
Hoard. 

Mr.  Pierce  has  never  aspired  to  public 
office.  His  special  interest  has  been  elicited 
in  the  local  grange  of  the  Patrons  of  Hus- 
bandry, with  which,  as  a  farmer  of  large  in- 
fluence, he  has  naturally  become  affiliated. 
Mrs.  Pierce  is  a  conscientious  member  of  the 
Unitarian  church.  Ethan  E.  Pierce  stands 
out  as  one  of  the  representative  farmers  of 
Plymouth  County,  where  he  now  keeps  up  the 
good  reputation  of  those  of  his  name  who  have 
gone  before. 


T^OLONEL  HIRAM  A.  OAKMAN  is 
I  Vp       a  distinguished  citizen  of   Marshfield, 

V»^__^  who  has  long  been  known  to  the 
public,  having  won  his  epaulets  in  active  ser- 
vice in  the  War  of  the  Rebellion,  served  with 
credit  as  a  government  employee,  and  repre- 
sented this  district  in  the  State  Senate;  and 
during  his  entire  life,  as  a  teacher  and  school 
officer,  he  has  taken  great  interest  in  the  pub- 
lic schools.  He  was  born  in  Marshfield, 
April  10,  1827,  son  of  Hiram  and  Jane  Soule 
(Rogers)  Oakman.  The  first  of  the  family  in 
this  country  was  Samuel  Oakman,  an  English- 
man who  settled  near  Portland,  Me.,  as  early 
as  1657;  and  his  son  Tobias,  Colonel  Oak- 
man's  direct  ancestor,  and  the  founder  of  the 
Marshfield  branch  of  the  family,  moved  from 
Spurwink,  Me.,  to  this  town.  Constant 
Fobes  Oakman,  the  Colonel's  grandfather, 
was  born  in  Marshfield.  He  was  a  soldier  in 
the  Revolutionary  army;  and  one  of  his  sons. 


Hatch  Oakman,  was  a  carpenter  on  board  the 
"Chesapeake"  at  the  time  of  her  memorable 
battle  with  the  "Shannon"  in  Boston  Bay  in 
June,  1 81 3,  when  the  brave  Lawrence  uttered 
his  famous  command,  "Don't  give  up  the 
ship!" 

Hiram  Oakman,  father  of  Colonel  Oakman, 
was  a  native  and  lifelong  resident  of  Marsh- 
field, where  he  died  in  1884.  He  was  a  shoe- 
maker, and  was  also  engaged  in  farming.  His 
wife,  Jane  Soule  Rogers,  was  a  daughter  of 
Thomas  Rogers,  of  Marshfield,  a  Revolution- 
ary soldier.  Three  of  the  seven  children  born 
to  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hiram  Oakman  are  living  to- 
day, as  follows:  Hiram  A.,  whose  name  ap- 
pears at  the  head  of  this  article;  Henry  P., 
in  Boston,  Mass.;  and  Mary  J.,  wife  of 
Henry  A.  Turner,  of  Norwell,  Mass.  Colonel 
Oakman's  mother  was  a  descendant  of  George 
Soule,  one  of  the  "Mayflower"  Pilgrims;  and 
both  the  Colonel  and  his  wife,  it  may  be  men- 
tioned, number  among  their  ancestors  four 
others  of  tliat  famous  band;  namely,  Edward 
Doty,  Richard  Warren,  John  Howland,  and 
Edward  Tilly. 

Hiram  A.  Oakman  was  educated  in  the 
common  schools  of  Marshfield  and  the  State 
Normal  School  at  Bridgewater.  He  taught 
school  for  a  number  of  years,  was  also  for  some 
time  engaged  in  agricultural  pursuits,  .and  for 
fifteen  years  he  was  employed  in  the  weigher's 
department  in  the  Custom-house,  Boston. 
He  has  likewise  done  a  great  deal  of  survey- 
ing. In  April,  1S61,  he  enlisted  in  Company 
E,  Seventh  Massachusetts  Volunteer  Infantry, 
and  was  mustered  in  in  June  as  First  Lieu- 
tenant; and  on  the  first  day  of  the  following 
December  he  was  commissioned  Captain. 
Attached  to  the  Army  of  the  Potomac,  he  was 
in  a  number  of  serious  engagements;  and  at 
the  second  battle  of  Fredericksburg,  in  the 
charge  on  Marye's  Heights,  May  3,  1863,  was 


432 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


wounded  in  the  right  thigh.  In  July  he  was 
discharged  for  disability  caused  by  this  wound  ; 
and  in  January,  1864,  he  re-entered  the  service, 
and  was  commissioned  Lieutenant-Colonel  in 
the  Thirtieth  United  State  Colored  Troops. 
He  organized  this  regiment  in  Baltimore;  and 
when  it  took  the  field  Colonel  Bates,  afterward 
General  Bates  (of  whose  gallantry  Colonel 
Oakman  speaks  in  the  highest  praise),  was 
appointed  commander,  and  served  as  such 
until  he  was  severely  wounded  at  the  Crater 
fight  on  the  30th  of  July,  1864,  when  the  com- 
mand of  the  regiment  devolved  upon  Colonel 
Oakman,  he  continuing  its  leader  till  the  reg- 
iment was  mustered  out  in  December,  1865. 
Among  the  engagements  in  which  he  took 
part  was  the  siege  of  Fort  Fisher.  At  the 
end  of  his  term  of  service  Colonel  Oakman 
returned  to  Marshfield,  where  he  has  since 
made  his  home. 

Colonel  Oakman  married  Lucinda,  daugh- 
ter of  Ichabod  Hatch,  late  of  Marshfield,  and 
six  children  have  blessed  their  union,  three  of 
whom  are  living:  Edward  H.,  born  on  April  29, 
1S53,  now  in  Brockton,  Mass.;  Celia  J.,  born 
May  21,  1854,  now  wife  of  George  F.  Wilson, 
of  Marshfield;  and  Otis  B.  Oakman,  A.M., 
born  October  27,  1864,  a  Harvard  graduate,  now 
professor  in  Thayer  Academy  at  Braintree. 
In  public  affairs  Colonel  Oakman  has  long 
been  an  active  factor.  He  has  been  a  member 
of  the  Marshfield  School  Committee  for  a 
number  of  years,  and  Chairman  of  the  School 
Board  for  an  extended  period;  and  in  i8go  he 
represented  the  First  Plymouth  District  in 
the  Massachusetts  Senate.  For  several  years 
he  has  held  the  office  of  Justice  of  the  Peace. 
He  has  retained  his  connection  with  the  Grand 
Army,  being  at  present  Commander  of  David 
Church  Post,  No.  189;  and  he  is  a  member  of 
Old  Colony  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Hing- 
ham;  and   of  the  South   Shore   Commandery, 


Knights  Templars,  at  East  Weymouth.  In 
politics  he  has  always  been  a  strong  anti- 
slavery  man  and  a  Republican.  In  religious 
belief,  while  a  pronounced  Unitarian,  he  is 
charitably  disposed  toward  all  denominations. 


T^APTAIN  JOB   H.   GODFREY, 

I  Sj^     death  occurred   in    Lakeville   or 
^i°    ^  tember  8,    1895,   and   who   hac 


whose 

on   Sep- 

d    been 

an  esteemed  citizen  and  successful  farmer  of 
the  town  for  three  decades,  was  a  native  of 
Taunton,  Mass.  He  was  born  September  4, 
18 19,  son  of  Captain  Job  and  Catherine 
(Montgomery)  Godfrey. 

Captain  Job  II.  Godfrey  grew  to  manhood  in 
Taunton,  receiving  his  education  in  the  public 
schools  of  that  city  and  at  Peirce  Academy  in 
Middleboro.  When  a  young  man,  he  went  to 
sea  for  a  few  years,  then  returned  home,  and 
lived  on  a  farm  in  Taunton  until  1865,  when 
he  removed  to  Lakeville,  and  purchased  a  farm 
of  sixty-three  acres,  on  which  he  resided  until 
his  death,  the  date  of  which  appears  at  the 
beginning  of  this  sketch.  While  living  in 
Taunton,  he  became  a  member  of  the  volunteer 
fire  department,  and  was  subsequently  chosen 
captain  of  one  of  the  companies.  He  was 
connected  with  the  department  for  about 
twenty  years. 

For  his  first  wife  Captain  Godfrey  married 
Miss  Elizabeth  Hart,  who  bore  him  six  chil- 
dren, namely:  lilizabeth,  who  died  in  infancy; 
Jones;  Isabel;  Job;  Abbie  E. ,  deceased;  and 
Herbert,  deceased.  Their  mother  died  in 
1865.  Captain  Godfrey's  second  and  last 
marriage  took  place  in  1866,  uniting  him  with 
Miss  Jane  Reed,  daughter  of  Daniel  Reed,  of 
West  Bridgewater.  There  were  no  children 
by  this  union.  Mrs.  Jane  R.  Godfrey  is  still 
living. 

Captain  Godfrey  was  successful  in  his  busi- 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


433 


ness  operations,  and  at  his  death  had  acquired 
considerable  property.  In  politics  he  was  a 
Democrat,  and  served  one  term  in  the  State 
legislature.  He  also  served  as  Overseer  of 
the  Poor  in  Lakeville,  and  as  Town  Auditor. 


-OHN  BARKER,  Town  Clerk  and  Treas- 
urer of  Hanson,  Mass.,  was  born  in 
the  town  of  Hanover,  I'lymouth  County, 
November  3,  1840.  His  parents  were  Benja- 
min, Jr.,  and  Deborah  C.  (Damon)  Barker. 
Benjamin  Barker,  Sr.,  his  grandfather,  was  a 
native  of  that  part  of  Pembroke  which  is  now 
Hanson.  He  acquired  a  common-school  edu- 
cation, and  became  a  successful  farmer.  He 
was  one  of  the  pillars  of  the  orthodo.x  church, 
with  which  he  was  connected  by  ties  of  mem- 
bership. He  married  and  had  a  large  family, 
of  whom  Benjamin,  Jr.,  born  in  Hanson,  Jan- 
uary 17,  181 1,  was  the  second  child.  Having 
completed  his  education  in  the  common 
schools,  he  learned  the  carpenter's  trade, 
which  he  followed  for  seven  or  eight  years, 
and  afterward  gave  his  attention  to  farming, 
also  taking  an  active  interest  in  town  affairs. 
He  married  Deborah  C.  Damon,  who  was  a 
resident  of  Hanover,  and  they  hati  eight  chil- 
dren. Mr.  Benjamin  Barker,  Jr.,  died  Feb- 
ruary 26,   1885. 

John  Barker  came  with  his  parents  to  Han- 
son when  he  was  but  five  years  of  age.  After 
receiving  the  mental  equipment  of  the  public 
schools,  he  learned  the  shoemaking  trade  at 
the  age  of  fifteen.  Five  years  afterward  he 
responded  to  the  first  call  for  troops,  enlisting 
in  the  Twenty-second  Massachusetts  Volunteer 
Infantry,  Company  B.  At  Gaines  Mills  he 
was  wounded  in  the  breast,  and  was  subse- 
quently captured  and  taken  to  Libby  Prison. 
About  si.\  months  after  his  liberation  he  re- 
turned to  active  duty,  and  was  again  wounded 


at  the  Battle  of  Gettysburg,  where  a  ball 
struck  him  above  the  mouth,  knocking  out 
seven  teeth,  and  passing  through  the  right 
side  of  his  face.  At  the  expiration  of  three 
years  he  was  honorably  discharged,  and  return- 
ing home  resumed  his  trade  until  1878. 
Since  that  time  Mr.  Barker  has  spent  his  time 
at  home  looking  after  his  farming  interests, 
and  also  actively  participating  in  town 
affairs.  For  about  ten  years  he  officiated  as 
Collector  of  Taxes,  and  since  1879  he  has 
been  Town  Clerk  and  Treasurer.  In  1885  he 
was  sent  as  Representative  from  the  Third 
Plymouth  District  to  the  legislature,  in  which 
he  served  one  year.  He  has  done  considerable 
business  as  agent  for  the  Abington  Insurance 
Company.  In  politics  he  is  a  Republican. 
Fraternally,  he  is  a  member  of  T.  L.  Bonney 
Post,  No.  127,  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic. 
He  was  Commander  of  the  Post  for  two  years, 
and  has  held  all  the  other  otifices. 

Mr.  Barker  was  first  married  on  April  28f 
1870,  to  Ellen  A.  Dyer,  of  South  Abington. 
She  died  on  December  5,  1S86,  leaving  two 
daughters;  and  on  December  25,  1S87,  he  was 
united  in  the  bonds  of  matrimony  with  Ida  C. 
Reynolds,  of  Harwinton,  Conn. 


LEANDER  WILLIAMS  is  a  prom- 
inent citizen  and  successful  farmer 
in  Lakeville,  formerly  a  part  of 
Middleboro,  Plymouth  County,  Mass.  A  son 
of  Elkanah  and  Catherine— (Hoard)  VVilliarrrs 
and  grandson  of  George  Williams  —  all  of  this 
town  —  he  was  born  here  on  February  9,  1833, 
being  one  of  a  family  of  five  children.  A 
sister,  Keziah,  died  in  infancy;  and  Mr. 
Williams  has  two  sisters  and  one  brother  liv- 
ing, namely:  Eliza,  the  wife  of  Granville 
Leonard;  John,  who  lives  on  his  father's  es- 
tate; and  Cordelia  A.,   who  is  Mrs.  Filo  H. 


434 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Pickens,  of  Taunton.  The  graves  of  the  par- 
ents are  in  the  Corswell  Cemetery.  The  life 
of  Elkanah  Williams  was  a  quiet  and  unevent- 
ful one,  and  his  attachment  to  his  home  so 
strong  that  he  has  always  been  content  to  re- 
main in  the  region  of  his  nativity. 

H.  Leander  Williams,  the  fourth  child  of 
the  parental  household,  was  reared  on  his 
father's  farm  in  Middleboro  (now  Lakeville), 
leading  the  healthful,  simple  life  of  a  farmer 
lad,  attending  the  district  schools,  and  enjoy- 
ing and  suffering  the  common  joys  and  griefs 
of  boy  life.  After  assimilating  the  mental 
food  supplied  by  the  neighboring  schools,  he 
became  a  pupil  at  Peirce  Academy,  where  his 
education  was  completed,  and  at  eighteen 
years  of  age  entered  upon  the  work  of  teach- 
ing. This  occupation  he  followed  for  a  few 
years,  and  then  he  temporarily  abandoned  it 
to  accept  a  position  as  assistant  to  Chief  En- 
gineer James  Pierce,  his  cousin,  who  was  at 
this  time  in  charge  of  the  construction  of  the 
railroad  between  Middleboro  and  Taunton. 
When  the  road  was  completed,  Mr.  Williams 
removed  to  Rutland,  111.,  where  he  again  pur- 
sued his  former  vocation,  teaching  in  that 
town  for  a  period  of  a  year  and  a  half.  At 
the  expiration  of  that  time  he  returned  to 
Lakeville,  and  began  farming  on  the  old  place 
of  his  grandfather,  George  Williams,  which 
he  now  owns. 

Besides  the  ancestral  estate  of  one  hundred 
and  fifty  acres  he  has  other  tracts,  and  he  is 
one  of  the  most  prominent  landed  proprietors 
in  the  locality.  Since  settling  down  as  a 
farmer  in  his  native  county  he  has  held  many 
offices  of  honor  and  trust,  serving  in  the 
capacity  of  Selectman,  Assessor,  and  Justice 
of  the  Peace,  and  filling  each  and  all  satisfac- 
torily. He  is  at  the  present  writing  one  of 
the  Justices  of  the  town,  and  has  been  an  in- 
fluential factor  in   the   Republican  politics  of 


Lakeville  for  more  than  thirty  years.  He  is 
a  Mason,  belonging  to  Mayflower  Lodge, 
A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  in  Middleboro,  and  is  a 
consistent  member  of  the  Congregational 
church  of  his  precinct.  H.  Leander  Will- 
iams has  won  respect  and  success,  to  both  of 
which  he  is  justly  entitled. 


^APTAIN      GEORGE      H.      BROWN, 

keeper  of  the  United  States  life-sav- 
ing station  at  North  Scituate,  is 
well  and  favorably  known  on  the  South  Shore. 
He  was  born  in  Boston,  Mass.,  July  15,  1841, 
a  son  of  George  W.  and  Mary  (Sherman) 
Brown. 

The  Browns  are  one  of  the  old  families  of 
Scituate,  and  the  Captain's  grandfather,  Ben- 
jamin Brown,  was  born  in  this  town,  as  was 
also  his  father,  George  W.  Brown.  The  latter 
was  an  enterprising  and  successful  business 
man,  a  member  of  the  ship-building  firm  of 
Brown  &  Lovell,  prominent  for  many  years  in 
East  Boston.  He  spent  his  last  years  in 
Scituate,  dying  here  in  i88g.  In  politics 
Mr.  George  W.  Brown  was  a  Democrat. 
Mrs.  Mary  S.  Brown  was  a  native  of  Free- 
port,  Me. 

George  H.  Brown  was  reared  in  Boston,  and 
obtained  his  education  in  the  common  schools 
of  that  city.  When  he  was  fourteen  years  old 
he  went  to  sea  before  the  mast  in  one  of  the 
first  clipper  ships  built,  the  "Staghorn,"  mak-  . 
ing  a  voyage  around  the  globe,  touching  at 
California,  Honolulu,  Hong  Kong,  and  Eoo 
Chow,  and  returning  by  way  of  the  Cape  of 
Good  Hope.  When  he  was  seventeen  years 
old  he  began  to  learn  the  ship  caulker's  trade 
in  Boston,  serving  with  his  father  until  he  was 
twenty-one  years  old.  Shortly  after  attaining 
his  majority,  in  September,  1862,  he  enlisted 
in    Company    C,    P'orty-second    Massachusetts 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


435 


Volunteer  Infantry,  as  a  nine  months'  man. 
The  detachment  to  which  he  was  assigned  was 
named  the  Washington  Light  Guards,  and  was 
sent  to  New  Orleans  to  join  General  Banks's 
army.  Mr.  Brown  was  enrolled  in  the  en- 
gineer corps,  and  served  in  that  body  for  a 
year  in  and  about  New  Orleans.  After  receiv- 
ing his  discharge  he  returned  to  Scituate,  and 
for  a  short  time  was  in  command  of  the 
schooner  "Frank,"  a  packet  plying  between 
Scituate  and  Boston;  and  he  was  subsequently 
engaged  for  a  number  of  years  in  fishing  in 
Massachusetts  Bay  and  vicinity.  In  1879  he 
received  a  government  appointment  as  a  surf- 
man  at  Fourth  Cliff,  one  of  the  United  States 
life-saving  stations,  and  in  1886  he  was  ap- 
pointed keeper  of  the  station  at  North  Scitu- 
ate. Here  he  has  been  on  duty  now  for  more 
than  ten  years,  and  no  braver  or  more  trust- 
worthy member  of  the  life-saving  corps  can 
be  found  on  the  coast. 

Captain  Brown  was  married  August  22, 
1864,  to  Lydia  B.  Burrows,  daughter  of  Cap- 
tain Thomas  Burrows,  and  has  two  children  — 
George  VV.  and  Stella  H. 

The  Captain  votes  the  Republican  ticket. 
He  is  a  member  of  Cohasset  Lodge,  No.  192, 
Independent  Order  of  Odd  Fellows,  of  Co- 
hasset; and  belongs  to  George  W.  Perry  Post, 
No.  31,  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic. 

The  Burrows  family,  it  will  be  remembered, 
is  one  that  has  distinguished  itself  in  Ameri- 
can history.  Captain  Thomas  Burrows,  Mrs. 
Brown's  father,  was  a  nephew  of  William 
Burrows,  Lieutenant  Commander  of  the  "lui- 
terprise,"  who,  in  September  5,  18 13,  won 
the  victory  over  the  British  "Bo.xer"  in  the 
famous  naval  engagement  off  the  coast  of 
Maine.  Lieutenant  Burrows  was  mortally 
wounded,  but  remained  on  deck,  and  received 
the  sword  of  his  fallen  foe.  With  military 
honors    the    remains    of    the    two   brave   com- 


manders were  buried  side  by  side  in  Portland. 
Governor  Beadle,  of  Keyport,  N.J.,  was  a 
cousin  of  Captain  Thomas  Burrows,  and  an 
uncle  was  a  judge. 


ORRILL    ROBINSON,    M.D.,    for 

many  years  an  able  and  highly 
esteemed  physician  of  North 
Middleboro,  Mass.,  died  at  his  home  in  this 
town,  March  16,  1873.  He  was  born  in  South 
Raynham,  Bristol  County,  Mass.,  August  15, 
1803,  son  of  Godfrey  and  Abigail  (Pierce) 
Robinson.  Godfrey  Robinson,  who  was  a 
surveyor,  and  drew  the  first  map  of  the  town 
of  Raynham,  was  the  son  of  Josiah  Robinson, 
the  son  of  Captain  Plbenezer  Robinson,  son  of 
Increase  Robinson,  the  son  of  William  Robin- 
son, who  emigrated  to  Boston  in  1635. 

Godfrey  Robinson  was  a  well-to-do  farmer  of 
South  Raynham.  After  his  death,  which  oc- 
curred when  the  future  Doctor  was  thirteen 
years  old,  the  farm  was  afterward  carried  on 
by  his  sons.  His  wife,  Mrs.  Abigail  Pierce 
Robinson,  a  native  of  Middleboro,  Mass.,  was 
a  woman  of  more  than  ordinary  ability  and 
force  of  character.  She  was  the  mother  of 
five  sons,  each  of  whom  lived  to  be  nearly 
seventy  years  old. 

Morrill  Robinson  acquired  his  knowledge  of 
the  elementary  branches  of  learning  in  the 
town  schools  of  Raynham,  and  he  prepared  for 
college  under  the  tutorship  of  the  Rev.  Silas 
Hall.  In  1827  he  graduated  from  the  Medical' 
Department  of  Brown  University,  where  he 
was  a  classmate  of  Dr.  W.  W.  Comstock,  and 
in  the  same  year  he  located  in  North  Middle- 
boro. He  practised  his  profession  in  this 
town  without  interruption  for  nearly  fifty 
years,  occupying  the  same  residence  all  the 
time,  and  by  an  unconscious  display  of  those 
noble  qualities  of  heart  and  mind  which  form 


43(' 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


the  principal  characteristics  of  an  honorable, 
upright  man,  he  endeared  himself  to  all  with 
whom  he  came  in  contact.  He  was  a  member 
of  the  State  legislature  in  1842  and  1843, 
serving  on  important  committees.  He  united 
with  the  Baptist  church  in  South  Raynham 
when  a  young  man,  and  continued  a  member 
until  his  death,  which  took  place  as  above 
stated,  when  he  was  sixty-nine  years  old. 
His  loss  was  the  cause  of  sincere  mourning 
and  regret  by  the  entire  community  in  which 
he  lived. 

On  I'ebruary  12,  1828,  Dr.  Robinson  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Mary  Shaw,  daughter 
of  Calvin  Shaw,  of  Abington.  They  became 
the  parents  of  nine  children,  si.x  of  whom  are 
living;  namely:  Thomas  D.,  Mary  A.  J., 
Frances  C,  Lucy  M.,  Lydia  S.,  and  Ella  C. 
Thomas  D.  Robinson,  a  lawyer,  is  practising 
his  profession  in  company  with  his  son  in  New 
York  City;  Mary  A.  J.  Robinson  married 
Colonel  Timothy  S.  Atwood,  formerly  of  the 
United  States  Army,  and  is  now  residing  in 
Brockton ;  Frances  C.  Robinson  married  Luke 
B.  Noyes,  a  native  of  Whitman,  who  was  in 
business  in  Whitman,  Brockton,  and  Boston, 
until  his  death  in  1886,  and  she  is  now  resid- 
ing with  her  daughter  in  Maiden,  ]\Iass.  ; 
Lucy  M.  Robinson,  M.  D.,  and  her  sisters, 
Lydia  S.  and  Ella  C,  are  residing  at  28  Glen- 
wood  Street,  Brockton.  Mrs.  Morrill  Robin- 
son, the  mother,  died  December  27,   1884. 

Lucy  M.  Robinson  was  born  in  North 
Middleboro,  and  her  preliminary  education 
was  pursued  under  her  father's  care.  She 
entered  the  Women's  Medical  College  of 
Philadelphia,  one  of  the  oldest  medical  schools 
for  women  in  America,  and  was  graduated  in 
1888.  Since  completing  her  studies  she  has 
practised  medicine  in  ]5rockton  with  success, 
and  is  fitted  both  by  nature  and  educational 
training  for  an  honorable  and  useful  career. 


She  is  connected  with  the  Massachusetts  Med- 
ical Society,  and  the  New  England  Hospital 
Society. 

^^*^» 

TT^HARLES  OTIS  ELLMS.— Readers 
I  V^  of  the  department  of  the  Boston  Tran- 
V»~_^'  script,  bearing  the  caption  "Notes 
and  Queries,"  have  observed  from  time  to 
time  valuable  contributions  in  regard  to  his- 
toric and  genealogical  matters  signed  "Scitu- 
ate. "  It  is  not,  perhaps,  generally  known 
that  the  author  of  these  contributions  is 
Charles  O.  Ellms,  of  Scituate,  who  is  as  well 
versed  in  agricultural  as  in  antiquarian  lore, 
and  has  written  many  widely  read  articles  for 
the  papers.  Mr.  Ellms  was  born  on  Merrimac 
Street,  Boston,  December  13,  1830.  His 
parents,  Charles  and  Sally  (Bryant)  Ellms, 
were  both  connected  by  ties  of  kinshij:)  with 
prominent  actors  in  the  early  settlement  of 
the  country,  and  events  known  to  most  of  us 
through  books  alone  were  familiar  to  them 
through  the  relation  of  eye-witnesses. 

The  Ellms  family  is  of  English  origin.  In 
the  Rlassacluisctts  Ploughman  for  August  1 3, 
1 88 1,  we  find  the  following:  "Rodolphus 
Ellms,  the  ancestor  of  all  his  name  in  this 
country,  came  over  from  England  in  1640, 
being  one  of  the  'Conihasset'  partners,  with 
grants  of  land  from  the  king,  who  was  the  first 
Charles.  On  their  arrival  at  Scituate,  which 
had  then  just  assumed  its  new  name,  he  openly 
sympathized  with  the  Quakers,  and  was  sub- 
jected to  a  fine  of  ten  shillings  for  being 
present  at  a  Quaker  meeting." 

The  subject  of  this  sketch  is  descended 
from  Rodolphus  through  Jonathan,  Robert, 
Robert,  Jr.,  Captain  Charles,  and  Charles. 
Captain  Charles,  Charles  O.  Ellms's  grand- 
father, was  a  noted  ship-master.  When  Na- 
poleon Bonaparte  issued  his  famous  Berlin  de- 
cree to  retaliate  on   England,  he  was  captain 


CHARLES    O.    ELLMS. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


439 


and  owner  of  a  vessel  sailing  in  the  West 
Indies.  Captured  by  a  French  privateer,  he 
was  taken  to  the  island  of  Guadaloupe  in 
February,  1800,  and  his  vessel  confiscated. 
Thus  he  became  one  of  the  plaintiffs  in  the 
French  spoliation  claims. 

Charles  Films,  son  of  Captain  Charles,  was 
born  in  Scituate  in  1805.  He  removed  to 
Boston  when  he  was  five  years  old,  and  there 
he  was  educated  in  a  private  school.  For 
a  number  of  years  he  was  engaged  in  pub- 
lishing and  selling  books  on  Cornhill,  Court, 
and  State  Streets;  and  he  is  pleasantly  re- 
membered by  the  old  citizens  of  Boston  who 
can  look  back  fifty  or  sixty  years.  "He  orig- 
inated and  published  the  celebrated  'Davy 
Crockett,'  'People's'  and  'Comic'  almanacs, 
which  had  such  a  remarkable  circulation  for 
those  days.  On  the  decease  of  his  mother 
he  relinquished  business,  and  retired  to  the 
homestead  farm  at  Scituate,  disposing  of  the 
copyright  of  those  popular  publications  to  the 
late  S.  N.  Dickinson,  whose  genius  as  a  Bos- 
ton printer  won  a  wide  and  enduring  reputa- 
tion." Mr.  Ellms,  the  publisher,  was  also  the 
author  of  a  number  of  popular  books,  in- 
cluding "Shipwrecks,  and  Disasters  of  the 
Sea,"  "Tragedy  of  the  Seas,"  "Crusoe's  Own 
Book,"  and  "The  Pirate's  Own  Book."  He 
died  in  1865. 

He  was  a  great-grandson  of  Samuel  Thaxter, 
third,  of  Hingham,  Mass.,  known  as  Major 
Samuel,  born  in  1723,  graduated  at  Harvard 
College  in  1743,  whose  grandfather,  Samuel 
Thaxter,  first,  was  Captain  of  the  Ancient  and 
Honorable  Artillery  Company  in  1728,  and  a 
little  later  Colonel  of  the  regiment  in  which 
the  Hingham  men  served.  His  son,  Samuel 
Thaxter  (second),  also  a  Colonel,  was  graduated 
at  Harvard  College  in  1714.  He  died  in 
1732,  survived  by  his  second  wife,  Mary 
Hawke.      Major   Samuel   was   his   son   by   his 


first  wife.  The  widowed  stepmother  married 
the  Rev.  John  Hancock,  of  Braintree,  and  they 
were  the  parents  of  Governor  Hancock. 
Major  Samuel  Thaxter  was  an  officer  in  Colo- 
nel Richard  Gridley's  regiment  in  the  French 
and  Indian  War.  He  was  captured  by  the 
Indians  at  the  massacre  at  Fort  William 
Henry  in  August,  1757,  but  escaped  through 
the  connivance  of  the  French  ofificers,  and 
arrived  at  Hingham  after  Dr.  Gay  had 
preached  his  funeral  sermon.  His  daughter 
Sally,  grand-aunt  of  Charles  Ellms,  was  the 
wife  of  Mr.  John  Pulling,  who,  it  has  been 
asserted,  was  the  man  who  hung  the  lantern  in 
the  tower  of  the  Old  North  Church,  as  a  signal 
for  Paul  Revere  to  ride  and  apprise  the  wait- 
ing patriots  of  the  approach  of  the  British. 
Certainly  the  daring  deed  was  well  done, 
whether  by  John  Pulling,  church  warden,  or 
by  Robert  Newman,  the  sexton,  to  whom  it 
has  been  ascribed  quite  as  confidently.  (For 
different  authorities  see  "Boston  Memorial 
History,  vol.  iii.  p.  loi.) 

Major  Samuel  Thaxter's  daughter  Mary, 
grandmother  of  Mr.  Charles  Ellms,  married 
Joshua  Otis,  an  ardent  Whig  and  patriot. 
He  was  second  cousin  to  James  Otis,  the 
patriot  and  orator.  Mrs.  Mary  Thaxter  Otis, 
though  the  wife  of  a  patriot,  surrounded  by 
patriotic  associations,  and  a  frequent  visitor  at 
Governor  Hancock's  house,  was  a  devoted  roy- 
alist. When  a  son  was  born,  she  insisted 
that  he  should  be  named  George  after  the 
king.  Her  husband  promised _that  he  should, 
bear  that  name,  and,  taking  the  child  to 
church,  had  him  christened  George  Washing- 
ton. This  George  Washington  Otis  was  the 
father  of  James  Otis,  now  deceased,  who  was 
at  one  time  Mayor  of  San  Francisco.  Mrs. 
Otis's  Tory  proclivities  were  excited  to  the 
utmost  during  the  war  of  181 2.  She  and  her 
husband   were   eye-witnesses   of    the   fight    in 


44° 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Boston  Bay  between  the  "Chesapeake"  and  the 
"Shannon,"  Joshua  Otis  anxiously  wishing  for 
the  victory  of  the  hero  Lawrence's  ship,  his 
wife  glorying  in  the  eventual  triumph  of  the 
British  vessel.  Frederick  William  Greenleaf, 
famous  the  world  over  as  the  "Harry  Wads- 
worth"  in  lulward  Everett  Hale's  "Ten  Times 
One,"  was  a  cousin  of  Charles  Ellms. 

Mrs.  Sally  Bryant  Ellms,  mother  of  Charles 
O.  Ellms,  was  born  in  Lexington,  Mass.,  in 
1809,  and  came  from  a  family  who  have  borne 
a  prominent  part  in  the  affairs  of  that  historic 
town.  She  was  one  of  the  young  ladies 
selected  to  welcome  Lafayette  on  the  Lexing- 
ton battle-ground  when  he  visited  this  country 
in  1824,  and  made  the  tour  of  the  States. 
Jonathan  Harrington,  the  last  survivor  of  the 
Battle  of  Lexington,  was  accustomed  to  give 
his  young  lady  friends  as  a  wedding  present,  a 
rolling-pin  of  his  own  make.  Mrs.  Ellms, 
who  received  one,  gave  it  long  after  to  the 
Historic  Society  of  Lexington,  in  whose  rooms 
it  is  now  on  exhibition,  among  other  relics  of 
ye  olden  time.  Mrs.  Ellms  was  connected 
with  prominent  Boston  families.  The  brother 
of  the  late  Mayor  Shurtleff  married  her  sister; 
and  Parker  H.  Pierce,  a  prominent  Boston 
merchant,  was  her  uncle.  He  commanded  the 
Ancient  and  Honorable  Artillery  in  1830,  at 
the  two  hundredth  anniversary  of  the  settle- 
ment of  Boston,  and  has  left  a  sealed  letter  to 
be  handed  down  and  read  before  that  company 
in  1930,  at  the  three  hundredth  anniversary  of 
that  event.     Mrs.  Sally  Bryant  Ellms  died  in 

1893. 

Charles  Otis  Ellms  was  educated  in  the 
public  schools  of  Boston,  being  one  of  the 
original  members  of  the  Brimmer  School;  and 
he  has  a  letter  of  recommendation  from  his 
master,  Joshua  Bates,  which  he  prizes  highly. 
He  remembers  as  a  pleasing  incident  of  his 
boyhood  seeing  the  Indian  chiefs  Black  Hawk 


and  Keokuk  in  Boston,  when  they  were  being 
taken  on  a  tour  through  the  United  States 
after  the  Black  Hawk  War,  and  giving  to 
Black  Hawk  a  peacock's  feather,  with  which 
the  chief  was  delighted;  and  another  never-to- 
be-forgotten  event  was  the  visit  to  the  school 
of  General  15crtrand,  a  short,  white-haired 
gentleman.  Napoleon's  favorite  general,  and 
his  companion  at  St.  Helena. 

In  1852  Mr.  Ellms  went  to  California,  trav- 
elling by  the  Nicaragua  route;  and  he  spent 
nearly  seven  years  in  the  gold  regions,  endur- 
ing the  hardships  and  braving  the  perils  of  a 
miner's  life.  Returning  by  the  Panama  route, 
he  arrived  in  Scituate  in  1858,  about  the  time 
of  the  Pike's  Peak  excitement.  Going  back 
to  the  West  a  little  later,  he  started  from 
Leavenworth,  Kan.,  with  ox  teams,  and,  the 
progress  being  necessarily  slow,  he  had  much 
time  to  see  the  country,  and  to  observe  the 
mode  of  living  of  different  Indian  tribes. 
Kansas  was  under  territorial  government  at 
this  time,  and  the  Border  Ruffians  and  Free 
State  men  were  at  war.  As  gold  was  not 
found  in  sufficient  paying  quantity  to  warrant 
a  protracted  stay,  Mr.  Ellms  returned  to  Scit- 
uate, and  settled  on  the  home  farm,  an  estate 
of  forty  acres. 

He  has  been  successfully  engaged  for  years 
in  breeding  Jersey  stock,  and  was  the  owner 
of  the  celebrated  cow,  "Jersey  Belle,  of  Scitu- 
ate," which  produced  seven  hundred  and  eight 
pounds  of  butter  in  one  year,  and  twenty-five 
pounds,  three  ounces,  in  one  week.  This  ani- 
mal was  of  such  national  reputation  that  when 
the  news  of  her  death  flashed  over  the  wires, 
the  Chicago  Board  of  Trade,  then  in  session, 
adjourned  to  talk  about  her.  Mr.  Ellms  has 
been  for  twenty-five  years  a  Director  in  the 
Marshfield  Agricultural  and  Horticultural  So- 
ciety, and  Secretary  of  Satuit  Grange  of  Nor- 
well,  from   the  time  of  its  organization;  and 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


441 


he  has  written  much  for  The  Alassacluisctts 
Plougliman,  Tlie  .Arrt'  England  Fanner,  and 
other  kindred  publications,  on  cattle  breeding 
and  various  topics.  An  enthusiastic  anti- 
quary, he  is  a  member  of  the  Pilgrim  Society, 
and  has  a  store  of  knowledge  in  regard  to  the 
early  days  and  inhabitants  of  New  England. 

"T.  W.  T. "  (Thomas  W.  Tucker),  a  former 
editor  of  the  Boston  Herald,  writes  in  the 
Tra)tscript:  "You  have  an  occasional  corres- 
pondent signed  'Scituate, '  in  the  'Notes  and 
Queries,'  whose  articles  I  value  highly  for 
their  accuracy  and  interesting  matter.  This 
gentleman  is  Mr.  Charles  O.  Ellms,  an  old 
Boston  boy  of  intelligent  observation,  who  has 
many  antique  curiosities.  He  resides  in 
Greenbush,  Scituate,  Mass.,  and  takes  great 
pleasure  in  exhibiting  his  unique  collection. 
He  is  a  member  of  the  'Old  Schoolboys  of 
Boston  '  society." 

The  Boston  Transcript,  in  another  issue 
says,  editorially:  "That  is  a  pretty  incident 
mentioned  by  'Scituate'  in  the  'Notes  and 
Queries'  department  to-day,  of  rabbits  running 
in  and  out  the  cannon  of  the  old  Boston 
Arsenal.  What  a  contrast  of  timid  peace  and 
grim  and  bloody  war!  Would  that  there  were 
no  further  use  for  any  cannon  in  the  world 
than  to  serve  such  purpose  as  thisi"  This 
last  quotation  shows  that  Mr.  Ellms  has  an 
eye  for  the  poetic  as  well  as  the  practical,  and 
his  writing  covers  a  wide  ranee. 


If^ 


ALTER  PETERSON,  a  general 
merchant  and  the  postmaster  of 
Brant  Rock,  was  born  in  Marshfield, 
February  24,  1848,  son  of  Zephaniah  S.  C. 
and  Harriet  (Taylor)  Peterson.  The  Petfer- 
sons  are  one  of  the  old  families  of  this  vicin- 
ity. Esias  Peterson,  Walter's  grandfather,  as 
well  as  his   father,  was   a   native   of   Duxbury. 


The  latter,  who  was  a  shoemaker,  worked  at 
his  trade,  and  also  managed  a  small  farm. 
He  died  when  his  son  Walter  was  eleven  years 
old.  His  wife,  who  was  born  in  Marshfield, 
died  when  Walter  was  eighteen  years  of  age. 
Of  the  several  children  born  to  this  couple, 
two  are  living  to-day,  namely:  Walter,  the 
subject  of  this  sketch;  and  Zephaniah  W. , 
who  resides  in  New  Bedford,  Mass. 

Walter  Peterson,  being  the  eldest  of  the 
family,  was  called  upon  to  take  his  father's 
place  before  he  entered  his  teens.  The  re- 
sponsibilities then  thrown  upon  him  quickly 
developed  his  self-reliance.  He  attended  the 
common  schools  of  Marshfield  until  he  was 
sixteen  years  of  age,  and  then  began  to  learn 
the  shoemaker's  trade.  While  serving  his 
apprenticeship,  and  for  a  short  time  afterward, 
he  made  shoes  on  his  own  account.  Subse- 
quently, for  a  number  of  years,  he  was  in 
the  employ  of  Gardner  &  Arnold,  shoe  bot- 
tomers  and  manufacturers  at  Sea  View. 
While  working  for  this  firm  he  tried  the  ex- 
periment of  conducting  a  refreshment  tent  at 
Brank  Rock  for  a  year.  It  was  quite  success- 
ful, and  in  the  following  year  he  erected  a 
small  building.  Thereafter  this  business  in- 
creased year  by  year.  He  now  has  one  of  the 
best-equipped  general  stores  in  this  part  of  the 
State,  carrying  in  stock  a  general  line  of  gro- 
ceries and  produce,  hardware,  furniture,  boots 
and  shoes,  paints  and  oils,  and  furnished  with 
a  Bell  long-distance  telephone,  for  the  con- 
venience of  the  public.  He  i-s-also  the  pro- 
prietor of  the  popular  Ocean  House  at  ]?rant 
Rock,  with  its  special  restaurant  and  recrea- 
tion facilities,  keeping  pleasure  boats  for  hire, 
and  summer  cottages  for  sale  and  to  let.  Be- 
sides employing  a  number  of  hands  in  the 
busy  season,  both  he  and  other  members  of  the 
family  are  in  constant  attendance  on  his  pa- 
trons.     While    fortune   has   smiled    upon    him 


442 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


in  all  his  ventures,  he  has  done  much  to  de- 
velop the  summer  life  of  this  popular  resort. 

On  January  24,  1873,  Mr.  Peterson  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Sarah  A.  Walker, 
who  was  born  in  Scituate,  Mass.  They  have 
seven  children;  namely,  W.  Leslie,  11. 
Annie,  E.  Lloyd,  Julia  C,  Bertha  E.,  Sarah 
E. ,  and  Lizzie  B.  The  father  has  been  post- 
master of  Brant  Rock  for  a  number  of  years. 
Having  been  in  business  for  about  thirty 
years,  he  is  now  known  to  all  the  regular 
visitors  as  well  as  the  residents  of  the  place, 
who  respect  him  for  the  qualities  by  which 
he  has  acquired  his  present  measure  of  pros- 
perity. 

<i^  a^* 

"ON.  GARRISON  B.  BLACKMER, 
one  of  the  prominent  and  influential 
residents  of  Rochester,  was  born 
May  I,  1825,  on  the  Blackmer  farm,  his  pres- 
ent home,  son  of  Captain  John  and  Nancy 
(Mullen)  Blackmer.  The  homestead  farm, 
which  covers  one  hundred  and  fifty  acres,  has 
been  owned  by  Blackmers  for  a  full  century, 
having  been  purchased  in  1796  by  Salisbury 
Blackmer,  the  grandfather  of  Garrison  B. 
Captain  John  Backmer,  who  commanded  a 
merchant  vessel,  was  lost  at  sea  with  his  en- 
tire crew  in  1827.  His  wife  was  left  with  six 
children  ;  namely,  James,  John,  Mary  F.,  Eliza- 
beth, Garrison  B.,  and  Nancy  S.  —  Elizabeth 
and  Garrison  B.  being  the  only  survivors. 

Garrison  B.  Blackmer  obtained  a  part  of  his 
education  in  a  private  school  held  in  his 
father's  house.  Much  of  the  knowledge  that 
now  marks  him  as  a  man  of  more  than  ordinary 
intelligence  was  acquired  without  a  teacher. 
He  took  charge  of  the  farm  when  fifteen  years 
of  age,  and  it  has  now  been  under  his  direc- 
tion for  over  half  a  century.  Besides  plenti- 
ful crops,  his  farm  produces  good  pasturage 
for  cattle.      He  has   been   very  successful    in 


general  farming.  In  politics  Mr.  Blackmer  is 
a  Republican.  Active  in  affairs  for  a  number 
of  years,  he  has  efficiently  filled  several  public 
offices.  In  1S57  he  was  a  member  of  the 
State  legislature.  For  five  years  he  served  as 
Selectman  of  the  town  of  Rochester.  For 
four  years  he  was  Town  Treasurer  and  Col- 
lector. He  was  qualified  as  a  Justice  of  the 
Peace  twenty  years  ago,  and  he  is  still  exer- 
cising the  functions  of  that  office.  He  was 
on  the  School  Committee  for  a  number  of 
years,  and  he  has  also  served  as  Assessor, 
Overseer  of  the  Poor,  and  Highway  Surveyor. 
A  Free  and  Accepted  Mason  in  good  stand- 
ing, he  belongs  to  Pythagorean  Lodge,  of 
Marion,  Mass.  In  religious  matters  he  favors 
the  Christian  sect.  Industrious,  intelligent, 
and  law-abiding,  and  a  member  of  an  old 
Rochester  family,  he  is  highly  regarded  in  this 
town. 


SORENZO  D.  BRALEY,  of  Rochester, 
Mass.,  who  has  achieved  success  in 
^^^  several  branches  of  industry,  was 
born  June  20,  1829,  in  Freetown,  Bristol 
County,  son  of  Bradford  and  Patience  (Parker) 
Braley.  His  first  knowledge  of  books  was  ac- 
quired in  the  district  school  near  his  home. 
When  he  was  eighteen  years  old  he  went  to 
New  Bedford,  where  he  spent  a  year  and  a 
half  learning  the  moulder's  trade.  In  1849 
he  was  one  of  a  company  which  fitted  out  the 
brig  "Zoroaster"  for  a  voyage  to  California. 
Taking  the  route  around  Cape  Horn,  it 
reached  San  Francisco  in  six  months  and  two 
days.  Here  Mr.  Braley  thought  it  better  to 
work  as  a  laborer  for  seventeen  dollars  a  day 
than  to  engage  in  the  uncertain  occupation  of 
gold  prospecting.  He  had  been  employed  in 
this  way  for  about  three  months  when  he  fell 
sick  of  typhoid  fever,  and  was  taken  to  a  hos- 
pital on  the  Sandwich  Islands.      He  remained 


Biographical  review 


443 


seven  months  in  the  Sandwich  Islands,  acting 
as  steward  of  the  hospital  for  a  few  months 
after  his  recovery.  When  the  opportunity 
offered,  he  started  for  home,  engaging  as  boat 
steerer  on  the  brig  "Sarah."  After  reaching 
Freetown,  he  remained  there  a  year  and  a 
half.  Then  he  returned  to  California,  travel- 
ling this  time  by  way  of  the  Isthmus  of  Pan- 
ama, in  a  company  of  eighty.  During  his 
second  visit  he  engaged  in  prospecting  and 
mining,  and  was  fairly  successful.  After  re- 
maining about  eighteen  months  in  the  Golden 
State,  he  came  home  by  the  Nicaragua  route. 
By  this  time  he  was  tired  of  the  rough  and  law- 
less life  of  the  West,  and  decided  to  remain 
in  his  native  State.  He  subsequently  worked 
at  his  trade  in  Freetown  for  two  years.  Then 
he  moved  to  Rochester,  and,  after  living  in 
that  town  three  years,  he  erected  the  residence 
which  has  sheltered  him  since.  In  the  mean 
time  he  learned  the  cigar-maker's  trade,  and 
thereafter  followed  it  for  seven  years  at  home 
as  the  employee  of  a  tobacco  dealer.  He 
afterward  manufactured  cigars  for  twenty  years 
on  his  own  account  for  the  wholesale  trade, 
and  was  very  successful  at  the  business.  He 
has  also  achieved  success  in  farming  and 
lumbering.  His  land  covers  about  one  hun- 
dred and  seventy-five  acres,  including  sixty 
acres  of  homestead,  and  ten  acres  of  cranberry 
meadow.  On  the  latter  he  has  raised  quanti- 
ties of  cranberries  in  the  past  ten  years. 

Mr.  Braley  was  married  in  185 1  to  Miss 
Charity  P.  Rounsville,  by  whom  he  became 
the  father  of  six  children  —  William,  Ida, 
Jennie,  Dora,  Nellie,  and  Herbert.  In  1876 
he  entered  a  second  marriage,  contracted  with 
Miss  Helen  M.  Tinkham,  who  has  borne  him 
no  children.  In  politics  he  follows  an  inde- 
pendent course,  voting  for  the  best  interests 
of  the  public.  He  has  served  Rochester  as 
Selectman,    and    in    other    minor    ofifices.     A 


Mason  in  good  standing,  he  belongs  to  Eureka 
Lodge,  of  New  Bedford. 


ELVIN  S.  LITCHFIELD,  of  North 
Scituate,  a  retired  shoe  manu- 
facturer, comes  of  an  old  Plym- 
outh County  family,  which  has  given  to  the 
Bay  State  patriotic  soldiers,  sturdy  farmers, 
successful  financiers,  and  able  statesmen.  He 
was  born  in  Scituate,  September  28,  1822,  a 
son  of  Enoch  and  Eliza  (Collier)  Litchfield. 
His  grandfather,  Isaac  Litchfield,  as  well  as 
both  parents,  was  also  a  native  of  the  town. 
(For  an  account  of  the  origin  and  early  gener- 
ations of  the  family,  see  the  biography  of 
William  H.  Litchfield,  of  Scituate.)  Isaac 
Litchfield,  whose  father  was  a  Revolutionary 
soldier,  worked  at  his  trade  of  carpenter  for 
many  years  in  Scituate.  Enoch  Litchfield 
learned  the  shoemaker's  trade,  followed  it 
during  a  great  part  of  his  life,  and  died  in  the 
seventies.  Of  his  children,  besides  Melvin 
S.,  there  are  living:  Zenas  H.,  George  W., 
and  Eliza  J. 

Melvin  S.  Litchfield  acquired  a  rudimentary 
education  in  the  district  schools  of  Scituate, 
attending  the  winter  sessions  chiefly  until  he 
was  twelve  years  old.  At  the  age  of  seven  he 
began  to  help  his  father  in  making  shoes,  so 
that,  on  reaching  his  majority,  he  was  an  ex- 
pert shoemaker.  Then,  starting  in  life  for 
himself,  he  worked  at  his  trade,  and  engaged 
in  fishing.  In  1847,  with  his  brother,  Zenas" 
H.,  he  started  in  the  manufacture  of  shoes, 
under  the  firm  name  of  M.  S.  Litchfield  & 
Co.,  opening  a  small  place,  measuring  twelve 
by  thirteen  feet,  located  at  the  corner  of  Cedar 
and  Summer  Streets,  in  North  Scituate.  The 
business  increasing  with  the  lapse  of  time, 
they  were  frequently  obliged  to  enlarge  their 
establishment.       At     one     period     they     had 


444 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


seventy-five  employees,  residents  of  Scituate 
and  adjoining  towns.  The  brothers  also  car- 
ried on  a  general  mercantile  trade.  In  1885 
Mr.  Melvin  S.  Litchfield  retired  from  the 
manufacturing  branch  of  the  business.  He  re- 
tains his  interest  in  the  other  department, 
which  is  still  conducted  by  the  original  firm. 

Mr.  Litchfield  has  been  twice  married.  By 
his  first  wife,  who  was  Mrs.  Nancy  (Ellms) 
Clapp,  daughter  of  Gushing  O.  Ellms,  of 
Scituate,  and  the  widow  of  Hiram  Clapp,  he 
has  two  children.  These  are:  Arthur  E.,  re- 
siding in  Brockton,  Mass.,  and  Ella  G.,  the 
wife  of  C.  H.  Waterman,  of  the  same  city. 
The  present  Mrs.  Litchfield  was  formerly  Mrs. 
Maria  (Read)  Elliot,  the  widow  of  Lyman 
F.  Elliot,  and  a  daughter  of  Leonard  Read 
(deceased),  of  Mason,  N.  H.  Mr.  Litchfield 
has  no  children  by  his  second  union.  In  pol- 
itics he  favors  the  Republican  side.  Both  he 
and  Mrs.  Litchfield  take  an  active  part  in  the 
social  events  of  the  town,  and  are  very  popular 
members  of  society. 


"C^/Tllia 

Y^V        resic 


[LLIAM  F.  BONNEY,  who  has 
ided  for  a  number  of  years  on  a 
pleasant  farm  on  Brant  Rock  Road, 
a  short  distance  from  Marshfield  station,  is  a 
well-informed  man,  his  mind  broadened  by 
travel  and  observation.  He  was  born  April 
II,  1 83 1,  in  Hanson,  Mass.,  and  his  parents, 
too,  Cephas  and  Deborah  (Soper)  Bonney, 
were  natives  of  that  town,  the  home  of  his 
family  for  generations.  His  grandfather,  Na- 
thaniel Bonney,  was  interested  in  the  iron 
works  in  the  town  of  Carver,  this  county. 

Cephas  Bonney  was  an  iron  moulder,  and 
followed  his  trade  during  a  great  part  of  his 
life,  for  a  short  time  being  engaged  in  the 
manufacture  of  castings  in  Marshfield.  In 
politics   he  was  a  Democrat,  in  religious   be- 


lief a  Methodist.  He  died  in  1874,  his  wife, 
in  1889.  They  were  the  parents  of  the  follow- 
ing children:  Cephas  W.,  now  living  in 
Ouincy,  Mass.;  Henry  V.,  in  Marshfield; 
William  F.,  the  subject  of  this  sketch;  Al- 
mira  S.,  living  in  Kingston,  Mass.;  Edward 
H.,  in  Scituate;  Mary  E.,  wife  of  Elisha  C. 
Hatch,  in  Whitman,  Mass.;  and  Deborah  P., 
Leroy  S. ,  and  Lucius  L.,  deceased. 

William  F.  Bonney  was  three  years  old 
when  his  parents  moved  to  Marshfield,  and  he 
here  received  his  education,  attending  school 
until  he  reach  his  fourteenth  year.  He  then 
went  to  Fall  River,  Mass.,  to  learn  the  iron 
moulder's  trade,  and,  after  remaining  there 
about  three  years,  worked  four  years  at  iron 
moulding  in  Lawrence,  Mass.  At  the  time  of 
the  gold  excitement  in  California,  he  made  up 
his  mind  to  try  his  luck  there,  and  in  1852  he 
set  out  by  steamer  from  New  York  City  to 
Aspinwall,  crossed  the  Isthmus,  and  took  a 
steamer  to  San  Francisco.  This  was  the 
quickest  and  most  direct  route  of  travel  at  the 
time,  and  the  journey  consumed  but  a  month. 
Mr.  Bonney  found  work  in  the  "middle 
mines,"  and  stayed  in  the  diggings  three 
years;  then,  dissatisfied  with  the  uncertainty 
of  mining,  he  found  work  at  his  trade  in  San 
Francisco,  and  was  also  engaged  for  some 
time  grading  building  lots.  He  remained  in 
California  about  five  years,  returning  then  by 
the  route  he  had  taken  in  going  thither.  In 
1857  he  started  from  Marshfield  with  a  photo- 
graph car,  and  visited  the  towns  in  South- 
eastern Massachusetts.  Quite  successful  as  a 
photographer,  he  followed  that  line  of  busi- 
ness for  si.xteen  years.  In  1875,  weary  of 
constant  travel,  he  settled  on  his  farm  on 
Brant  Rock  Road,  and  since  that  time  has 
found  pleasure  and  independence  in  the  pur- 
suit of  agriculture. 

Mr.  Bonney  was  married   in   1S62   to  Mary 


JOHN     S.    RYDER. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


447 


T.  Dunham,  who  died  in  August,  1870,  leav- 
ing one  son,  Wilfred,  born  December  27,  1S67, 
now  residing  in  Abington,  Mass.  The  maiden 
name  of  Mr.  Bonney's  second  wife,  with 
whom  he  was  united  on  December  20,  1874, 
was  Mary  L.  Gray.  She  died  in  1892,  leav- 
ing four  children,  namely  :  Frances,  born  Jan- 
uary 19,  1879;  Josephine,  December  6,  1879; 
Helen  M.,  September  4,  1881 — all  living  at 
present;  and  Anna  G.,  May  11,  18S5,  who 
died  October  4,  1892.  In  politics  Mr. 
Bonney  is  independent,  making  a  practice  of 
voting  for  the  candidates  best  qualified  for 
ofifice. 


-OHN  S.  RYDER  is  one  of  the  old,  in- 
fluential, and  highly  respected  citizens 
of  Rochester,  Mass.,  having  taken  a 
leading  part  in  town  and  church  affairs  for 
many  years.  He  was  born  in  Rochester, 
March  i,  1S22,  and  is  the  only  surviving  son 
of  the  late  Martin  and  Content  (Stevens) 
Ryder,  both  of  this  town.  His  father,  who 
was  a  well-to-do  farmer,  died  December  18, 
1883,  his  mother,  on  February  18,  1881. 
They  reared  but  two  children :  John  S.,  sub- 
ject of  the  sketch;  and  Martin  L.,  now  de- 
ceased. 

John  S.  Ryder  acquired  a  good  education  in 
his  early  years,  finishing  his  school  days  at 
Rochester  Academy,  and  began  to  teach  at  the 
age  of  nineteen.  He  was  engaged  in  teaching 
during  the  winter,  and  in  farm  work  during 
the  summer  from  1841  to  1849,  ^i<^l  ^or  several 
years  thereafter  he  devoted  himself  to  farming 
and  stone-mason  work.  Though  he  began  to 
provide  for  himself  when  he  was  twenty-one 
years  of  age,  he  did  not  leave  his  parents  until 
he  was  twenty-six.  About  the  beginning  of 
1849  he  moved  to  his  present  farm,  a  good  es- 
tate of  twenty-five  acres,  and  here  for  nearly 
half    a    century    he    has     followed    the    sea- 


sons,   sowing   and    reaping    in    seed-time   and 
harvest. 

Mr.  Ryder  was  married  December  13,  1848, 
to  Betsey  M-  King,  of  Rochester.  One  child 
was  born  to  them,  a  daughter,  Julia  A.,  who 
died  at  the  age  of  seventeen. 

Mr.  Ryder  takes  an  active  interest  in  poli- 
tics, and  has  been  elected  on  the  Republican 
ticket  to  a  number  of  offices.  He  was  in  the 
State  legislature  in  1875,  '^'''^^  ''•'^s  served  on 
the  Town  Board  of  Selectmen  one  year,  as 
Town  Treasurer  six  years.  Town  Clerk  four- 
teen years,  Justice  of  the  Peace  seven  years, 
and  as  School  Committee  six  years.  He  has 
been  a  member  of  the  Congregational  church 
in  Rochester  since  1840,  and  served  the  so- 
ciety as  clerk  for  thirty  years,  and  as  Deacon 
five  years. 

lAPTAIN  JASON  L.  BRALEY,  a 
retired  mariner,  now  successfully  en- 
;aged  in  strawberry  culture  and 
general  farming  in  Rochester,  was  born  Octo- 
ber 3,  1824,  in  the  town  of  Acushnet,  Bristol 
County,  son  of  Elisha  K.  and  Delia  (Sher- 
man) Braley.  He  was  two  weeks  old  when 
the  family  came  to  Rochester,  where  he  was 
reared  and  educated.  He  went  on  his  first 
deep-sea  voyage  when  sixteen  years  of  age, 
shipping  as  a  seaman  on  the  brig  "Solon,"  a 
whaling  vessel  which  was  out  fourteen  months, 
cruising  in  the  Atlantic  Ocean.  His  next 
voyage  was  made  on  the  bark  "Willis"  from 
Mattapoisett,  leaving  port  as  a  seaman,  and 
coming  back  as  boat  steerer.  This  vessel  was 
out  sixteen  months,  and  sailed  over  the  same 
waters.  His  third  shipment  was  as  boat 
steerer  of  the  bark  "Newton,"  which  was  out 
twenty  months.  Leaving  this  vessel  at  the 
Sandwich  Islands,  he  engaged  as  boat  steerer 
on  the  ship  "Crown  Princessen,"  with  which 
he  was   connected   about   twenty-two   months. 


448 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


His  next  berth  was  that  of  third  mate  of  the 
"Stephina,'"  on  a  cruise  lasting  thirty-two 
months  in  the  Indian  and  Atlantic  Oceans. 
He  was  subsequently  mate  of  the  "Louisa" 
while  twenty-eight  months  from  home,  hunt- 
ing whales  in  the  North  Pacific.  Next,  he 
was  master  of  the  ship  "William  Badger,"  on 
a  voyage  of  forty-six  months,  most  of  which 
time  was  spent  in  the  whaling-grounds  of  the 
North  Pacific.  After  the  return  of  the  "Will- 
iam Badger,"  he  left  port  again  as  mate  of  the 
"F^alcon,"  which  made  a  voyage  of  twenty-six 
months,  cruising  in  the  North  Atlantic.  When 
the  "  Falcon  "  was  out  fourteen  months  Mate 
Braley  was  made  its  captain.  His  last  cruise 
was  as  mate  of  the  "Vineyard."  The  "Vine- 
yard "  had  been  out  about  eighteen  months  when 
he  was  injured  by  having  a  cask  fall  upon  him, 
and  returned  home  by  the  Nicaragua  route. 

Captain  Braley  now  abandoned  seafaring, 
having  followed  it  for  thirty-three  years,  en- 
during the  rigors  of  high  latitudes,  the  enervat- 
ing heat  of  the  tropics,  and  coming  scathless 
out  of  a  thousand  perils.  In  1873  he  pur- 
chased a  farm  in  Rochester,  containing  one 
hundred  and  fifty-five  acres  of  good  land. 
Here  he  has  since  spent  his  life,  finding  both 
profit  and  pleasure  in  general  farming  and 
strawberry  culture.  He  was  married  in  1850 
to  Miss  Hannah  M.  Hall,  and  now  has  four 
children  —  Ellen  M.,  Sylvanus  A.,  Henry  W., 
and  Fred  J.  In  politics  he  supports  the  Re- 
publican party.  He  is  a  member  of  the 
Masonic  order,  belonging  to  St.  Helena 
Lodge,  of  St.  Helena. 


;R0  TURNER,  a  prominent  resident 
of  North  Scituate,  and  the  owner  of 
one  of  the  handsomest  homes  on  the 
beach,  was  born  March  15,  1852,  in  Boston, 
Mass.,    son  of  Job  A.   and   Elmira  (Fellows) 


Turner.  His  ancestor,  Humphrey  Turner, 
was  one  of  the  men  from  Kent,  England,  who 
settled  in  Scituate  in  1628.  Humphrey,  who 
was  an  enterprising  man,  established  a  tan- 
nery here  in  1636.  Besides  his  home,  which 
was  on  Kent  Street,  on  the  east  side  of  Cole- 
man's Hills,  he  owned  a  tract  of  land  on  the 
North  River. 

Colonel  John  Bryant  Turner,  Azro  Turner's 
grandfather,  was  born  in  Scituate,  December 
8,  1786.  His  parents  were  Job  and  Abiel 
(Bryant)  Turner,  both  natives  of  Scituate. 
He  spent  his  early  life  on  his  father's  farm  at 
Farm  Neck,  receiving  a  good  education  and 
fitting  for  college,  though  he  did  not  subse- 
quently take  a  college  course.  Drawn  into 
public  life  while  yet  a  young  man,  he  became 
a  leader  in  Old  Colony  politics,  was  a  pioneer 
of  the  Anti-slavery  party,  and  a  strong  advo- 
cate of  Prohibition,  then  just  beginning  to  be 
agitated.  An  untiring  and  honest  worker, 
and  unswerving  in  his  determination  to  do 
right,  he  was  respected  alike  by  Whigs  and 
Democrats.  Early  in  his  career  he  was 
chosen  Moderator  of  the  Scituate  town 
meetings,  and  it  is  said  of  him  that  no 
one  has  filled  the  office  who  wielded  the 
gavel  with  more  dignity  or  fairness.  From 
that  time  forward  "Colonel  Bry,"  or  "Squire 
Bry, "  as  he  was  popularly  called,  was  con- 
stantly in  the  public  service.  He  was  for  a 
number  of  years  Selectman  of  Scituate.  In 
the  office  of  County  Commissioner,  which  he 
filled  for  several  years,  he  gave  valuable  aid 
in  the  construction  of  many  important  public 
works,  besides  directing  the  locating  of  the 
first  railroads.  In  1830  he  was  surprised  to 
find  himself  nominated  on  the  Democratic- 
Republican  ticket  as  Representative  to  the 
Twenty-third  Congress;  but  John  Ouincy 
Adams,  for  whom  the  Colonel  entertained  the 
deepest   respect   and  warmest  friendship,    was 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


449 


also  a  nominee,  and  Colonel  Turner  withdrew 
in  his  favor.  Colonel  Bry  was  a  conspicu- 
ous figure  in  the  General  Court  of  Massachu- 
setts, serving  for  years  in  both  the  House 
and  the  Senate.  Having  begun  his  military 
career  as  a  coast  guard  in  1812,  he  rose  to 
the  rank  of  Colonel  of  the  Second  Infantry. 
The  sword  whch  he  wore  is  now  in  the  pos- 
session of  his  grandson,  Azro.  Colonel  Tur- 
ner was  a  leading  spirit  in  all  movements 
for  the  betterment  of  the  town.  He  was  in 
constant  request  as  arbitrator  in  the  settle- 
ment of  differences  among  his  townsmen. 
He  spoke  and  wrote  with  firmness,  mingled 
with  gentleness,  and  with  a  due  regard  for  the 
opinions  and  failings  of  others.  A  Univer- 
salist  in  religious  belief,  his  writings  prove 
that  he  was  a  diligent  student  of  theology. 
He  died  February  16,  1849,  in  his  sixty-third 
year.  Colonel  Turner  was  married  in  1813 
to  Miss  Hannah  Nichols,  of  Cohasset,  Mass. 
His  son.  Job  A.  Turner,  was  born  in  Scituate, 
and  there  acquired  his  .  early  education. 
When  he  was  sixteen  years  old  he  went  to 
Boston  to  learn  the  trade  of  carpenter  and 
joiner.  This  accomplished,  he  worked  for 
some  time  as  a  journeyman,  and  then  estab- 
lished himself  in  business  as  a  contractor 
and  builder.  He  was  subsequently  identified 
with  the  Bay  State  Brick  Company  at  Med- 
ford,  Mass.,  and  at  a  later  period  was  treas- 
urer of  the  George  F.  Blake  Manufacturing 
Company  of  Boston.  His  death  occurred  in 
Newton,  Mass.,  on  March  12,  1886.  He  was 
married  twice,  and  had  a  large  family.  Of 
his  children,  fi\.^e  are  living,  namely:  Fred- 
erick A.,  residing  in  Boston;  Edward  C,  in 
Arlington,  Mass. ;  Azro,  the  subject  of  this 
sketch;  Albion  B. ,  in  Newton;  and  Carrie 
H.,  the  wife  of  George  F.  Blake,  Jr.,  resid- 
ing in  Worcester,  Mass. 

After  acquiring  his  early  education  in  Scit- 


uate, Azro  Turner  attended  the  Highland  ]\lil- 
itary  Academy  at  Worcester.  Since  attaining 
man's  estate  he  has  been  extensivelv  engaged 
in  agricultural  pursuits,  at  the  same  time  tak- 
ing a  prominent  part  in  town  matters.  In 
politics  he  is  an  Independent,  with  a  leaning 
to  the  Republican  side.  He  served  for  four 
years  on  the  Scituate  Board  of  Selectmen,  and 
is  one  of  the  most  influential  men  of  the 
place.  An  Odd  Fellow,  in  good  standing,  he 
belongs  to  Cohasset  Lodge,  No.  192.  On 
November  27,  1872,  he  was  united  in  mar- 
riage with  Georgietta  Frances  Litchfield,  of 
Scituate,  and  the  union  has  been  blessed  with 
six  children.  These  are:  Alfred  F.,  born 
November  3,  1873;  Philip  H.,  born  August 
29,  1876;  Azro,  born  December  13,  1879; 
Edith  A.,  born  March  13,  1883;  Vesta  M., 
born  November  27,  1885;  and  Cora  M.,  born 
April  23,   1889. 


RTHUR  R  STARRETT,  the  efficient 
foreman  of  the  W.  L.  Douglas  Shoe 
Factory  of  Brockton,  was  born  in 
Aylesford,  Nova  Scotia,  August  20,  1851,  son 
of  George  and  Phcebe  (Johnston)  Starrett. 
He  is  a  descendant  of  Peter  Starrett,  who  was 
born  in  Scotland  about  the  year  1700,  and,  it 
is  believed,  emigrated  to  Ireland  about  1730. 
From  there  the  family  came  to  America,  set- 
tling in  Maine,  on  or  near  the  site  of  the  pres- 
ent city  of  Portland.  When  the  Revolution- 
ary War  broke  out,  this  branch  of  the  Starrett 
family  was  so  intensely  loyal  to  the  British 
crown  that  they  emigrated  again,  this  time  to 
Canada,  settling  in  Nova  Scotia,  near  the  New 
Brunswick  line.  Peter  Starrett  married 
Elevena  Armstrong.  Their  son  John,  born 
in  1745,  married  Hannah  Bancroft.  He  died 
October  4,  1829.  Handley  Starrett,  son  of 
John    and     Hannah     Bancroft     Starrett,     and 


45° 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


granilfathcr  of  Arthur  P.,  was  born  in  Cum- 
berland County,  Nova  Scotia,  in  1793- 
About  1840  he  moved  to  Port  Williams, 
Annapolis  County,  Nova  Scotia,  where  he 
owned  and  conducted  a  mill.  He  also  held 
the  office  of  Prime  Magistrate.  He  subse- 
quently moved  to  Cambridge,  Hants  County. 
He  and  his  wife  had  seven  children,  four 
boys  and  three  girls,  namely:  William,  now 
living  at  Port  Lome,  Annapolis  County,  Nova 
Scotia;  George,  father  of  the  subject  of  this 
sketch;  John  and  James,  now  living  in  Cam- 
bridge, Hants  County,  Nova  Scotia;  Eliza- 
beth, who  died  in  Lynn,  Mass.,  in  1896; 
Jennie,  now  living  in  Lynn,  Mass.;  and 
Amanda,  who  resides  in  Cambridge,  Nova 
Scotia. 

George  Starrett,  father  of  Arthur,  was  born 
in  1818.  When  a  young  man  he  began  to 
learn  the  trade  of  a  ship-builder,  but  he  had 
not  been  thus  engaged  long  when  he  met  with 
an  accident  in  the  ship-yard,  that  disqualified 
him  from  following  that  occupation.  He 
then,  by  a  course  of  hard  study,  fitted  himself 
for  the  profession  of  a  school  teacher,  which 
he  followed  in  different  counties  in  Nova 
Scotia  for  upward  of  twenty  years.  While  re- 
siding in  Port  Williams  he  married  Phoebe 
Johnston,  daughter  of  Uriah  and  Mariah  John- 
ston; and  after  his  marriage  he  settled  in 
Aylesford,  Annapolis  County.  His  wife  died 
in  1884,  at  the  age  of  sixty-si.x  years,  and  he 
then  removed  to  his  farm  at  Port  Lome, 
where  he  spent  his  remaining  days,  making 
occasional  visits  to  his  children  in  Brockton. 
He  survived  his  wife  ten  years,  dying  in  1894. 
His  children  are:  Arthur  P.,  Charles  A., 
Annie  M.  (deceased),  Edith  J.,  Bertha,  and 
Ella. 

Arthur  P.  Starrett  was  but  two  years  old 
when  his  parents  moved  to  Port  Williams,  and 
his  boyhood  was  spent  in  that  place.      Besides 


attending  the  common  school  he  had  the  ben- 
efit of  private  instruction  from  his  father. 
At  the  age  of  seventeen  he  left  home,  and 
shipped  on  a  merchant  vessel  bound  for  the 
West  Indies ;  and  he  was  out  in  the  famous 
September  gale  of  1868.  Two  years  there- 
after he  came  to  Massachusetts,  settling  in 
I^ynn,  where  he  learned  the  carpenter's  trade. 
In  the  fall  of  1872  he  came  to  Brockton;  and 
the  next  year,  while  working  for  Barney  Snow, 
a  contractor,  he  fell  from  the  roof  of  a  five- 
story  building,  breaking  his  ankle.  He  then 
abandoned  his  trade,  going  into  the  factory  of 
Peleg  S.  Leach  to  learn  stitching.  Three 
years  later  he  entered  the  shoe  factory  of 
Daniel  S.  Howard,  where  also  he  remained 
three  years,  subsequently  continuing  in  the 
same  employment  with  J.  C.  Jenkins.  In 
February,  1881,  he  took  charge  of  the  stitch- 
ing-room  of  W.  L.  Douglas  &  Co.,  with  whom 
he  has  since  remained. 

On  February  4,  1872,  Mr.  Starrett  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Lelah  A.  Banks,  a 
daughter  of  Joseph  and  Mehitable  Banks,  of 
Port  Lome,  Nova  Scotia.  He  has  three  chil- 
dren—  Jennie  V.,  Charles  E.,  and  Lena. 
Jennie  F.,  now  a  young  lady  of  twenty-two 
years,  is  a  graduate  of  the  Brockton  High 
School,  and  resides  at  home;  Charles  E.  is 
employed  in  the  factory  under  his  father; 
Lena,  a  girl  of  twelve  years,  is  attending 
school.  In  politics  Mr.  Starrett  is  a  Repub- 
lican; and  he  represents  his  ward  in  the  Com- 
mon Council.  He  is  connected  with  several 
fraternal  organizations,  being  a  member  of 
Massasoit  Lodge,  No.  69,  Independent  Order 
of  Odd  Fellows;  Nemasket  Encampment,  No. 
44;  and  Beatrice  Lodge,  No.  28,  Daughters  of 
Rebecca,  in  each  of  which  he  has  passed  all 
the  chairs.  He  and  his  wife  are  also  mem- 
bers of  Brockton  Colony,  No.  138,  Pilgrim 
Fathers. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


4SI 


RANCIS  BARNARD  GARDNER, 
clerk  of  the  Board  of  Water  Commis- 
sioners, and  Overseer  of  tlie  Poor  of 
]5rockton,  Mass.,  is  a  native  of  Nantucket, 
and  a  wortliy  representative  of  one  of  the  old 
and  much  respected  families  of  that  long-time 
famous  island  home.  He  was  born  near  the 
close  of  the  first  half  of  the  century,  January 
I,   1845. 

His  grandfather.  Prince  Gardner,  a  large 
ship-owner,  was  engaged  in  the  whale  fishery, 
and  in  the  oil  and  tallow  business.  In  re- 
ligious persuasion  he  was  a  Quaker  or  member 
of  the  Society  of  Friends,  as  were  many  of 
the  inhabitants  of  Nantucket  fifty  years  ago  or 
more,  the  island,  as  is  well  known,  having 
been  at  an  early  day  a  refuge  for  the  oppressed 
of  that  form  of  faith.  Prince  Gardner  was 
one  of  those  who  occupied  the  high  seats  in 
the  meeting,  and  used  sometimes  to  preach. 
He  died  at  seventy-two  years  of  age.  His 
wife,  Mary  Gorham,  a  Quakeress,  whom  he 
married  in  1802,  attained  the  advanced  age  of 
ninety-two  years.  They  had  but  three  chil- 
dren;   namely,  Charles   G.  and  two  daughters. 

Charles  G.  Gardner,  the  only  son,  was  the 
eldest  child.  He  was  born  in  1807.  The 
people  of  Nantucket  may  be  said  to  have  held 
at  an  early  day  advanced  views  on  the  subject 
of  education,  seeking  for  their  children,  if 
possible,  something  beyond  common-school  in- 
struction. The  Quaker  born  and  bred  youth, 
Charles  G.  Gardner,  purused  his  studies  at 
Greenwich  Academy,  East  Greenwich,  R.I., 
and  later  at  a  Friends'  boarding-school  in 
Providence.  When  his  school  days  were 
over,  he  learned  the  cooper's  trade,  and  made 
casks  for  his  father.  Of  course,  they  were  to 
hold  whale  oil,  the  whale  fishery  being  then 
the  leading  industry  of  the  place,  and  a  profit- 
able one  on  the  whole,  although  hazardous. 
There  were  losses  peculiar  to  the  "war  time" 


of  the  early  part  of  the  century,  and  Prince 
Gardner  and  his  brother  Benjamin,  who  lost 
the  ship  "Johanna,"  of  which  they  were  joint 
owners,  came  in  for  a  share  of  the  F"rench 
spoliation  claims,  of  which  but  little  was  real- 
ized. Mr.  Gardner,  of  Brockton,  still  has  in 
his  possession  several  articles  received  by  his 
grandfather  and  uncle  by  way  of  indemnity, 
which  he  cherishes  as  memorials  of  the  olden 
time,  a  turned-over  page  of  the  family  history. 
In  the  latter  part  of  his  life  Mr.  Charles  G. 
Gardner  attended  the  North  Congregational 
Church  of  Nantucket.  He  died  at  the  age  of 
eighty-five  years.  He  was  a  Whig  during  the 
existence  of  that  party,  afterward  a  Republi- 
can, and  always  a  thorough-going  Abolition- 
ist. He  married  Lurana  Rogers,  daughter  of 
John  Rogers.  Her  father  was  the  mate  of  a 
whaling  vessel.  He  lost  his  life  in  sight  of 
land  in  Massachusetts  Bay,  while  lashed  to 
the  rigging  of  a  vessel  during  a  storm.  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Charles  G.  Gardner  had  ten  chil- 
dren, only  three  of  whom  are  now  living. 

Francis  B.  was  the  ninth  child  of  his  par- 
ents. He  was  educated  in  the  schools  of 
Nantucket,  which  were  then  graded.  Making 
good  progress  in  the  lower  schools,  he  entered 
the  high  school  at  thirteen  years  of  age.  He 
subsequently  attended  the  Coffin  private 
school  for  a  time;  and  then,  a  well-grown 
youth  and  well  informed  for  his  years,  he 
learned  the  art  of  pegging  shoes,  and  followed 
that  occupation  for  some  time.  In  November, 
1862,  he  went  to  West  Bridgcwater,  and  en- 
tered the  employ  of  Charles  Mowry,  engaging 
to  work  for  ten  dollars  a  month  and  board. 
He  stayed  there  till  September,  1S63,  when 
he  came  to  Brockton,  where  he  worked  on 
army  brogans  at  twenty  dollars  per  month  and 
board.  In  April,  1864,  he  went  into  the  shop 
of  George  H.  Gurney,  shoe  manufacturer,  and, 
learning  to    cut    leather,    earned    twelve   and 


452 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


one-half  cents  an  hour.  He  there  worked 
three  years  as  a  cutter,  and  six  years  as  super- 
intendent of  the  factory,  fifteen  hundred  dol- 
lars being  his  salary  in  his  final  year,  ending 
November,  1872.  At  that  time  forming  a  co- 
partnership with  R.  B.  Packard,  firm  of  Gard- 
ner &  Packard,  he  made  his  first  trip  to  Bos- 
ton to  carry  samples  the  week  after  the  great 
Boston  fire.  They  had  a  factory  on  Centre 
Street,  Brockton,  where  O.  O.  Patten  &  Co. 
now  are.  In  1878  the  firm  dissolved,  and  Mr. 
Gardner  continued  in  business  alone,  buying 
a  factory  on  Linden  Street,  known  as  the 
David  Howard  factory,  now  owned  by  F.  M. 
Shaw  &  Son.  He  carried  it  on  till  January, 
1882,  when  he  sold  it  to  Henry  Mitchell. 
The  business  is  now  owned  by  Howard  & 
Foster. 

In  1881  Mr.  Gardner  took  a  prominent  part 
in  the  movement  to  make  Brockton  a  city. 
At  the  town  meeting  he  was  elected  one  of  the 
Committee  of  Twelve  to  co-operate  with  the 
Selectmen  in  securing  the  charter,  which  was 
accepted  as  they  submitted  it.  He  had  for 
one  or  two  years  previously  been  Chairman  of 
the  Republican  Town  Committee,  and  he  was 
later  on  the  same  committee  two  or  three  years. 
He  was  one  of  the  committee  to  make  arrange- 
ments for  the  inauguration  of  the  city  govern- 
ment, and  was  elected  to  the  Common  Council 
of  the  city,  but  resigned  his  position  on  the 
Council  without  taking  his  seat.  He  was  a 
member  of  the  Board  of  Overseers  of  the  Poor 
for  three  years,  after  having  refused  the  office 
for  one  year.  He  is  now  serving  on  his  fif- 
teenth year  in  this  responsible  position,  hav- 
ing been  elected  five  successive  terms.  In 
1882  Mayor  Keith  appointed  him  on  the  Board 
of  Health.  Mr.  Gardner  had  no  intention  of 
remaining  in  public  office,  and  in  the  autumn 
of  1883  resolved  to  go  again  into  business, 
but  he  was  so  strongly  urged  to  accept  a  posi- 


tion on  the  Board  of  Water  Commissioners 
that  he  did  so,  and  has  now  served  the  Board 
twelve  successive  years.  In  January  last  he 
received  one  vote  from  the  Council,  which  rep- 
resented the  unanimous  vote;  in  other  words, 
he  was  elected  by  acclamation. 

Mr.  Gardner  is  a  charter  member  of  Dam- 
ocles Lodge,  No.  16,  Knights  of  Pythias,  was 
its  first  Chancellor  Commander,  and  is  now 
Chairman  of  the  Finance  Committee  of  Grand 
Lodge,  which  post  he  has  filled  for  six  years. 
He  was  last  year  appointed  for  three  years 
more  as  a  member  of  the  Finance  Committee. 
He  was  a  charter  member  of  Banner  Lodge, 
New  England  Order  of  Protection;  and  as  its 
first  warden  he  wrote  his  signature  to  three 
hundred  and  si.xteen  certificates  of  member- 
ship. As  a  pioneer  in  Brockton  of  the  no- 
license  movement,  he  has  occupied  several 
positions  on  the  committee,  and  has  taken  an 
ardent  and  active  interest  in  temperance.  He 
is  a  member  of  the  Brockton  Agricultural  So- 
ciety, and  has  been  superintendent  of  its  hall 
for  about  eight  years.  A  loyal  American  cit- 
izen, he  is  an  associate  member  of  Fletcher 
Webster  Post,  No.  13,  Grand  Army  of  the 
Republic,  of  Brockton.  Of  the  charter  of 
the  People's  Savings  Bank  of  Brockton  he 
was  one  of  the  original  signers,  and  he  is  a 
Trustee  of  the  bank,  and  one  of  its  Investment 
Committee.  He  is  a  communicant  of  the 
First  Congregational  Church,  and  was  at  one 
time  clerk  of  the  church  and  a  member  of  the 
Parish  Committee.  He  is  now  on  the  Build- 
ing Committee  for  the  new  church  edifice. 

Mr.  Gardner  and  Miss  Emma  Davis,  daugh- 
ter of  John  W.  Davis,  of  Nantucket,  were 
married  in  October,  1866,  and  five  years  ago 
they  celebrated  their  silver  wedding,  or 
twenty-fifth  anniversary.  Among  the  presents 
received  on  that  occasion,  as  testimonials  of 
the  esteem  and  good   will    of    neighbors   and 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


453 


friends,  were  a  case  of  silver  from  the  city 
government  of  Brockton,  and  a  silver  service 
from  Banner  Lodge,  Knights  of  Pythias.  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Gardner  have  three  children,  namely: 
Annie  L.,  who  married  Edward  E.  Stebbins, 
and  resides  in  Melrose,  Mass.;  Gertrude  E., 
an  assistant  in  the  Water  Commissioner's 
office.  City  Hall;  and  Charles  F.,  now  a  stu- 
dent at  the  Brockton  High  School. 


jAPTAIN  GEORGE  D.  ALLEN,  who 
has  been  on  duty  much  of  the  time  in 
recent  years  as  the  commander  of  a 
great  ocean  steamer,  is  well  equipped  for  the 
responsible  post  he  occupies,  being  a  type  of 
the  thorough  American  sailor,  a  brave,  reso- 
lute man,  with  a  cool  head  and  a  keen  eye. 
He  was  born  October  28,  1843,  in  Marion,  a 
son  of  John  D.  and  Sarah  N.  (Hathaway) 
Allen.  His  parents  reared  two  other  chil- 
dren, both  daughters,  namely:  Abbie,  who 
died  in  1882;  and  Louisa. 

George  D.  Allen  was  educated  in  the  dis- 
trict schools,  and  laid  aside  his  text-books, 
when  a  lad  of  fourteen,  to  go  on  board  a  coast- 
ing-vessel, on  which  he  remained  three  years 
as  a  sailor.  Shipping  then  on  a  merciiant 
vessel,  he  visited  various  portions  of  the 
globe,  including  California,  China,  and  Aus- 
tralia, sailing  one  year  as  common  seaman, 
two  years  as  second  mate,  four  years  as  first 
mate,  and  from  that  time  until  the  present  as 
master.  Captain  Allen  has  followed  the  sea 
nearly  forty  years,  has  commanded  vessels 
twenty-eight  years,  and  at  different  pejiods 
during  the  last  eight  years  has  been  in  charge 
of  an  ocean  steamer.  During  his  career  he 
has  circumnavigated  the  globe  twice,  been 
around  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope  three  times, 
and  doubled  Cape  Horn  six  times,  in  most 
cases  having  an  interest   in   the  ships  that  he 


has  commanded.  He  has  been  unusually  fort- 
unate in  his  voyages,  although  at  one  time  his 
ship  was  struck  by  a  hurricane,  and  totally 
demolished.  The  vessel  was  on  its  way  from 
New  Orleans  to  Liverpool,  being  about  sixty 
miles  from  the  mouth  of  the  Mississippi 
River,  in  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  when  struck  by 
the  tremendous  gale.  The  timber  with  which 
it  was  loaded  kept  the  hull  from  sinking,  and 
the  entire  crew  floated  on  the  wreck  thirty-six 
hours  before  being  rescued. 

Captain  Allen  was  married  May  8,  1869,  to 
Magdalana  S.,  daughter  of  Captain  Clark 
Delano.  Eight  children  have  been  born  of 
this  union,  namely:  Elmena  Stover,  who  died 
when  five  years  old;  Bertha  Bolivia,  who  was 
born  off  the  coast  of  Bolivia;  Clara  B.  ;  John 
C,  born  off  Cape  Horn;  Sarah  D.,  who  died 
December  13,  1880;  James  Scott  Hathaway, 
born  on  board  ship  at  Liverpool,  England; 
Florence  Souter;  and  Abbie  L. ,  who  died  in 
infancy.  Soon  after  his  marriage  the  captain 
bought  the  farm  of  forty  acres  on  which  he  and 
his  family  make  their  home.  Captain  Allen 
is  held  in  high  regard  as  a  man  of  great  force 
of  character  and  moral  worth.  In  politics  he 
is  a  strong  advocate  of  the  principles  of  the 
Republican  party. 


AHUM  F.  MORSE,  Selectman  of 
Rochester  for  more  than  twenty  years, 
^  \^  ^  was  born  May  19,  1835,  on  the 
farm  where  he  now  resides,  aon  of  John  N.  and" 
Lydia  (Look)  Morse.  This  farm  was  origi- 
nally owned  by  his  grandfather,  Simeon  Morse, 
who  served  as  a  soldier  in  the  Revolution  and 
was  one  of  the  early  settlers  of  this  locality. 
John  N.  Morse  was  a  large  land-owner,  and 
one  of  the  prominent  men  of  the  district.  He 
had  a  family  of  eleven  children;  namely,  John 
O.  A.,  James  H.,  Savery  A.,  Mary  A.,  Lydia, 


454 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


David,  Isaac,  Tirzah  I.,  Nahum  F.,  Naomi, 
and  Charlotte  H. 

Nahum  F.  Morse  acquired  his  education  in 
the  district  school  and  the  old  Peirce  Acad- 
emy of  Middleboro.  In  boyhood  he  became 
familiar  with  the  duties  of  farm  life,  and, 
when  he  was  twenty-six  years  old,  he  took  full 
charge  of  the  homestead.  The  farm  covers 
two  hundred  acres  in  Middleboro  and  Roch- 
ester, including  good  tillage  and  pasture 
land.  His  whole  life  has  been  spent  there. 
He  has  been  successful  as  a  farmer,  keeps 
some  live  stock,  and  raises  some  fruit.  He 
was  married  in  1857  to  Almeda  I.  Washburn, 
of  Carver,  this  county;  and  eight  children 
came  of  the  union.  Two  arc  deceased  — 
Jennie  F.  and  Nahum  F.  The  others  are: 
Lottie  H.,  Annie  G.,  Isaac  F.,  Tirzah  S., 
Chester  B. ,  and   Helen   B. 

Mr.  Morse,  who  is  a  Democrat,  has  been 
for  many  years  identified  with  the  adjustment 
of  town  affairs,  his  conservative  judgment  and 
practical  common  sense  being  highly  valued 
by  his  townsmen.  He  has  served  as  Select- 
man of  the  town  altogether  for  twenty-two 
years.  In  this  period  he  has  also  acted  as 
Overseer  of  the  Poor,  Assessor,  and  Town 
Agent;  and  he  has  been  a  Justice  of  the 
Peace  for  fifteen  years.  He  is  a  Mason  in 
good  standing,  belonging  to  Social  Harmony 
Lodge  of  Wareham,  Mass.  As  a  member  of 
the  Christian  Advent  church,  he  takes  an  ac- 
tive interest  in  religious  work. 


)YSANDER  S.  RICHARDS,  a  horticul- 
turist and  author  and  a  leader  in  various 
reformatory  and  progressive  move- 
ments, is  a  resident  of  Marshfield  Hills.  He 
was  born  in  Quincy,  Mass.,  April  13,  1S35,  a 
son  of  the  Hon.  Lysander  and  Content  C. 
(Clapp)    Richards.      The  Richards  family  is  of 


English  origin,  the  American  branch  springing 
from  an  emigrant  who  settled  in  what  is  now 
Norwell,   Mass.,    in    1630. 

The  Hon.  Lysander  Richards,  who  was  a 
son  of  Nehemiah  Richards,  was  born  and 
reared  in  Cummington,  Mass.  After  teaching 
school  for  a  while,  he  went  to  Quincy,  Mass., 
where  he  was  interested  in  the  quarries,  event- 
ually becoming  a  member  of  the  house  of 
Richards,  Munn  &  Co.,  the  largest  stone  con- 
tractors in  Quincy,  and  probably  in  the  United 
States,  in  their  day.  Mr.  Richards  attained 
eminence  in  business  circles,  and  had  many 
financial  interests.  He  was  the  first  President 
of  the  Quincy  Mutual  Fire  Insurance  Com- 
pany. A  prominent  member  of  the  Whig 
party,  he  served  one  term  as  State  Senator. 
He  was  a  member  of  the  Quincy  School  Board 
for  a  number  of  years,  and  one  of  the  prime 
movers  in  establishing  the  high  school.  In 
religious  belief  he  was  a  Unitarian.  He  had 
an  extended  acquaintance  in  Norfolk  County, 
and  was  respected  by  all  who  knew  him.  He 
died  in  1851  at  Havana,  Cuba,  where  he  had 
gone  for  his  health.  His  wife  was  also  a  mem- 
ber of  an  old  family  of  English  origin,  her  first 
ancestor  in  this  country  settling  in  Scituate  in 
1630.  She  passed  away  in  1893.  Of  their 
children  the  following  are  living:  Lysander 
S.,  the  subject  of  this  article;  Louise  C, 
clerk  in  the  United  States  Life-saving  Service 
Department  in  the  Treasury  Building,  Wash- 
ington, D.C.  ;  Venelia,  wife  of  Charles  W. 
Calef,  of  Auburn,  N.H.  ;  Charles  N.,  keeper 
of  the  Senate  Stationery  Department  at  Wash- 
ington; Clara,  also  in  the  national  capital; 
Anna  S. ,  wife  of  T.  Butler  Van  Alstyne,  a 
lawyer  of  Tustin,  Cal.,  appointed  by  Governor 
Budd  President  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  the 
Southern  California  Insane  Asylum  near  Los 
Angeles,  Cal. 

Lysander    S.    Richards    acquired    his    early 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


455 


education  in  the  Quincy  schools,  passing 
through  the  grammar  grade,  and  leaving  school 
at  the  age  of  fifteen.  He  was  sixteen  when 
his  father  died,  and  in  the  two  years  following 
that  event  was  acting   Postmaster   in    Quincy. 

At  the  age  of  eighteen  he  obtained  a  posi- 
tion as  book-keeper  for  Williams  &  Rodgers, 
hide  and  leather  merchants  in  ISoston ;  and 
after  the  dissolution  of  that  firm  he  was  em- 
ployed as  book-keeper  for  Rodgers,  Johnson  & 
Thompson,  Boston.  At  twenty-two  he  was  the 
junior  member  of  the  hide  and  leather  firm  of 
Rodgers,  Baxter  &  Richards,  which  was  sub- 
sequently merged  into  Rodgers,  Richards  & 
Co.  This  house  controlled  an  extensive  busi- 
ness, amounting  to  between  two  hundred  thou- 
sand and  three  hundred  thousand  dollars  per 
year,  and  was  in  existence  about  seven  years. 
Soon  after  the  partnership  was  dissolved  Mr. 
Richards  became  a  member  of  the  hide  and 
leather  firm  of  Charles  Marsh  &  Co.,  of  Bos- 
ton, one  of  the  leading  mercantile  houses  of 
the  Hub.  The  Hon.  Charles  Marsh  (now 
deceased),  the  head  of  the  firm,  was  President 
of  the  Granite  National  Bank  and  of  the 
Quincy  Savings  Bank,  and  was  a  State  Sena- 
tor. He  retired  from  business  in  1874;  and 
Mr.  Richards,  who  was  suffering  from  ill- 
health,  severed  his  connection  with  the  firm 
at  the  same  time. 

For  a  number  of  years  Mr.  Richards  had 
been  engaged  in  scientific  study  and  research, 
and  had  written  various  articles,  including  a 
treatise  on  cosmography,  which  was  published 
in  the  Boston  Banner  of  Lig/it,  running  about 
two  years  in  the  seventies.  On  retiring  from 
business,  he  took  the  opportunity  to  visit  the 
gold  and  silver  mines  of  California  and  Ne- 
vada, in  order  to  supplement  the  knowledge 
gained  from  books  by  actual  observation  ;  and 
before  he  returned  home  he  studied  the  miner- 
alogy of  the  coal  mines  of  Pennsylvania.     It  is 


an  incident  worthy  of  note  that  Mr.  McKinley, 
brother  of  President  McKinley,  entertained 
Mr.  Richards  in  California,  and  afterward 
came  on  to  Quincy,  and  made  him  an  offer  to 
go  on  to  California,  and,  as  an  expert,  exam- 
ine some  mines  in  which  he  was  interested. 

After  his  return  from  this  tour  Mr.  Richards 
devoted  much  of  his  time  to  literary  work, 
publishing  scientific  and  philosophical  papers, 
as  well  as  a  series  of  articles  on  his  travels  in 
California  and  the  Far  West,  including  Utah, 
in  the  Boston  Cotnvioniocalt/i.  In  the  fall  of 
1874  he  settled  in  Marshfield,  moving  into  his 
present  dwelling,  which  he  erected  in  1876. 
Here  his  most  important  literary  works  have 
been  completed.  Among  these  are  "The 
Beginning  and  Fnd  of  Man";  "Vocophy  " ; 
and  "Breaking  up;  or.  The  Birth,  Develop- 
ment, and  Death  of  the  Earth  and  its  Satel- 
lite in  Story."  Mr.  Richards  taught  sciences 
and  other  branches  of  study  for  a  year  in  a 
school  in  Washington,  D.  C. ,  and  for  four 
years  had  charge  of  the  Marshfield  Business 
Academy,  of  which  he  was  the  founder. 
During  the  season  of  1866-67  he  presided  at 
the  Music  Hall  (Boston)  Sunday  afternoon 
lectures.  Previous  to  1874  he  lectured  on 
scientific  subjects  before  the  high  and  gram- 
mar schools  of  Quincy,  his  topics  including 
Darwinism,  Astronomy,  and  Geology.  He 
has  also  studied  carefully  the  science  of  agri- 
culture and  horticulture,  and  has  given  many 
addresses  at  farmers'  meetings  in  Boston.  He 
has  been  Vice-President  of  "the  Marshfield 
Agricultural  and  Horticultural  Society,  and  was 
for  three  years  a  member  of  the  State  Board 
of  Agriculture. 

Mr.  Richards  has  been  for  a  number  of 
years  Secretary  of  the  Marshfield  Republi- 
can Committee,  of  which  he  is  now  chairman, 
and  has  served  as  Chairman  at  conventions, 
caucuses,  and  town  meetings.      At  a  meeting 


4S6 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


of  the  Second  Plymouth  District  Republi- 
can Committee,  comprising  the  towns  of 
Duxbury,  Pembroke,  Norwell,  Scituate,  and 
Marshfield,  he  was  elected  Chairman  for  the 
ensuing  year,  1896-97;  but  he  refuses  perma- 
nent public  office,  preferring  the  quiet  of  his 
home.  He  is  deeply  interested  in  the  prog- 
ress of  the  town,  and  was  instrumental  in 
changing  the  name  East  Marshfield  to  Marsh- 
field  Hills,  which  is  much  more  appropriate, 
and  gives  an  outsider  an  idea  of  the  distin- 
guishing natural  feature  of  the  place.  Mr. 
Richards  is  the  President  of  the  Marshfield 
Hills  Public  Library.  He  was  vested  with 
the  authority  of  Justice  of  the  Peace  for 
twenty-one  years. 

Previous  to  1866  he  was  often  called  upon 
to  preside  at  conventions  in  the  large  halls  of 
Boston ;  and  he  was  the  leader  of  the  temper- 
ance movement  in  Ouincy  before  the  advent 
of  Henry  H.  Faxon.  He  was  President  of  the 
Massachusetts  Radical  Peace  Society,  and  was 
the  first  Corresponding  Secretary  of  the  Uni- 
versal Peace  Society,  with  headquarters  at 
Philadelphia.  In  his  early  manhood,  while 
living  in  Ouincy,  he  was  President  of  the 
Adams  Literary  Association,  President  of  the 
Quincy  Charitable  Society,  and  superinten- 
dent of  the  Unitarian  Sunday-school  at  Adams 
Temple,  the  famous  church  of  John  and  John 
Ouincy  Adams.  Mr.  Richards  is  now  con- 
nected with  the  Unitarian  church  in  Marsh- 
field. He  is  still  an  enthusiastic  student ;  and, 
being  sent  in  1891  by  the  Eastern  heirs  of  a 
bachelor  uncle  who  had  lived  in  California,  to 
investigate  his  affairs,  he  took  occasion  to  visit 
southern  California,  Arizona,  New  Mexico, 
and  Texas,  travelling  through  the  Southern 
States  and  studying  the  natural  features  of 
the  country. 

Mr.     Richards     was     married     in     1859    to 
Miriam  G.  Rodgers,  of  Quincy,  Mass.     Three 


children  have  blessed  their  union  :  Clift  R. 
(deceased)  ;  Eleanor  R.,  artist,  who  has  charge 
of  the  art  department  of  the  Edgeworth  School 
at  Baltimore,  Md.  ;  and  C.  Rodgers,  a  graduate 
of  Boston  University,  at  present  employed  in 
looking  up  titles  in  the  Indian  Biu'eau,  under 
the  Department  of  the  Interior,  of  the  United 
States  government. 


01  IN  FOSTER,  a  box  manufacturer  and 
lumber  and  real  estate  dealer  residing 
ill  South  Hanson,  Plymouth  County, 
is  a  native  of  Pembroke,  Mass.,  where  he  was 
born,  March  12,  1842,  son  of  David  H.  and 
Deborah  (Howland)  Foster.  On  both  sides 
he  is  descended  from  early  Plymouth  colo- 
nists, who  were  passengers  in  the  "  Mayflower." 
David  Foster,  father  of  David  H.,  was  a  pa- 
triot soldier  in  the  War  of  18 12,  and  was 
killed  in  service,  his  head  being  shot  off. 
David  H.  Foster  was  born  in  Scituate,  Mass., 
in  1799.  He  followed  the  trade  of  a  ship 
carpenter.  He  and  his  wife,  Deborah,  who 
was  a  daughter  of  Luther  Howland,  of  Pem- 
broke, had  seven  sons;  namely,  Horace  J., 
Jairus  H.,  Jared  Perkins,  Hiram,  Charles  (de- 
ceased), Otis,  and  John.  David  H.  Foster 
died  when  about  eighty-two  years  old;  and  his 
wife  died  in  January,  1896,  at  the  age  of 
ninety-one  years,  five  months.  Both  parents 
were  members  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
church. 

John  was  the  youngest  born  of  the  family. 
He  acquired  his  education  in  the  district 
school,  and  in  his  boyhood  was  also  initiated 
into  the  work  of  the  home  farm,  the  care  of 
which,  owing  to  his  father's  being  so  much 
occupied  with  ship  carpentry,  and  his  mother 
being  in  feeble  health,  early  devolved  upon 
him.  When  twenty-two  years  old,  he  began 
buying    tracts    of    timbered    land,    which    he 


JOHN    FOSTER. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


459 


cleared,  and  hired  the  lumber  sawed.  As  his 
business  increased,  he  bought  a  water-power 
savv-niill  in  Pembroke  in  1874,  and  shortly 
after  added  a  grist-mill  and  box  factory  to  the 
plant.  Five  years  later  he  purchased  of  Bar- 
nabas Everson  his  steam-mill  at  South  Hanson, 
enlarged  it,  and  built  a  grist-mill,  then  trans- 
ferred his  Pembroke  grist-mill,  excelsior  mill, 
and  box  factory  to  South  Hanson,  still,  how- 
ever, running  his  saw-mill  at  Pembroke.  A 
year  or  two  later  the  entire  plant  at  South 
Hanson  was  burned  to  the  ground.  Rebuild- 
ing on  a  better  plan,  he  did  a  thriving  busi- 
ness until  in  December,  1890,  the  [ilant  was 
again  destroyed  by  fire.  He  then  immediately 
put  up  another  set  of  buildings  after  the  same 
plan  on  a  much  larger  scale.  When  he  started, 
he  employed  but  three  or  four  men,  but  now 
has  about  seventy-five  on  an  average.  He 
handles  about  five  million  feet  of  lumber  a 
year,  and  keeps  a  full  line  of  building  mate- 
rials, being  the  principal  dealer  within  a  radius 
of  several  miles.  He  also  runs  a  cooperage 
shop  for  the  manufacture  of  cranberry  barrels, 
supplying  the  cranberry-growers  in  this  section 
of  the  State. 

Mr.  Foster  is  also  extensively  engaged  in 
the  real  estate  business,  being  one  of  the  larg- 
est real  estate  owners  in  this  town,  also  the 
largest  tax-payer,  and  having  much  property 
outside  the  town.  During  the  past  five  years 
he  has  sold  over  fifty  farms  and  hundreds  of 
house  lots.  He  is  the  sole  owner  of  three  land 
companies,  besides  being  the  principal  owner 
of  several  others.  In  company  with  Horace 
B.  Maglathlin,  under  the  firm  name  of  the 
Webster  Park  Land  Company,  he  is  develop- 
ing a  large  tract  of  beach  property  in  Marsh- 
field,  building  houses  and  otherwise  improv- 
ing the  property.  He  owns  forty  acres  of 
cranberry  land,  and  is  interested  in  many 
other    bogs.      All    his    operations    have    been 


characterized  by  great  energy  and  business 
sagacity,  and  from  a  humble  beginning  he  has 
risen  to  be  one  of  the  leading  business  men  of 
the  county. 

On  October  6,  1S68,  Mr.  Foster  married 
Mary  F.,  daughter  of  Elbridge  G.  Fuller,  of 
Halifax,  Mass.  Mrs.  Foster  is  also  descended 
on  both  sides  from  some  of  the  original  set- 
tlers of  Plymouth.  Two  sons  were  born  to 
them;  namely,  Edgar  M.  and  Elewyn  N. ,  both 
now  deceased.  In  1867  Mr.  Foster  became  a 
member  of  Corner  Stone  Lodge,  A.  F.  & 
A.  M.,  of  Duxbury,  from  which  he  was  de- 
mitted  to  Phcenix  Lodge  of  Hanover.  He 
and  his  wife  attend  the  Congregational  church. 


ILLIAM  PERKINS  is  a  representa- 
tive of  two  of  the  old  families  of 
Plympton.  A  son  of  William  and 
Sophia  Perkins,  he  was  born  February  23, 
1824,  upon  his  present  farm,  which  has  been 
held  in  the  Perkins  name  for  nearly  two  cent- 
uries. His  father  was  a  son  of  Zephaniah  Per- 
kins, who  was  a  son  of  Deacon  Josiah  Per- 
kins, who  served  as  Town  Clerk  of  Plympton 
forty  years.  Deacon  Josiah  Perkins  was  a 
son  of  Luke  Perkins,  who  was  born  in  1666, 
moved  from  Ipswich  and  settled  in  Plympton 
in  1 713,  and  died  in  174S.  Luke  Perkins  was 
the  ancestor  of  nearly  all  —  if  not  all  —  who 
bear  the  Perkins  name  in  Plymouth  County. 
He  was  the  first  blacksmith  to  settle  in  Plymp- 
ton;  and  it  is  worthy  of  noting  that  many  of 
his  descendants  have  been  iron  workers  of  one 
kind  or  another  down  to  the  present  time. 
There  may  be  no  records  to  show  who  the  an- 
cestors of  Luke  Perkins  were,  but  he  was 
probably  a  son  of  Abraham  Perkins,  who  lived 
at  Hampton,  N.H.,  and  a  grandson  of  John 
Perkins,  who  is  said  to  have  come  over  with 
Roger  Williams  in    1631,  removed  with  John 


460 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


Winthrop,  Jr.,  to  Ipswich  in  1633,  repre- 
sented that  town  in  the  General  Court  in 
1636,  and  died  in  1654.  On  the  maternal 
side  Mr.  Perkins  is  a  direct  descendant  of 
Governor  Bradford.  His  mother,  in  maiden- 
hood Sophia  Bradford,  was  a  daughter  of  Cap- 
tain John  Bradford,  who  was  a  son  of  Captain 
John  Bradford,  who  was  a  son  of  Lieutenant 
Samuel  Bradford,  who  moved  from  Kingston 
to  riympton  some  time  between  the  years 
1709  and  1 7 14.  Samuel  was  a  son  of  Major 
John  Bradford,  who  was  a  son  of  Major  Will- 
iam Bradford,  Deputy  Governor  of  Plymouth 
Colony,  who  was  a  son  of  Governor  Will- 
iam Bradford,  who  came  over  in  the  "May- 
flower." 

Mr.  Perkins  has  served  in  the  Massachusetts 
legislature,  and  has  had  much  experience  in 
the  settlement  of  estates  and  in  town  office. 
In  addition  to  conducting  his  farm,  he  and  his 
two  sons  are  engaged  in  the  manufacture  of 
lumber,  and  of  wooden  and  paper  boxes.  In 
1 8  50  Mr.  Perkins  married  Ann  Jeanette 
Churchill,  daughter  of  Simeon  Churchill,  of 
Plympton.  They  have  had  seven  children; 
namely,  Laura  W.,  William,  Jr.,  Clara  E., 
Josiah,  Helen  E.,  Nettie  E. ,  and  Charles  B. 
Laura  W.  successively  married  William  L. 
Bonney  and  Joshua  F.  Knowles,  and  has  one 
child,  Esther  W.  Bonney;  William  Perkins, 
Jr.,  married  Ada  K.  Churchill,  and  has  one 
child,  Gladys  Perkins;  Clara  E.  married  Fred 
A.  Ward,  and  has  one  child,  Jay  A.  Ward ; 
Josiah  Perkins  died  young;  Helen  E.  married 
Gilbert  W.  Shaw,  and  has  one  child,  Florence 
J.  Shaw;  Nettie  E.  married  Prince  E.  Brad- 
ford, and  has  one  daughter,  Bertha  W.  Brad- 
ford;  Charles  B.  Perkins,  the  youngest,  is  still 
unmarried. 

Mr.  Perkins  was  an  early  convert  to  temper- 
ance, and  has  never  made  use  of  liquor  or 
tobacco.      Half  a  century  ago  he  was  a  regular 


attendant  at  the  meetings  of  the  Anti-slavery 
Society,  and  a  frequent  contributor  to  its 
funds.  William  Loyd  Garrison,  Wendell 
Phillips,  Abby  Kelly  Foster,  Parker  Pills- 
bury,  Lucy  Stone,  and  other  of  the  anti- 
slavery  leaders  of  those  early  days  found  shel- 
ter and  entertainment  at  his  house.  He  was 
a  member  of  the  Liberty  party,  the  first  polit- 
ical party  especially  organized  to  oppose  the 
slave  power.  Later  he  belonged  to  the  Free 
Soil  party,  and  from  the  advent  of  the  Repub- 
lican party  he  has  been  one  of  its  active  ad- 
herents. 


fft 


ALTER  HORATIO  STURGIS, 
M.D.,  a  successful  medical  practi- 
tioner of  Hull,  Plymouth  County, 
Mass.,  was  born  in  Fairfield,  Vt.,  February 
10,  1873,  son  of  Smith  F.  and  Clara  B. 
(Wakeman)  Sturgis.  He  is  of  English  ances- 
try, and  traces  his  lineage  back  to  the  time  of 
William,  the  Conqueror. 

Turgesius,  who  was  king  of  Ireland  about 
A.D  800,  was  undoubtedly  a  still  earlier  ances- 
tor. The  Sturgis  coat-of-arms  represents  two 
hounds  couchant  with  a  barred  shield  between, 
and  underneath  the  motto, "  Prudencia  et  Con- 
stancia. "  The  first  appearance  of  the  Sturgis 
family  in  America,  it  has  been  said,  was  "in 
the  latter  part  of  the  seventeenth  century,  when 
two  brothers  settled,  the  one  in  Ccnnecticut, 
the  other  in  Massachusetts."  It  should  be 
noted,  however,  that  "Edward  Sturgis,  Sr., 
the  progenitor  of  the  family  on  Cape  Cod," 
was  in  Charlestown,  Mass.,  in  1634,  and  set- 
tled in  Yarmouth,  Barnstable  County,  in  1639. 
(See  Freeman's  History  of  Cape  Cod.)  From 
Mrs.  Schenck's  History  of  Fairfield,  Conn., 
we  learn  that  John  Sturges  settled  in  that 
town  in  1660,  in  the  thirty-seventh  year  of 
his  age. 

Ezra  Sturgis,  the  paternal  great-grandfather 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


461 


of  Dr.  Sturgis,  was  born  in  Old  Fairfield, 
Conn.,  and  settled  in  Fairfield,  Vt.,  where  he 
was  prominently  identified  with  the  church, 
officiating  as  Deacon  for  many  years.  His 
wife,  whose  maiden  name  was  Lydia  Gilbert, 
was  of  a  highly  respected  family.  Their  son, 
Seth  Sturgis,  the  Doctor's  grandfather,  who 
was  a  native  of  Fairfield,  Vt.,  was  a  farmer, 
also  a  carpenter  and  builder,  and  was  highly 
esteemed  in  the  community.  He  and  his 
wife,  Eliza  Bearse,  of  Fairfield,  were  commu- 
nicants of  the  Episcopal  church  in  that  town. 
Both  lived  to  be  quite  advanced  in  years, 
dying  at  the  ages  of  eighty-two  and  eighty- 
four,  respectively. 

Smith  F.  Sturgis,  their  youngest  son,  was 
born  in  Fairfield,  Vt.,  where  he  lived  on  the 
old  homestead.  After  acquiring  his  educa- 
tion, he  learned  the  trade  of  carpenter  and 
builder,  which  he  followed  there  for  many 
years.  In  1892  he  came-to  Hull,  and  he  here 
continues  the  same  enterprise.  In  politics 
he  is  a  Republican.  Fraternally,  he  affiliates 
with  I.  B.  Richardson  Post,  No.  92,  Grand 
Army  of  the  Republic,  of  Fairfax,  Vt.;  and 
he  also  belongs  to  Fairfax  Lodge,  No.  6, 
A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Fairfax,  Vt.  In  i86r  he 
enlisted  in  Company  H,  Third  Vermont  Vol- 
unteer Infantry,  as  a  private,  and  served  three 
years,  being  wounded  at  Cold  Harbor.  He 
married  Clara  B.  Wakeman;  and  they  had  two 
children  —  May  R.  and  Walter  Horatio.  May 
R.  married  Alvin  J.  Perham,  of  Fairfax,  Vt. ; 
and  they  now  reside  in  Hull,  Mass.  They 
have  five  children,  all  of  whom  are  now  living 
—  Genevieve,  Helen,  Alvin,  Clara,  and 
Walt  era. 

The  maternal  great-great-grandfather  was 
Nathan  Lobdell,  a  native  of  Greenfield,  Conn. 
He  engaged  extensively  in  farming.  He  was 
prominently  identified  with  the  Episcopal 
church   in  Vermont   for  many  years,    Trinity 


Church,  Fairfield,  having  been  organized  after 
his  settlement  in  that  town,  and  owing  much 
to  his  faithful  labors.  Many  times  during 
the  early  years  of  the  present  century  he  took 
long  and  arduous  journeys  on  horseback, 
sometimes  of  more  than  a  hundred  miles,  part 
of  the  way  being  by  marked  trees,  to  attend 
the  conventions  of  the  diocese  to  which  he 
was  a  delegate.  He  counted  nothing  too 
hard  by  which  he  could  serve  God  or  his 
fellow-men. 

The  maiden  name  of  his  wife  was  Abigail 
Hoyt.  She  belonged  to  a  noted  Connecticut 
family.  Isaac  Wakeman,  the  paternal  great- 
grandfather, was  born  in  Connecticut,  and 
married  Sarah,  daughter  of  Ezekiel  Bradley, 
of  Old  Fairfield,  Conn.  The  grandfather, 
Horatio  Powell  Wakeman,  who  was  born  in 
Fairfield,  Vt.,  received  a  liberal  education, 
and  for  many  years  was  a  most  successful  and 
beloved  teacher.  He  inherited  a  large  patri- 
monial estate,  to  which  he  added  from  time 
to  time,  becoming  one  of  the  largest  land- 
owners in  the  vicinity.  He  ultimately  built 
a  town  residence,  to  which  he  retired  from  ac- 
tive business,  and  spent  his  later  years  in  the 
quiet  enjoyment  of  the  fruits  of  his  early 
labors. 

Walter  Horatio  Sturgis  acquired  his  early 
education  at  the  New  Hampton  Institute, 
Fairfax,  Vt.,  and  also  attended  the  St.  Albans 
High  School,  subsequently  entering  the  Med- 
ical Department  of  the  University  of  Ver- 
mont. In  189s  he  was  graduated  at  Baltimore 
Medical  College;  and  in  the  spring  of  that 
year  he  located  in  Hull,  where  he  commenced 
work,  and  has  gained  popularity  and  a  large 
practice,  being  highly  esteemed,  both  profes- 
sionally and  personally.  Fraternally,  he  is 
identified  with  Commercial  Lodge,  Knights  of 
Pythias,  of  Boston,  and  is  also  a  member  of 
the  Massachusetts  Medical  Society. 


462 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


FOSTER    PEIRCE,    a   leading   farmer 


of  Scituate,  was  born  here,  July  i, 
1827,  son  of  Elijah  and  Lucy  (Nash) 
Peirce,  both  also  natives  of  the  town.  He  is 
of  the  seventh  generation  descended  from 
Michael  Peirce,  who  was  killed  in  a  war 
with  the  Indians  in  Rhode  Island.  Hayward 
Peirce,  commonly  called  Squire  Peirce,  the 
grandfather  of  E.  Foster  Peirce,  was  promi- 
nent in  the  community,  and  served  as  a  Justice 
of  the  Peace.  Elijah  Peirce  was  a  lifelong 
resident  of  this  town.  A  successful  merchant 
and  farmer,  he  was  no  less  prominent  than  his 
father.  He  was  the  principal  auctioneer  of 
the  locality.  His  integrity  and  good  judg- 
ment were  generally  recognized,  and  he  was 
intrusted  with  the  administration  of  several 
estates.  In  politics  he  was  a  Whig.  He 
served  for  some  time  on  the  School  Committee 
of  Scituate,  and  was  always  actively  inter- 
ested in  educational  affairs.  A  member  of 
the  Unitarian  society,  he  was  one  of  the  com- 
mittee selected  in  1840  to  superintend  the  re- 
modelling of  the  old  church,  which  was  after- 
ward destroyed  by  fire.  He  died  in  1848,  at 
the  age  of  fifty-eight.  Two  of  his  children 
are  living — Silas  and  E.  Foster.  Silas 
Peirce  is  a  successful  business  man  of  Boston, 
and  resides  in  that  city  seven  months  of  the 
year,  spending  the  rest  of  the  time  in  his  sum- 
mer home  at  Scitutite.  He  has  been  the  Pres- 
ident of  the  Boston  National  Bank;  is  now 
the  President  of  the  North  American  Insur- 
ance Company,  which  has  an  office  in  Boston ; 
and  he  is  a  Director  of  the  Northern  Rail- 
road, the  Nantasket  Steamship  Company,  and 
the  Cohasset  Electric  Light  Company.  It 
was  he  who  donated  to  this  town  the  hand- 
some and  well-equipped  Peirce  Memorial 
Library  at  North  Scituate.  His  summer  home 
is  a  handsome  residence,  with  spacious  and 
beautiful    grounds.      He    married    Miss    Myra 


Hall,  now  deceased,  and  has  three  children  — 
Lucy  P.,  Silas,  and  Susan  H. 

E.  Foster  Peirce  was  reared  in  Scituate, 
receiving  his  education  at  public  and  private 
schools.  He  has  spent  most  of  his  life  in 
this  town,  chiefly  occupied  in  agriculture. 
His  home  also  is  one  of  the  residences  of 
which  Scituate  is  justly  proud,  its  general  ap- 
pearance denoting  not  only  wealth,  but  good 
taste  and  careful  ownership.  He  votes  with 
the  Republican  party,  takes  an  active  interest 
in  town  matters,  and  has  filled  acceptably  a 
number  of  public  offices.  Mr.  Foster  was 
married  January  12,  1S59,  to  Sarah  A.  Perry, 
a  native  of  Scituate,  and  a  daughter  of  Calvin 
and  Mercy  (Litchfield)  Perry.  Her  grand- 
father, Adam  Perry,  was  a  resident  of  Han- 
over, Mass. ;  and  in  that  town  her  father,  Cal- 
vin Perry,  was  born.  Calvin  Perry  served  in 
the  War  of  1812.  His  wife  was  a  native  of 
Scituate,  where  he  came  to  reside  after  his 
marriage,  and  died  in  1855.  Three  other 
children  are  also  living,  namely:  Leonard  L. , 
residing  in  Scituate;  Elvira,  residing  in  Scit- 
uate Centre,  the  widow  of  Marcena  Webb; 
and  Mary  F.,  a  retired  school-teacher,  also  re- 
siding in  this  town.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Peirce 
have  one  child,  Annie  F.  Mrs.  Peirce  is  a 
member  of  the  Orthodo.x  Congregational 
church. 


KLAVEL  SHURTLEFF  THOMAS, 
M.D. ,  LL.D.,  was  born  at  Hanson, 
Mass.,  September  7,  1852,  son  of  Isaac 
and  Abby  (Shurtleff)  Thomas.  By  both  par- 
ents he  comes  of  old  and  distinguished  ances- 
try. This  brancli  of  the  Thomas  family  in 
America  originated  with  William  Thomas, 
born  in  1573,  who  came  here  from  England  in 
1637.  He  was  one  of  the  merchant  advent- 
urers who  aided  in  founding  the  New  Plym- 
outh Colony;  and  he  owned  a  grant  of  land, 


FLAVEL    S.   THOMAS.    M.D.,    LL.D. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


465 


comprising  fifteen  thousand  acres,  which  in- 
cluded the  Daniel  Webster  farm  at  Marshfield. 
A  gravestone  marks  his  last  resting-place  in 
the  old  Marshfield  burial-ground. 

His  son  Nathaniel  came  with  him  to  Amer- 
ica. He  had  a  son  known  as  Colonel  Na- 
thaniel, who,  acting  for  himself  and  others  in 
1662,  bought  from  the  Indians  a  large  tract  of 
land,  thereafter  called  the  "Major's  Pur- 
chase," and  received  a  goodly  slice  of  it  in 
compensation  for  his  services.  Portions  of 
that  property  are  still  in  the  possession  of  the 
family,  Wampatuck  farm  —  formerly  a  part  of 
the  Isaac  Thomas  farm — ^  being  owned  by  Dr. 
Thomas.  The  fourth  generation  was  repre- 
sented by  Lieutenant  Isaac  Thomas,  born  in 
1682,  who  lived  near  Gordan  Rest,  Hanson; 
and  the  fifth,  by  Captain  Edward  Thomas, 
born  in  1713,  who  resided  on  the  Isaac 
Thomas  farm.  After  these  came  Isaac,  the 
great-grandfather  of  Dr.  Thomas;  Josiah,  the 
grandfather;   and  Isaac,  the  father. 

William  Shurtleff,  a  native  of  England,  was 
the  founder  of  the  Shurtleff  family  in  Amer- 
ica. His  son  Abiel  had  a  son  Benjamin, 
whose  son  Benjamin,  second,  was  the  father 
of  Lot,  Benjamin,  Charles,  Barzallia,  Milton, 
Nathaniel,  Samuel,  Flavel,  Abigail,  Ruth, 
and  Hannah.  Of  these  Samuel  was  a  physi- 
cian. Benjamin,  the  third  of  the  name,  also 
a  physician,  endowed  Shurtleff  College  at 
Upper  Alton,  111.  Dr.  Benjamin's  son,  Dr. 
Nathaniel  Bradstreet  Shurtleff,  was  Mayor  of 
Boston,  and  a  celebrated  author  and  antiquary. 
Flavel  Shurtleff,  the  father  of  Dr.  Thomas's 
mother,  was  a  graduate  of  Brown  University, 
studied  theology  in  Philadelphia,  and  preached 
in  Hanson  and  several  other  places. 

Flavel  Shurtleff  Thomas,  having  received 
his  early  education  in  the  town  schools  of 
Hanson,  subsequently  studied  at  Hanover 
Academy,  Phillips  Andover  Academy,  Harvard 


University,  Cornell  University,  Shurtleff  Col- 
lege, Boston  University,  Boston  Museum  of 
Natural  History,  Massachusetts  Institute  of 
Technology,  Montreal  Veterinary  College, 
Illinois  Wesleyan  University,  Syracuse  Uni- 
versity, Correspondence  University,  McGill 
University,  and  the  National  University.  He 
began  the  study  of  medicine  in  1871  with 
Woodbridge  R.  Howes,  M.D.,  of  Hanover, 
Mass.,  and  subsequently  attended  three  courses 
of  lectures  at  Harvard  University  Medical 
School,  and  at  McGill  University,  Faculty  of 
Medicine.  Having  received  his  diploma  from 
Harvard  in  1874,  he  entered  upon  the  practice 
of  his  profession  at  Ithaca,  N.  Y.,  in  the  same 
year.  After  spending  a  few  months  in  that 
town,  he  removed  to  Hanson,  which  has  been 
his  place  of  residence  since.  He  has  been 
town  physician  since  1879;  was  lecturer  on 
comparative  anatomy  for  the  College  of  Physi- 
cians and  Surgeons,  Boston,  in  1883;  has 
been  physician  to  Gordan  Rest  Sanitarium, 
Hanson,  since  1891  ;  and  physician  to  Maquan 
Sanitarium  at  Hanson  since  it  was  opened  by 
him  in  1894  for  the  treatment  of  chronic 
diseases,  especially  those  of  women.  He  is 
also  e.xaminer  for  the  New  York  Mutual  and 
the  Manhattan  Life  Insurance  Companies. 

Harvard,  as  before  mentioned,  conferred  on 
him  his  medical  degree;  Shurtleff  College 
conferred  the  degrees  of  Master  of  Arts  and 
Doctor  of  Laws;  the  Montreal  College,  that 
of  Veterinary  Surgeon ;  Syracuse  University, 
those  of  Bachelor  of  Science^  and  Master  of 
Science;  McGill  University,  Doctor  of  Veter- 
inary Science;  and  the  National  University, 
Doctor  of  Philosophy  and  Doctor  of  Zoology. 
The  last-named  degree.  Doctor  of  Zoology, 
was  introduced  from  Europe  into  the  United 
States  by  Dr.  Thomas,  who  was  also  the  first 
person  to  receive  it  from  an  American  col- 
lege.    He  entered  the  National  University  as 


466 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


a  post-graduate  student  and  a  candidate  for 
this  degree,  and  completed  the  necessary 
course  of  two  years  under  the  direction  of  Pro- 
fessor A.  Birge,  Ph.D.  Previous  to  this 
zoology  had  been  a  favorite  study  with  him; 
and  he  had  performed  the  usual  college  work 
in  the  science  and  that  in  professional  zoology 
required  at  the  McGill  and  Harvard  Medical 
Schools,  and  had  also  been  a  special  and  post- 
graduate student  in  zoology  in  Cornell,  under 
Professors  Law,  Gage,  and  Wilder,  in  Syra- 
cuse, with  Professor  Underwood,  and  at  Bos- 
ton Museum  of  Natural  History,  with  Profes- 
sors Van  Vleck  and  Hyatt.  His  degree  of 
Doctor  of  Laws  was  received  in  1892.  On 
learning  of  the  event,  the  principal  of  Phillips 
Andover  Academy,  under  date  of  February  1 7, 
1893,  wrote  him  as  follows:  — 

My  dear  Dr.  Thomas, —  I  am  delighted  to  see  your 
honors  crowned  with  the  larger  wreath.  Your  academic 
recognition  is  very  nearly  complete,  is  it  not  ?  The 
Rev.  W.  C.  Winslow  — the  Egyptologist  —  is  a  D.D., 
Ph.D.,  D.Sc,  LL.U.,  D.C.L.,  and  L.H.D.,  I  think;  but 
you  are  ahead.  You  must  feel  that  the  satisfaction  is 
in  having  earned  them  by  your  painstaking  fidelity  and 
public  spirit. 

I  often  think  how  little  acknowledgment  I  have  made 
for  your  interest  in  me  and  the  school. 

Yours,  (-.    p    p    banxroft. 

Dr.  Thomas  is  largely  devoted  to  literary 
work,  which  in  his  later  years  has  been  char- 
acterized by  profound  scholarship.  Among 
his  writings  may  be  mentioned  his  graduating 
thesis  on  "Opium";  his  "Lectures  on  Com- 
parative Anatomy,"  delivered  at  the  College 
of  Physicians  and  Surgeons,  Boston ;  his 
Doctor  of  Philosophy  thesis,  "Birds  of  Han- 
son"; a  paper  on  "Insects  Injurious  to  Vege- 
tation in  Hanson,"  read  before  the  Farmers' 
Institute  of  Plymouth  County  Agricultural 
Society;  three  papers  read  before  the  Massa- 
chusetts Medical  Society,  respectively  named 


"The  Value  of  a  Knowledge  of  Comparative 
Pathology  to  the  Doctor  of  Medicine,"  "The 
Value  of  a  Knowleilge  of  Comparative  Anat- 
omy to  the  Doctor  of  Medicine,"  and  "Doctor 
of  Medicine,  What  it  is  and  What  it  .should 
be";  a  prize  essay,  "Liquid  Manures," 
written  for  the  Plymouth  County  Agricultm-al 
Society;  contributions  to  the  Ne%v  Eiighmd 
Medical  Montlily,  entitled  "The  Ideal  Medi- 
cal School,"  "Medical  Education,"  "The 
Best  Preliminary  Education  for  the  Study 
of  Medicine,"  and  "A  Few  Words  to  Medi- 
cal Schools";  "The  Lecture  System,"  an 
article  published  in  the  Boston  IMcdical  and 
Surgical  Journal ;  "University  Degrees,"  in 
\}m  School  Bulletin  of  Syracuse,  N.Y. ;  "The 
Physician"  and  "Medicines,"  in  the  Boston 
Journal  of  Health;  "Veterinary  Degrees," 
in  the  Journal  of  Comparative  Medicine  and 
Surgery;  "Life  in  a  Puddle"  and  "Micro- 
scopic Pond  Life,"  in  Youth's  Companion ; 
"Montreal  Letters"  and  "Syracuse  Letter," 
in  Old  Colony  Memorial;  "Non-resident  De- 
grees" and  "The  Current  Value  of  University 
Degrees"  in  the  National  Magazine;  "The 
Medical  Missionary,"  contributed  to  the 
Healthy  Home;  "Doctor  of  Laws,  Origin, 
History,  Past  and  Present  Use,"  and  "Latin 
or  English  Order  in  University  Degrees,"  in 
the  University  Magazine  of  New  York;  "A 
Study  of  the  Present  System  of  University  De- 
grees, with  Generalizations  and  Suggestions," 
and  "Bachelor  of  Arts  and  Bachelor  of 
Science,"  in  Education  of  Boston;  and  "The 
Best  Course  of  Study  Preparatory  to  the  Study 
of  Medicine,"  in  American  Journal  of  Educa- 
tion of  St.  Louis.  He  is  also  the  author  of 
these  pamphlets:  "Lectures  on  the  Science 
of  Agriculture,"  "A  Perfect  University," 
and  "University  Degrees:  What  they  mean. 
What  they  indicate,  and  How  to  use  them." 
The   department    of    University   Degrees    and 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


467 


Education  in  the  "Standard  Dictionary  of  the 
English  Language,"  published  by  Funk  & 
Wagnalls  Company,  New  York,  was  edited. by 
Dr.  Thomas.  The  publisher  also  submitted 
proofs  of  the  entire  work  to  his  inspection 
before  sending  it  to  press.  The  question  re- 
garding a  rule  to  be  followed  in  printing  the 
academic  degrees  of  the  two  hundred  and 
forty-seven  editors  of  the  dictionary,  and  other 
degrees  therein,  was  left  to  his  decision, 
which  was  that  old  titles,  which  centuries  of 
use  had  crystallized  in  the  Latin  form,  as 
Ph.D.  and  M.D.,  should  retain  that  form,  and 
that  all  modern  degrees,  such  as  B.S.  and 
M.S.,  together  with  all  others  that  have  been 
written  both  ways,  such  as  B.A.  and  M.A. , 
take  the  English  form.  William  T.  Harris, 
LI^. D.,  the  United  States  Commissioner  of 
Education,  who  is  editing  the  "International 
Education  Series,"  has  recently  invited  Dr. 
Thomas  to  prepare  a  dictionary  of  university 
degrees  for  that  work. 

In  1879,  July  9,  Dr.  Thomas  was  married 
to  Miss  Caroline  M.  Smith,  daughter  of  Cap- 
tain Joseph  Smith,  C.E.,  of  Titusville,  Pa. 
Their  two  children  are:  Percival  Shurtleff, 
born  October  7,  1884;  and  Saba  Drew,  born 
February  27,  1893.  At  present  the  Doctor  is 
serving  the  town  of  Hanson  as  a  member  of  its 
School  Committee,  and  is  a  Trustee  of  Plym- 
outh County  Agricultural  Society.  He  joined 
the  Massachusetts  Medical  Society  in  1875 
and  the  Harvard  Medical  School  Alumni  As- 
sociation in  1 891.  A  Mason  of  long  standing 
in  Puritan  Lodge  of  Whitman,  Mass.,  he  was 
exalted  to  the  Royal  Arch  degree  in  Pilgrim 
Chapter  of  Abington,  Mass.,  on  February  15, 
1895;  and  he  was  created  Knight  Templar  in 
Old  Colony  Commandery  of  Abington  on  P'eb- 
ruary  3,  1896.  He  is  also  a  member  of  the 
Independent  Order  of  Odd  Fellows  in  North 
River   Lodge   of    Hanover,    Mass.      It    is    not 


necessary  to  say  that  Dr.  Thomas  is  highly 
esteemed  by  Hanson  people,  who  feel  a  war- 
rantable pride  in  having  among  them  a  man  of 
his  distinction. 

Biographical  sketches  of  Favel  S.  Thomas 
may  be  found  in  "Syracuse  University  Alumni 
Record,"  "Physicians  and  Surgeons  of  Amer- 
ica" (with  portrait),  and  in  History  of  Plym- 
outh County." 


OHN  S.  BROOKS,  of  Hanover,  who 
has  been  successfully  engaged  in  busi- 
ness here  for  upward  of  half  a  century, 
was  born  in  North  Hanover,  Plymouth  County, 
October  27,  1824,  son  of  John  and  Amy 
(Mann)  Brooks.  His  parents  had  ten  chil- 
dren, of  whom  two  died  in  infancy.  The 
rest,  who  all  attained  maturity,  were:  John 
S.,  Levi,  Warren,  Thomas  D.,  Emma,  Sarah, 
Mary,  and  Hannah.  Levi  lost  his  life  during 
the  Civil  War,  in  the  Red  River  Expe- 
dition. John  S.  Brooks  was  the  eldest. 
He  obtained  his  education  in  the  common 
schools  and  at  a  private  school  kept  by  Judge 
Harris,  now  of  Brockton.  Unable  to  attend 
school  beyond  his  twelfth  year,  excepting  dur- 
ing the  winter,  he  began  work  at  the  shoe- 
maker's trade,  which  he  followed  continuously 
for  fifteen  years.  He  then  purchased  the 
store  which  he  has  since  prosperously  con- 
ducted, a  period  of  forty-four  years.  He  has 
a  well-selected  stock  of  general  dry  goods, 
groceries,  etc.  The  place__w3s  a  union  store 
for  some  years. 

Mr.  Brooks  has  been  twice  married.  His 
first  union  was  contracted  June  23,  1850,  with 
Miss  Nancy  Binney,  who  died  childless.  On 
October  19,  1869,  Miss  liliza  F.  Shurtleff  be 
came  his  wife.  Born  of  this  marriage  are  two 
children  —  John  F.  and  Marion  S.  Since 
1 888  Mr.  Brooks  has  had  charge  of  the  North 


468 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Hanover  post-office.  He  was  elected  in  1861 
to  the  office  of  Selectman,  and  has  served  in 
that  capacity  altogether  about  five  years.  He 
has  also  been  an  Overseer  of  the  Poor  and  As- 
sessor. 


-rj^ATHANIEL  HENRY  CROSS,  for- 
I  =:/  merly  a  well-known  business  man  of 
Jl^  \^  North  Bridgewater,  Mass.,  where 
more  than  fifty  years  ago  he  was  engaged  in 
carriage  manufacturing,  was  born  in  East 
Bridgewater,  October  11,  1803.  He  was  a 
son  of  Captain  Nathaniel  Cross,  who  had  re- 
moved thither  a  short  time  previously  from 
Exeter,  N.H.  In  1824,  when  twenty-one 
years  of  age,  having  acquired  his  education  in 
South  Bridgewater,  and  also  mastered  the 
wheelwright's  trade,  Nathaniel  H.  settled  in 
North  Bridgewater,  now  Brockton.  An  in- 
telligent, well-informed  man,  energetic,  and 
enterprising,  he  not  only  successfully  carried 
on  his  business  of  wagon  and  carriage  making, 
but  dealt  considerably  in  real  estate  in  the 
vicinity,  and  was  also  somewhat  interested  in 
Western  lands.  He  was  a  Democrat  in  poli- 
tics, and  President  Jackson  appointed  him 
Postmaster  at  North  Bridgewater,  which  office 
he  filled  acceptably  for  a  number  of  years.  In 
religion  he  was  liberal  and  progressive,  re- 
garding belief  as  an  "act  of  the  intellect  as 
well  as  the  heart";  and  he  attended  the  Uni- 
tarian church,  of  whose  pastor,  the  Rev.  M. 
Goldsboro,  he  was  an  intimate  friend.  Strictly 
temperate  from  principle,  he  was  an  active 
worker  in  temperance  societies.  As  was  the 
custom  in  those  days,  he  took  part  in  the 
annual  drill  of  the  local  militia,  of  which  for 
some  years  he  was  an  enrolled  member.  He 
departed  this  life  on  March  25,  1843,  ''i  fhe 
fortieth  year  of  his  age. 

In  October,  1824,  Mr.  Cross  married   Lucy 
Vose,    daughter  of    Elijah    Vose,    of    Boston. 


She  was  born  in  Boston,  April  9,  1807.  At 
the  age  of  twelve,  being  then  an  orphan,  she 
went  to  Bridgewater  to  live,  and  there  at- 
tended a  private  boarding-school.  By  her 
marriage  she  became  the  mother  of  six  chil- 
dren, namely:  Nathaniel  and  Henry,  both 
now  deceased;  William  W.  Cross,  a  promi- 
nent manufacturer  of  Brockton ;  and  Lucy, 
who  married  Charles  C.  F"ield,  also  a  promi- 
nent business  man  of  Brockton;  Mrs.  M.  B. 
Burland,  the  wife  of  Dr.  Burland,  a  well- 
known  physician  of  Philadelphia;  and  Mrs. 
Susan  Holbrook,  of  Brockton.  The  old  fam- 
ily homestead  in  North  Bridgewater,  pur- 
chased by  Mr.  Cross  in  1831,  after  his  demise 
was  occupied  by  Mrs.  Cross  until  her  death, 
on  May  4,  1896,  at  the  advanced  age  of 
eighty-nine  years.  Until  within  two  years  of 
her  death  she  had  charge  of  the  estate  left  by 
her  husband,  and  managed  it  very  success- 
fully; and,  excepting  the  last  year  of  her  life, 
she  was  mentally  active,  able  to  attend  to 
business  and  to  read  the  newspapers.  She 
was  much  interested  in  charities  and  reforms. 
In  her  younger  days  she  belonged  to  various 
temperance  societies,  and  at  one  time  was 
president  of  a  benevolent  association.  Later 
in  life  she  bestowed  several  sums  on  various 
public  institutions.  She  was  a  lady  of  quiet, 
gentle,  and  refined  tastes  and  manners,  and 
was  much  esteemed. 


OHN  JOSEPH  SHAW,  M.D.,  a  well- 
known  physician  of  Plymouth  County, 
who  settled  in  the  town  of  Plymouth, 
was  born  August  ir,  1842,  in  East  Bridge- 
water,  Mass.,  where  his  ancestors  had  resided 
for  about  two  hundred  years.  Joseph  Shaw, 
son  of  John  and  grandson  of  Abraham,  of 
Dedham,  was  the  first  of  the  name  in  this 
country,  having  removed  from  Weymouth  and 


JOHN    J.    SHAW. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


471 


bought  a  large  tract  of  land  in  East  Bridge- 
water  (then  Bridgewater),  about  the  year 
i69<S.  The  first  Joseph  Shaw  had  a  son,  the 
Rev.  John  Shaw,  who  was  born  in  East 
Bridgewater  in  the  year  1708,  and  was  the 
grandfather  of  Chief  Justice  Lemuel  Shaw,  of 
Boston,  and  his  cousin,  the  Hon.  John  A. 
Shaw,  of  Bridgewater.  Joseph,  first,  also  had 
a  son  born  in  171 1,  Deacon  Zechariah,  who 
had  a  son  Zechariah,  born  in  1751.  He  had 
Joseph  in  1779,  antl  in  1785  Alvan,  who  was 
a  volunteer  in  the  War  of  18 12. 

The  second  Joseph,  who  was  the  grandfather 
of  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  was  a  man  of 
energetic  character,  a  competent  farmer,  and 
owner  of  a  grist-mill.  He  was  prominent  in 
religious  matters,  and  was  a  pillar  of  the  old 
orthodox  church.  In  the  latter  part  of  his 
life  he  retired  from  active  work,  and  he  died 
in  East  Bridgewater  in  his  eighty-si.xth  year. 
He  was  twice  married.  His  first  wife  was 
Olive,  daughter  of  Samuel  Dike,  whose 
father,  .Samuel,  was  born  in  Scotland  in  1782. 
Their  only  child  was  Samuel  Dike  Shaw,  the 
father  of  the  subject  of  this  sketch. 

Owing  to  precarious  health,  it  was  not 
deemed  advisable  that  Samuel  D.  Shaw  should 
go  to  college,  as  had  been  intended  by  his 
parents.  His  father  gave  him  a  grist-mill, 
and  thus  started  him  in  the  grain  business, 
which,  under  his  skilful  management,  in  a 
few  years  grew  into  a  large  wholesale  and  re- 
tail trade  in  grain  and  flour,  and  all  the  re- 
quirements of  a  country  supply  store. 

Mr.  Samuel  D.  Shaw  also  controlled  a  mill 
for  the  manufacture  of  building  lumber,  and 
was  at  one  time  interested  in  tack  manufact- 
uring. He  has  been  a  great  sufferer  from  fire, 
having  had  no  less  than  six  separate  experi- 
ences of  this  kind,  each  time  with  heavy  loss. 
In  spite  of  his  close  business  application  he 
has  been  a  lifelong  student,  being  especially 


interested  in  the  natural  sciences,  in  which 
line  he  has  acquired  a  high  degree  of  profi- 
ciency. He  was  always  a  Whig  in  politics 
until  the  formation  of  the  Republican  party, 
since  which  event  he  has  acted  with  that  or- 
ganization; and  at  the  time  of  the  abolition 
movement  he  was  actively  interested  in  the 
suppression  of  slavery.  He  retired  from  busi- 
ness some  years  since,  and  now  resides  with 
his  son.  He  was  born  on  the  old  Bridgewater 
place  on  November  25,  1S13,  and  married  in 
1839  Wealthy  Stickney  Estes,  daughter  of 
James  Estes,  of  ]?runswick.  Me.,  and  a  de- 
scendant of  Sir  William  Thompson,  knight 
and  baron  of  the  city  of  London.  They  had 
two  sons  —  Henry  W.  and  John  Joseph. 
Henry  W.,  the  elder  son,  died  at  the  age  of 
twenty-six. 

John  Joseph  Shaw  commenced  his  school 
life  at  the  academy  of  William  Allen  in  East 
Bridgewater,  and  afterward  attended  the  com- 
mon schools  of  the  town,  and  later  the  Bridge- 
water  Normal  School,  where  he  was  graduated 
in  1863.  He  began  the  study  of  medicine  in 
1864,  graduating  from  the  Hygeo-Therapeutic 
College  in  New  York  City  in  1867.  Contin- 
uing his  studies,  in  1872  he  took  a  post-grad- 
uate medical  course  at  Harvard,  after  finishing 
which  he  practised  for  two  years  in  East 
Bridgewater.  In  October,  1S74,  Dr.  Shaw 
located  himself  in  Plymouth,  where  he  has 
since  been  engaged  in  a  constantly  increasing 
practice.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Massachu- 
setts State  Medical  Societyluid  of  the  Amer- 
ican Institute  of  Homceopathy.  Dr.  Shaw  is 
an  original  thinker  and  a  clear  and  facile 
writer.  He  has  written  considerably  for  the 
lay  and  medical  press  and  medical  societies, 
and  is  the  author  of  two  monographs,  entitled 
■'The  Scientific  Basis  of  Homceopathy"  and 
■'Why  I  am  a  Homceopath." 

Dr.  Shaw  married  for  his  first  wife  Persis 


472 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


R.    Kingman,    of   Keene,    N.II.,    by  whom   he 
had  a  son,    John    Holbrook,  who  graduated   in 

1893  from   Harvard   Medical   College,  and   in 

1894  from  Boston  University,  and  is  now  in 
successful  practice  in  Plymouth.  Dr.  Shaw's 
second  wife  is  Edith  Luella  Aldrich,  daugh- 
ter of  the  Rev.  Jeremiah  Knight  Aldrich,  of 
Warwick,  R.I.  Mr.  Aldrich  is  a  second 
cousin  of  ex-Governor  Henry  Howard,  and  ex- 
Lieutenant  Governor  Albert  C.  Howard,  of 
Rhode  Island.  He  is  also  a  second  cousin 
and  intimate  friend  of  James  Burrell  Angell, 
former  minister  to  China,  and  now  president 
of  Michigan  University.  His  ancestors  were 
for  many  years  the  controllers  of  Rhode 
Island  politics.  The  Rev.  J.  K.  Aldrich  has 
held  pastorates  in  East  Bridgewater,  Groton, 
Rye,  Nashua,  and  other  places.  He  has  now 
retired  from  active  work,  and  resides  on  one 
of  his  estates  in  Hyannis.  He  has  written 
extensively,  and  is  author  of  a  work  of  deep 
research  and  profound  logic,  entitled  "The 
Day  of  our  Saviour's  Crucifixion."  Dr.  Shaw 
and  his  present  wife  have  had  two  children, 
namely:  Lillian  Estes,  born  October  13, 
1 881;  and  Joseph  Henry,  October  9,  1886. 
The  death  of  their  daughter  Lillian,  which 
occurred  May  16,  1895,  was  a  terrible  blow, 
from  which  they  will  never  recover. 

Dr.  Shaw  is  a  member  of  Mayflower  Lodge, 
Independent  Order  of  Odd  Fellows;  and  also 
of  Patuxet  Colony,  Pilgrim  Fathers,  and 
Plymouth  Rock  Lodge,  of  the  Ancient  Order 
of  United  Workmen,  and  is  medical  examiner 
of  the  two  latter.  He  was  town  physician  for 
two  years.  In  the  summer  and  fall  of  1896 
he  visited  Europe,  going  to  London  as  a  dele- 
gate of  the  International  Homceopathic  Medi- 
cal Congress,  and  afterward  visiting  Scotland, 
Belgium,  Germany,  the  Rhine,  Switzerland, 
and  Paris.  After  his  return  Dr.  Shaw  re- 
mained for  a  time  in  New  York   City,  where 


he  took   a   special   course  at   the    New    York 
Post-graduate  Medical  College  and  Hospital. 


ESSE  M.  CUSHMAN,  a  successful 
merchant  of  Rochester,  was  born  here, 
November  27,  1826,  son  of  Gilson  and 
Susan  H.  (Purington)  Cushman.  Having  ac- 
quired his  education  in  the  district  school,  he 
shipped  as  cabin  boy  at  Mattapoisett  for  his 
first  voyage,  on  board  a  whaling  vessel,  being 
then  fourteen  years  old.  The  vessel  was 
wrecked,  and  the  crew  cast  away  in  the  Arctic 
Ocean,  near  the  northern  edge  of  the  Gulf 
Stream;  but,  fortunately,  all  were  rescued. 
Undeterred  by  this  experience,  the  lad,  after 
reaching  home,  shipped  on  the  brig  "Amer- 
ica" from  Wareham,  Mass.  This  vessel 
sprung  a  leak  when  a  few  days  out,  and  was 
obliged  to  return  to  port.  He  then  engaged 
as  cabin  boy  on  the  ship  "  Lagoda "  of  New 
Bedford,  which  was  out  twenty  months,  cruis- 
ing in  the  Indian  and  Pacific  Oceans.  By  the 
time  this  vessel  returned  to  port  he  was  an  ex- 
perienced sailor,  and  next  went  as  able  sea- 
man on  the  ship  "Liverpool,"  which  was  out 
three  years,  whaling  in  the  Pacific  and  Indian 
Oceans.  On  his  fourth  voyage  he  was  the 
second  mate  of  a  merchant  vessel  sailing  from 
Boston  to  the  West  Indies.  With  this  vessel 
he  was  connected  about  three  years. 

Returning  to  Massachusetts  in  1849,  ^''t'- 
Cushman  caught  the  gold  fever  then  raging, 
and  went  to  California.  He  was  in  Califor- 
nia from  1849  t^o  the  spring  of  1852,  prospect- 
ing and  mining  with  moderate  success.  He 
then  came  back  to  Rochester,  and  purchased 
the  store  which  he  has  since  successfully  con- 
ducted. Here  he  dealt  in  grain  for  twenty 
years.  He  now  keeps  a  good  stock  of  general 
merchandise.  Having  occupied  his  present 
stand   for  forty-four  years,    he   is  one   of   the 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


473 


oldest  and  best-known  business  men  in  this 
section  of  the  county.  He  was  married  Au- 
gust 2,  1853,  to  Miss  Dorcas  P.  Swift.  They 
had  one  child,  who  died  in  infancy.  Mr. 
Cushman  votes  the  Republican  ticket.  He 
was  town  liquor  agent  for  one  year.  He  is 
quite  popular  with  his  townsmen,  and  has 
many  old  friends  among  the  seafaring  men  of 
the  locality. 


<  m  •^> 


""CiDWARD  M.  SWEENY,  a  well-known 
Jpl  member  of  the  firm  E.  Phillips  &  Sons, 
of  South  tlanover,  was  born  Septem- 
ber II,  1834,  in  Plattsburg,  Clinton  County, 
N.Y.,  son  of  Felix  and  Margaret  (Dunn) 
Sweeny.  When  he  was  four  years  old,  he 
moved  with  his  father  and  mother  to  Clinton- 
ville,  N.Y.,  where  he  had  the  benefit  of 
public-school  instruction  until  he  was  twelve. 
Then  he  began  to  work  for  his  living  in  the 
nail  factory  and  rolling-mill  of  that  place,  and 
remained  there  four  years.  From  Clinton- 
ville  he  went  to  Fairhaven,  Vt. ,  to  learn  the 
trade  of  nail-making  of  Messrs.  Dewey  & 
Cushman.  Three  years  later,  feeling  the 
need  of  more  education,  he  attended  a  private 
school  for  one  winter.  Subsequently,  after  a 
brief  stay  in  Providence,  R.  I.,  he  served  a 
short  period  in  the  Parker  mills  at  Wareham, 
Mass.  Mr.  Sweeny  then  worked  at  his  trade 
for  three  years  in  Bridgewater.  In  1858  he 
came  to  South  Hanover  to  be  employed  by 
E.  Y.  Perry  &  C,  now  known  under  the 
style  of  E.  Phillips  &  Sons.  His  efforts  for 
them  were  so  well  appreciated  that  after  a 
few  years  he  was  appointed  foreman,  and  later 
superintendent.  In  1886  he  was  received  into 
the  firm  as  a  partner.  Messrs.  E.  Phillips  & 
Sons  manufacture  forty-nine  different  kinds 
of  nails  and  tacks,  besides  sheet  lead,  zinc 
battery  plates,  glaziers'  tools  or  points,  and 
poultry  staples. 


On  May  30,  1857,  Mr.  Sweeny  was  married 
to  Lucy  M.  Thaxter,  who  has  since  borne  him 
five  children.  These  are:  Henry  L. ,  Edward 
P.,  Ernest  Franklin,  Florence,  and  Rodolph 
W.  Henry  L.  is  a  medical  practitioner  in 
Kingston,  N.  H.  ;  Edward  P.  is  a  book-keeper 
in  New  York  City;  Ernest  Franklin  is  con- 
nected with  the  Strong  Manufacturing  Com- 
pany in  Winsted,  Conn. ;  Florence  is  at  home; 
and  Rodolph  W.  is  attending  school.  In  pol- 
itics the  father  is  a  Republican.  He  is  a 
Mason  of  Phceni.x  Blue  Lodge,  Royal  Arch 
Chapter,  and  Old  Colony  Commandery;  and 
he  has  also  membership  in  the  Knights  of 
Honor. 

NDREW  DENHAM  is  one  of  the  old 
and  respected  residents  of  Mattapoi- 
sett.  He  was  born  here,  January 
28,  1829,  son  of  Andrew  Denham,  a  me- 
chanic, and  Artemesia  (Basse)  Denham.  He 
was  reared  on  his  father's  farm,  acquiring  his 
early  education  in  the  district  school.  The 
wider  knowledge  of  which  he  is  now  the 
master  was  gained  by  personal  observation 
and  experience.  Like  most  of  the  boys  in  his 
native  town,  he  took  to  the  water  when  quite 
young.  At  the  age  of  seventeen  he  shipped 
as  seaman  on  a  whaling  vessel,  which  was 
away  cruising  in  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  for 
three  years,  during  which  the  lad  saw  a  great 
deal  of  the  world.  One  of  the  places  visited 
was  San  Francisco,  then  a  small  town  of  ir- 
regular plan  and  architecture. 

At  the  end  of  the  cruise  he  decided  that 
there  was  "no  place  like  home,"  and  settled 
on  the  farm  where  he  had  passed  his  boyhood. 
The  estate,  which  has  been  owned  by  the  fam- 
ily for  a  great  many  years,  contains  two  hun- 
dred acres.  Here  for  nearly  half  a  century  he 
has  been  successfully  engaged  in  general  farm- 
ing and  dairying.      He  is  now  regarded  as  one 


474 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


of  the  leading  agriculturists  of  this  section. 
Mr.  Denham  was  married  in  1850  to  Miss 
Diana  Barstow,  and  has  three  children  — 
Henry  L. ,  Nathan  B. ,  and  Sarah  M.  He  is 
interested  in  politics  so  far  as  they  subserve 
the  general  good,  but  is  not  a  party  man. 


lUWARD  W.  WINSOR,  of  the  firm 
VVinsor  &  Peterson,  Du.xbury,  dealers 
in  fine  groceries,  was  born  in  this 
town,  May  19,  1839,  son  of  Captain  Benjamin 
and  Hannah  B.  (Freeman)  VVinsor,  and  grand- 
son of  John  Winsor.  Samuel,  the  father  of 
John,  was  the  founder  of  the  Massachusetts 
branch  of  the  family,  which  is  supposed  to  be 
of  Scottish  origin.  Captain  Benjamin  Winsor 
was  a  well-known  and  popular  sea  captain, 
who  made  voyages  principally  to  ports  in  the 
Mediterranean  Sea.  In  the  efforts  to  make 
his  orders  heard  by  his  men  aloft,  during  a 
severe  storm  off  the  coast  of  Gibraltar,  he  in- 
jured his  lungs,  so  that  consumption  found  him 
an  easy  prey;  and  he  died  after  a  short  ill- 
ness, only  reaching  the  age  of  forty-four  years. 
Keen  of  intellect,  he  had  a  good,  practical  ed- 
ucation and  a  thorough  knowledge  of  naviga- 
tion. He  never  lost  a  vessel.  In  politics  he 
was  an  earnest  Jacksonian  Democrat.  His 
strong  sympathy  with  that  party  prompted  him 
to  name  a  sloop  that  he  owned  the  "Andrew 
Jackson."  His  wife,  who  survived  him,  lived 
to  be  seventy-four  years  old.  Of  their  four 
children,  two  are  living,  namely:  Eudora,  the 
widow  of  Columbus  Whitten,  residing  at  Mel- 
rose Highlands,  Mass.  ;  and  Edward  W.,  the 
subject  of  this  sketch.  The  others  were: 
Claudius  B.  and  Benjamin. 

The  home  life  of  Edward  W.  Winsor  has 
been  spent  in  Duxbury,  where  he  was  reared 
and  educated.  For  a  number  of  years  he  was 
in  the  employ  of  Cyrus  Wakefield,  of  Wake- 


field, Mass.,  making  rattan  chairs.  In  18S0 
he  was  engaged  by  W.  S.  Freeman  as  manager 
of  the  store  in  which  he  now  owns  an  interest, 
and  acted  in  that  capacity  for  four  years.  He 
then  bought  out  Mr.  Freeman,  and  carried  on 
the  business  for  one  year  in  his  own  name, 
being  the  sole  proprietor.  In  the  following 
year  he  took  in  as  a  partner  W.  O.  Peterson, 
with  whom  he  has  prosperously  conducted  the 
place  since,  under  the  firm  name  of  Winsor  & 
Peterson.  They  give  their  attention  chiefly 
to  handling  standard  groceries.  In  politics 
Mr.  Winsor  is  a  stanch  Republican.  He  is  a 
member  of  Mattakesett  Lodge,  No.  iio,  Inde- 
pendent Order  of  Odd  Fellows,  and  has  been 
Chaplain  of  the  lodge.  His  religious  belief 
is  that  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  church. 


ON.  BENJAMIN  GAMMONS  has 
been  long  identified  with  the  indus- 
trial interests  of  Rochester,  and  at 
one  time  represented  it  in  the  State  legis- 
lature. Fie  was  born  here,  February  12, 
1832,  son  of  Noble  and  Roxanna  (Swift)  Gam- 
mons. Noble  Gammons,  who  was  born  in 
Middleboro,  Mass.,  settled  in  Rochester  when 
a  young  man.  He  died  on  the  farm  now  occu- 
pied by  his  son,  at  the  age  of  eighty-one. 
His  wife,  a  native  of  Wareham,  Mass.,  died 
at  the  age  of  sixty-eight.  Their  six  children 
were:  John  F.,  Abigail,  Ann,  Benjamin, 
Roxanna,  and  Albert. 

Benjamin  Gammons  received  a  good  practi- 
cal education  in  his  native  town.  He  went  to 
work  at  the  age  of  sixteen,  obtaining  employ- 
ment first  in  a  carriage  factory  in  Fall  River, 
Mass.,  where  he  remained  a  year.  After 
spending  a  few  months  at  the  same  kind  of 
work  in  Wareham,  Mass.,  he  learned  the  shoe- 
maker's trade,  and  thereafter  followed  it  in 
Middleboro  for  about  four  years.      When  the 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


475 


old  Bay  State  was  called  upon  to  furnish  her 
quota  of  men  for  the  Civil  War,  Mr.  Gammons 
was  one  of  the  first  to  respond  from  the  shoe 
shops.  He  enlisted  on  April  15,  1 861,  as  a 
private  in  Company  D,  Eighteenth  Regiment 
of  Massachusetts  Infantry,  and  was  mustered 
in  at  Readville.  The  first  serious  engage- 
ment in  which  he  took  part  was  at  Old  Church, 
Va.  During  a  great  part  of  his  term  of  ser- 
vice his  regiment  was  attached  to  the  Army  of 
the  Potomac,  in  P"itz-John  Porter's  division. 
Having  gone  through  his  full  share  of  the 
hardships  and  trials  of  a  soldier's  life,  he  was 
honorably  discharged  on  September  2,  1864. 
From  1865  to  1867  he  worked  at  his  trade  in 
New  Castle,  Pa.  He  then  returned  to  his  na- 
tive town,  and  was  engaged  in  the  manufacture 
of  shoes  until  1894,  when  he  retired.  He  has 
a  valuable  farm,  on  which  he  has  lived  since 
1867,  and  where  he  carried  on  his  business  of 
shoe  manufacturing. 

Mr.  Gammons  was  married  in  1866  to  Miss 
Mary  J.  Dieringer.  He  has  no  children. 
He  is  a  member  of  the  Republican  party.  He 
has  served  with  credit  on  the  School  Com- 
mittee, and  represented  the  town  in  the  State 
legislature  of  189 1.  A  Mason  in  good  stand- 
ing, he  belongs  to  Pythagorean  Lodge  of 
Marion,  Mass.  Mr.  Gammons  is  well  known 
and  highly  esteemed  in  Rochester  and  vicinity. 


"ENRY  MERRITT,  a  reliable  and  suc- 
cessful contractor  and  builder  of 
1*^  I  Scituate  Centre,  was  born  in  Scitu- 
ate,  September  5,  1825,  son  of  Asa  and  Betsey 
(Cudworth)  Merritt.  The  Merritt  family, 
which  is  scattered  over  the  States,  is  de- 
scended from  Henry  Merritt,  who  was  a  mem- 
ber of  the  colony  from  Kent,  England,  that 
settled  in  Scituate  in  1628,  and  whose  memory 
is  perpetuated  by  a  monument  erected  in  the 


old  cemetery  at  Scituate  Harbor.  The  great- 
grandfather of  Henry  Merritt  was  James  Mer- 
ritt, and  the  grandfather  was  Asa  Merritt. 
Both  were  lifelong  residents  of  Scituate. 

Asa  Merritt,  the  father,  was  a  native  of  this 
town;  and  for  some  years  he  followed  the 
trade  of  a  carpenter.  During  his  long  useful 
life  he  held  various  town  offices,  including 
that  of  Selectman;  and  he  served  as  a  soldier 
in  the  War  of  181 2.  When  he  died  in  1866, 
he  left  the  reputation  of  a  worthy  citizen. 
His  wife,  Betsey  Cudworth,  also  a  native  of 
this  town,  came  of  an  old  Scituate  family  of 
English  origin,  sprung  from  General  Cud- 
worth, who  served  in  the  colonies  under  the 
British  crown.  Of  the  children  born  to  Asa 
and  Betsey  Merritt,  Henry  and  Asa  J.  are  the 
only  survivors. 

Henry  Merritt  obtained  his  education  in  the 
public  schools  of  his  native  town  and  at  a  pri- 
vate school.  At  the  age  of  seventeen  he  com- 
menced to  learn  the  carpenter's  trade,  serving 
his  apprenticeship  with  his  father.  Subse- 
quently, after  working  as  a  journeyman  for  a 
time,  he  established  himself  in  the  business 
of  contractor  and  builder,  which  he  has  since 
prosperously  followed.  For  many  years  past 
he  has  also  been  engaged  in  agricultural  pur- 
suits. On  December  25,  1849,  he  was  united 
in  marriage  with  Lydia  B.  Merritt.  She  is  a 
daughter  of  James  L.  and  Emily  (Litchfield) 
Merritt,  both  of  whom  were  natives  of  Scitu- 
ate. James  Merritt  served  in  the  War  of 
1812,  and  died  in  this  town  in  1859.  His 
other  surviving  children  are:  Emily  C,  Har- 
vey, and  Amos  W.  Henry  Merritt  is  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Unitarian  church.  In  politics  he 
is  a  Republican.  Frequent  invitations  to  ac- 
cept office  have  been  invariably  declined  by 
him,  he  preferring  to  devote  what  leisure  time 
he  can  spare  from  his  business  to  the  enjoy- 
ment   of   the   home   circle.      Yet  he  takes   a 


476 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


lively  interest  in  public  affairs,  and  is  ever 
ready  to  promote  the  good  of  the  general  com- 
munity. He  occupies  the  residence  which  was 
built  b\'  his  father  in  1S17,  and  which  by  the 
aid  of  a  few  necessary  repairs  still  wears  a  well- 
preserved  appearance.  Highly  esteemed,  and 
one  of  the  representative  men  of  Scituate,  he 
is  a  worthy  representative  of  his  historic 
family. 


I  •••  > 


JL 


ATTAIN  JOHN  C.  DAWES,  a  suc- 
cessful coal  dealer,  and  the  agent  of 
the  Standard  Oil  Company  in 
Kingston,  was  born  in  Duxbury,  this  county, 
June  20,  1850,  son  of  Captain  James  H.  and 
Abbie  (Chandler)  Dawes.  The  father  is  a 
native  of  Du.\bury,  and  the  mother  of  Ver- 
mont. An  account  of  the  family  ancestry  will 
be  found  in  the  sketch  of  Captain  James  H. 
Dawes. 

After  residing  in  Duxbury  until  he  was 
twelve  years  old,  John  C.  Dawes  moved  with 
his  parents  to  Kingston,  continuing,  however, 
to  attend  school  in  his  native  town.  He  grad- 
uated from  the  Partridge  Academy  when  he 
was  fifteen  years  old,  and  then  took  a  course  at 
French's  Commercial  College  in  Boston.  At 
the  age  of  sixteen  he  began  to  follow  the  sea. 
His  first  voyages  were  made  with  Captain 
Justus  Bailey,  who  was  engaged  in  the  foreign 
trade.  Beginning  a  year  later,  he  made  sev- 
eral voyages  with  his  father.  He  next  served 
with  Captain  Walter  L.  Joslyn,  of  Duxbury, 
and  then  became  master  of  the  "Matchless," 
a  twelve-hundred  ton  ship  owned  in  Boston. 
He  had  been  engaged  in  the  foreign  trade 
as  commander  of  the  "Matchless"  for  eight 
years,  when  early  in  the  eighties  he  retired 
from  the  sea.  In  the  course  of  his  seafaring 
life  he  doubled  Cape  Horn  fourteen  times  and 
thrice  circumnavigated  the  globe.  Subse- 
quently he  resided  for  a  time   in   Mexico,  as 


purchasing  agent  for  the  Plymouth  Cordage 
Company.  Returning  to  Kingston,  he  became 
a  dealer  in  groceries,  grain,  hay,  and  coal. 
In    1894   he  soltl    the    grocery    department    to 

E.  S.  Wright,  and  became  the  local  agent  of 
the  Standard  Oil  Company.  He  continued  in 
the  coal  business,  which  he  has  since  con- 
ducted with  success. 

Captain  Dawes  wedded  Mary  T.  Whitman, 
daughter  of  Deacon  Seth  Whitman,  of  Pem- 
broke, Mass.  ;  and  now  has  one  son,  Theodore 

F.  In  politics  he  is  a  Republican,  and  the 
present  Secretary  of  the  Republican  Town 
Committee.  At  one  time  he  served  the  com- 
munity as  Town  Auditor.  He  is  a  Director 
of  the  Kingston  Cemetery  Association,  and  a 
life  member  and  a  steward  of  the  Boston 
Marine  Association.  He  is  a  member  of 
Corner  Stone  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of^  Dux- 
bury; and  of  Adams  Lodge,  Independent 
Order  of  Odd  Fellows,  of  Kingston.  Taking 
much  interest  in  yachting,  he  conceived  and 
organized  the  Kingston  Yacht  Club,  which 
was  duly  chartered  May  i,  1895,  and  of  which 
he  is  the  Commodore.  He  has  every  reason 
to  feel  proud  of  this  club,  which  is  the  largest 
in  the  State,  having  two  hundred  and  eighty 
members;  while  the  club  has  every  reason  to 
be  proud  of  its  Commodore. 


ILLIAM  H.  LITCHFIELD,  a  rep- 
resentative man  of  Scituate,  was 
born  here,  September  15,  1825,  son 
of  Hubbard  and  Eliza  (Litchfield)  Litchfield. 
He  belongs  to  the  seventh  generation  of  Litch- 
fields  in  this  town,  descended  from  Lawrence 
Litchfield,  who  settled  here  in  1636.  From 
Lawrence  the  line  was  continued  by  Josiah, 
Josiah  (second),  Nicholas,  Isaac,  and  Abner 
H.,  to  the  father  of  William  H. 

Hubbard  Litchfield  was  one  of  three  chil- 


I 


m 


CHARLES    WILLIAMSON. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


479 


dren  borne  by  his  mother  August  ii,  1796, 
the  others  having  been  a  brother  and  sister. 
When  of  a  suitable  age,  he  began  to  learn  the 
ship  carpenter's  trade,  at  which  he  afterward 
worked  until  about  twenty-eight  years  old. 
He  then  settled  on  the  estate  now  occupied  by 
William  H.  Litchfield,  whose  dwelling,  how- 
ever, is  some  distance  from  that  of  his  father, 
devoted  the  rest  of  his  life  to  agriculture,  and 
died  in  his  eightieth  year.  He  was  a  member 
of  the  Republican  party.  His  wife,  also  a 
native  of  Scituate,  bore  him  several  children, 
of  whom  the  only  other  survivor  is  Thomas  P., 
of  Abington,  Mass. 

William  H.  Litchfield  grew  to  manhood  on 
his  father's  estate,  which  has  been  in  the  pos- 
session of  the  family  for  o\'er  one  hundred  and 
fifty  years.  He  was  educated  in  the  Scituate 
public  schools,  attending  chiefly  during  the 
three  winter  months,  and  leaving  school  at 
the  age  of  sixteen.  In  his  early  manhood  he 
worked  for  a  while  at  blacksmithing.  He 
subsequently  engaged  in  general  farming  and 
the  business  of  live  stock  dealer.  During 
two  years  of  the  war  period  he  was  in  the  pro- 
vision business  in  Boston  with  John  H.  Litch- 
field (now  deceased),  under  the  firm  name  of 
John  H.  Litchfield  &  Co.  Beginning  several 
years  ago,  he  is  now  engaged  in  probate  busi- 
ness and  conveyancing,  in  connection  with  the 
office  of  Justice  of  the  Peace.  He  is  a  Director 
of  the  South  Scituate  Savings  Bank,  serving 
also  as  a  member  of  the  Investment  Commit- 
tee. A  prudent  and  careful  business  man, 
Mr.  Litchfield  has  been  successful  in  his  life- 
work.  His  judgment  in  real  estate  and  other 
matters  has  been  sought  by  friend  and  neigh- 
bor. Practically  speaking,  he  is  a  self-made 
man. 

Mr.  Litchfield  was  married  February  13, 
185 1,  to  Sarah  E. ,  daughter  of  Thomas  and 
Chloe  (Jenkins)  Vinal,  all  natives  of  Scituate. 


The  Vinals,  too,  are  one  of  the  old  families 
of  this  town.  Mrs  Litchfield  is  descended 
from  Widow  Annie  Vinal,  one  of  the  original 
Connihasset  proprietors  who  settled  here  in 
the  seventeenth  century.  Thomas  Vinal,  who 
followed  the  business  of  auctioneer,  was  a 
prominent  man  of  Scituate,  a  Mason  in  good 
standing.  Selectman,  Town  Clerk,  and  a  Rep- 
resentative in  the  State  legislature.  His 
wife's  father,  Gideon  Jenkins,  was  a  Revolu- 
tionary soldier.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Vinal  reared  a 
large  family,  four  members  of  which,  besides 
Mrs.  Litchfield,  are  living.  These  are:  Han- 
nah C,  the  wife  of  Robert  T.  Delano,  of  San 
Francisco,  Cal.  ;  Henry  G.,  residing  in  Plym- 
outh, Mass.  ;  Cordelia  T.,  the  wife  of  David 
B.  Litchfield,  of  Scituate;  and  Annie  E. ,  re- 
siding in  Scituate.  A  member  of  the  Repub- 
lican party,  Mr.  Litchfield  was  first  elected 
Selectman  in  1867,  and  served  eighteen  years 
in  succession,  being  annually  re-elected. 
During  eight  years  of  this  time  he  was  Chair- 
man of  the  Board.  While  Selectman  he  was 
also  Town  Assessor  and  Overseer  of  the  Poor. 
He  has  been  a  Justice  of  the  Peace  for  a  pro- 
longed period.  Mrs.  Litchfield  is  a  member 
of  the  Unitarian  church. 


HARLES  WILLIAMSON,  who  died 
in  December,  1890,  at  his  home  in 
Marshfield,  near  Humarock,  was  a 
well-known,  useful,  and  highly  respected  citi- 
zen, ranking  in  his  day,  and- for  the  greater 
part  of  half  a  century,  as  one  of  the  most 
successful  farmers  of  Plymouth  County.  Mr. 
Williamson  was  born  in  the  neighboring  town 
of  Duxbury  in  November,  1825,  and  was  a  son 
of  Samuel  and  Ann  (Gulliver)  Williamson. 

Timothy  Williamson,  who  is  said  to  have 
settled  in  Marshfield  in  1649,  was  probably 
the  founder  of  the  family  in  Plymouth  County. 


480 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


Mr.  Charles  Williamson's  grandfather,  Sam- 
uel Williamson,  was  a  resident  of  Marshfield; 
and  in  this  town  his  son  Samuel,  Jr.,  was 
born.  Samuel  Williamson,  Jr.,  resided  in 
Duxbury  for  a  number  of  years,  but  spent  the 
latter  part  of  his  life  on  his  farm  in  Marsh- 
field.  He  was  one  of  the  leading  men  of  this 
town,  active  in  public  affairs,  and  served  as 
Overseer  of  the  Poor.  An  industrious  and 
thrifty  husbandman  and  a  sagacious  financier, 
he  accumulated  considerable  property. 

Charles   Williamson   acquired   the    most  of 
his     education     in     the    common     schools    of 
Marshfield,    being  twelve  years  of    age   when 
his  parents  removed  to  this  town.      He  grew 
to  manhood  on  the  homestead  near  Humarock, 
and  he  here  followed  farming  from  boyhood  to 
old    age,    in    the    winter   seasons,    for   quite   a 
period   in  his  early  active   life,  working  dili- 
gently   at    shoemaking  —  a   common    practice 
with  New  England  farmers  forty  years  ago  and 
more.      Like  his  father  before  him,  Mr.  Will- 
iamson e.xerted  his  energies  to  good  purpose, 
and  secured  the  fruits  of   his  toil  by  making 
wise  investments.      In  politics  he  was  a  strong 
Democrat.     He  was  frequently  urged   by  his 
townsmen  to  accept  public  ofificc;  but,  though 
he  served  for  some  time  as  Road   Surveyor  of 
his   district,  he  would   not   consent   to   assume 
other  responsibilities,  modestly  preferring  the 
privacy   of    his   home    life.      Mr.     Williamson 
was  identified   for  a  number  of  years  with   the 
Methodist  Episcopal  church.      He  died  a  little 
more  than  six  years  ago,  mourned  as  an  ex- 
emplary   citizen    and    a    kind    and    obliging 
neighbor. 

Mr.  Williamson  married  Sarah  A.  Richards, 
of  Weymouth,  Mass.  ;  and  she  bore  him  three 
children,  namely:  Emma  R.,  now  wife  of 
Abbott  F.  Lapham,  of  Marshfield  Hills; 
Charles  Henry;  and  Lizzie  C,  wife  of  John 
H.  Flavell,  of  Marshfield. 


Charles  Henry  Williamson,  the  only  son, 
was  born  in  Marshfield,  March  31,  1855. 
Reared  on  his  father's  farm,  he  adopted  agri- 
culture as  a  life  pursuit,  and  is  recognized  as 
one  of  the  most  capable  and  progressive 
farmers  in  this  locality.  His  estate,  the  an- 
cestral homestead  of  one  hundred  and  twenty 
acres,  well  located,  is  known  as  Walnut  Grove 
Farm.  It  is  furnished  with  comely  and  con- 
venient builtlings,  the  residence  commanding 
a  broad  sea  view,  and  bears  everywhere  the 
marks  of  good  care  and  cultivation.  Mr. 
Williamson  farms  intelligently,  and  raises 
excellent  crops.  He  gives  considerable  atten- 
tion to  horticulture,  growing  strawberries  and 
raspberries,  as  well  as  apples,  cherries,  and 
other  orchard  fruits.  He  has  recently  set  out 
a  large  number  of  apple,  peach,  walnut,  and 
other  fruit  and  shade  trees,  beautifying  his 
place,  and  adding  to  its  value. 

He  was  married  May  12,  1888,  to  Alice  M. 
Edwards,  daughter  of  James  H.  Edwards,  of 
Charlestown,  Mass.  Four  children  have 
blessed  their  union,  but  of  two  of  them  — 
Willie  and  Blanche  —  they  have  been  bereft. 
The  living  are:  Paul  R.  and  Olive  F.  Mr. 
Charles  H.  Williamson  is  independent  in  pol- 
itics. He  is  a  worthy  representative  of  an 
old  Marshfield  family,  and  has  the  confidence 
and  esteem  of  the  community. 


WOODBRIDGE 
of    Hanover, 


R.  HOWES,  M.D., 
whose  active  life  has 
been  devoted  to  the  practice  of 
medicine,  was  born  August  12,  1817,  in  Mat- 
tapoisett,  Plymouth  County.  His  parents, 
Abel  and  Deborah  (Ruggles)  Howes,  natives 
respectively  of  Fairhaven  and  Rochester, 
Mass. 

Dr.    Howes'    early    life    was    spent    in    his 
native  town,    where   he   attended  the   district 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


481 


school.  At  a  later  date  he  went  to  Peirce 
Academy  in  Middleboro,  Mass.,  and  subse- 
quently to  Fairhaven  Academy,  distinguish- 
ing himself  in  both  institutions  by  rapid  ad- 
vancement in  his  studies.  At  the  age  of  six- 
teen he  began  teaching  district  schools,  which 
occupation  he  followed  for  ten  years.  About 
the  year  1852  he  began  the  study  of  medicine. 
After  further  prosecuting  the  study  for  two 
years  in  the  ofifice  of  Dr.  Sparrow,  of  Matta- 
poisett  he  entered  the  Berkshire  Medical 
School.  Later  he  became  a  student  in  the 
Harvard  Medical  School,  from  which  he  was 
duly  graduated.  He  first  located  in  Westerly, 
R.L  He  had  been  there  but  a  short  time 
when  the  Civil  War  broke  out,  and  he,  in 
1 86 1,  enlisted  in  Company  D  of  the  Eigh- 
teenth Massachusetts  Infantry.  He  was 
mustered  in  at  Readville,  receiving  a  Lieu- 
tenant's commission  before  starting  for  the 
field  of  action.  His  regiment  was  sent  to  the 
Potomac,  where  the  men  were  engaged  in 
building  fortifications.  In  April,  1862,  Dr. 
Howes  was  taken  sick.  Later  on,  being  dis- 
charged on  account  of  his  illness,  he  returned 
home.  In  October,  1863,  having  regained  his 
health,  he  re-enlisted  as  assistant  surgeon 
of  the  Fourth  Massachusetts  Infantry,  with 
which  he  served  nine  months.  He  then  ac- 
cepted a  position  in  a  counting-room  in  Matta- 
poisett  for  a  few  years.  After  this  he  came 
to  Hanover,  resumed  his  profession,  and  ac- 
quired a  large  and  lucrative  practice.  In 
1884  he  turned  over  his  business  to  his  son, 
and  retired  from  active  labor. 

In  1848  Dr.  Howes  was  married  to  Miss 
Mary  W.  White.  By  her  he  became  the 
father  of  two  children,  namely:  Clarence  L., 
an  able  physician,  and  his  father's  successor; 
and  Mary  W.,  the  wife  of  Orrin  Beals,  an 
architect.  He  is  a  comrade  of  the  Joseph  E. 
Wilder  Post,  No.  83,  Grand  Army  of  the  Re- 


public, of  Hanover,  which  he  has  served  as 
Commander  and  in  other  offices;  and  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Independent  Order  of  Odd  Fellows. 


r)RGE  W.  HUMPHREY,  a  promi- 
nent and  highly  esteemed  resident  of 
Rochester,  was  born  in  Jericho,  Vt., 
October  12,  1826,  son  of  Eddy  and  Phebe 
(Lee)  Humphrey.  The  father,  who  was  a 
farmer  in  Jericho,  died  aged  about  seventy 
years,  and  the  mother  at  the  age  of  eighty- 
three.  They  had  four  children — James  L., 
Edwin,  Albert  O.,  and  the  subject  of  this 
sketch.  All  are  living  except  Edwin,  who 
was  killed  by  lightning  when  about  thirty-five 
years  old.  George  W.  Humphrey  received  a 
good  education  at  Jericho  Academy.  Begin- 
ning at  the  age  of  twenty-one,  he  taught 
school  for  three  years  near  his  home.  Then, 
moving  to  New  Bedford,  he  taught  for  about 
eight  months  at  Fairhaven,  Mass.  For  seven 
years  thereafter  he  was  employed  as  clerk  in 
the  grain  store  of  P.  G.  Macomber  in  New 
Bedford,  and  for  the  six  years  following  he 
was  in  the  clothing  business  with  his  brother 
James  L.,  as  partner.  In  1862  he  moved  to 
the  farm  in  Rochester,  which  has  since  been 
his  home.  Here  he  has  followed  general 
farming  and  dairying,  and  now  takes  rank 
among  the  successful  farmers  of  the  locality. 
He  has  a  valuable  estate  of  two  hundred  and 
ten  acres,  and  keeps  a  number  of  fine  milch 
cows.  Mr.  Humphrey  is  not  so  active  as  he- 
was  before  he  was  hurt  in  a  railroad  collision 
at  Wareham,  Mass.,  in  1881,  while  discharg- 
ing his  duties  as  agent  for  the  Hingham  P'ire 
Insurance  Company. 

In  1854  he  was  united  in  marriage  with 
Miss  Mary  A.  Macomber,  of  New  Bedford. 
Four  children  have  blessed  their  union  — 
Carrie  F.,  George  E.,  Chester  W. ,  and  Bessie 


482 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


A.  George  E.  is  now  deceased.  The  father 
is  a  member  of  the  Congregational  church  in 
New  Bedford.  In  politics  Mr.  Humphrey 
favors  the  Republican  side.  He  was  in  the 
State  legislature  in  1872,  and  he  was  a  Select- 
man of  Rochester  for  four  years.  He  has  also 
been  Assessor,  Overseer  of  the  Poor,  and 
School  Committee  man  some  time. 


T^HARLES  H.  PAINE,  of  Halifax, 
I  Vp  now  living  in  retirement,  will  be 
V»!f__^  readily  remembered  as  Commis- 
sioner of  the  county,  which  office  lie  held  for 
thirty  consecutive  years.  His  birth  took 
place  in  the  town  of  Middleboro,  Plymouth 
County,  January  5,  1S20,  and  he  is  a  son  of 
Emerson  and  Lydia  R.  (Pendelton)  Paine. 
The  father,  a  minister  of  religion,  was  born 
at  Foxboro,  Mass.,  and  the  mother  was  a  na- 
tive of  Dighton,  Mass. 

When  but  three  years  old,  Charles  H.  Paine 
removed  with  his  parents  to  Little  Compton, 
R.I.,  where  the  next  twelve  years  of  his  life 
were  spent,  and  his  education  was  acquired 
chiefly  in  the  schools  of  that  place.  He  is, 
however,  for  the  most  part  a  self-educated 
man,  having  received  but  little  schooling  after 
that  time.  From  Little  Compton  he  returned 
to  Middleboro,  and  a  year  later  went  to  Bos- 
ton, where  he  was  successively  Employed  in  a 
wholesale  drug  store  and  clothing  store  for  a 
year  each.  At  the  age  of  eighteen  he  shipped 
before  the  mast  on  the  whaling  vessel 
"Roman,"  for  a  two  years'  cruise  in  the 
Indian  Ocean  and  the  Southern  Pacific.  After 
this  he  went  on  a  six  months'  trip  aboard  a 
merchant  vessel,  sailing  from  New  York  to 
Rio  Janeiro.  He  then  came  to  Halifax,  and 
learned  shoemaking,  after  which  he  undertook 
the  manufacture  of  shoes,  and  was  success- 
fully   engaged    in    that    business    for    twenty 


years.  In  i860  he  was  chosen  County  Com- 
missioner, and  held  the  office  until  1890. 
While  serving  in  this  capacity  he  took  up  sur- 
veying and  civil  engineering,  at  which,  in 
time,  he  acquired  a  large  business.  In  i8go, 
when  he  reached  the  age  of  threescoie  and  ten, 
he  retired  from  active  occupation. 

On  Christmas  Day,  1845,  Mr.  Paine  and 
Miss  Cordelia  Bryant,  of  Halifax,  were  united 
in  marriage.  They  have  had  six  children,  as 
follows:  Lydia  R.,  now  deceased ;  Charles  I., 
foreman  of  the  Herod  shoe  shop  in  Brockton; 
Annie,  the  wife  of  Samuel  Alden;  Frank, 
an  electrician,  residing  in  Plymouth;  Emer- 
son, who  died  in  1886;  and  Lena,  the  wife  of 
P'rank  Woodward,  of  Bridgewater,  who  is  en- 
gaged in  the  manufacture  of  boxes  at  Brock- 
ton. Since  the  organization  of  the  Republi- 
can party,  Mr.  Paine  has  been  one  of  its 
stanch  supporters.  He  served  as  Town  Treas- 
urer and  Selectman  in  the  fifties,  and  he  has 
been  a  Justice  of  the  Peace  for  about  forty 
years,  having  received  the  commission  origi- 
nally under  Governor  Banks. 


EWIS  N.  CURTIS  was  a  well-known 
and  much  esteemed  resident  of  Itgypt. 
He  was  born  in  Scituate,  March  3, 
1812,  son  of  Charles  and  Abigail  (Litchfield) 
Curtis.  Both  parents  were  natives  of  Scitu- 
ate. The  family  is  one  of  the  oldest  anil  most 
[M'ominent  in  this  town. 

Having  attended  the  common  schools  for 
the  usual  period,  Lewis  N.  Curtis  learned  the 
shoemaker's  trade,  and  afterward  followed  it 
for  many  years.  The  latter  part  of  his  life 
was  spent  exclusively  in  cultivating  a  good 
farm  located  in  Egypt.  He  labored  industri- 
ously for  the  affluence  that  rewarded  him.  By 
those  manly  traits  of  character  which  uncon- 
sciously assert   their    presence    in   those   who 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


483 


possess  them  he  gained  the  sincere  good  will 
of  his  neighbors  and  fellow-townsmen.  He 
took  a  deep  interest  in  all  matters  of  public 
importance,  and  in  politics  he  acted  with  the 
Republican  party.  His  death  occurred  at  his 
home  in  the  village  on  July  9,  1894,  at  the 
age  of  eighty-two  years,  since  which  his  fam- 
ily mourn  him  as  a  kind,  affectionate,  and  in- 
dulgent husband  and  father. 

On  November  28,  1843,  Mr.  Curtis  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Harriet  T.  Litchfield, 
who  survives  him.  She  was  born  in  Scituate, 
September  30,  1822,  daughter  of  Paul  and 
Harriet  (V^inal)  Litchfield.  The  great-grand- 
father of  Mrs.  Curtis  was  Thomas,  and  her 
grandfather  was  Roland  Litchfield.  Her  an- 
cestry is  traced  tiirough  several  generations  to 
the  original  founder  of  the  family  in  America, 
who  settled  in  Scituate  during  the  early  Co- 
lonial period.  Paul  Litchfield,  who  passed 
his  entire  life  in  Plymouth  County,  and 
died  in  Scituate,  October  i,  1S76,  was  the 
father  of  several  children.  Of  these,  Harriet 
T.,  now  Mrs.  Curtis,  is  the  only  one  living. 
Mrs.  Curtis  has  one  daughter,  Harriet  M. 
The  homestead,  which  she  still  occupies,  was 
formerly  her  father's  property.  She  and 
her  daughter  full)-  merit  the  sincere  estimation 
in  which  they  are  held  by  their  numerous 
friends  and  acquaintances.  Both  ladies  are 
prominent  members  of  the  Congregational 
church. 


[^": 


AITAIN    ICHABOD    F.    ATWOOD, 


a  prominent  town  officer  of  Middle- 
^^^_,^  boro,  was  born  in  Fall  Brook  in 
this  town,  March  13,  1820.  His  parents  were 
Nathaniel  and  Zilpha  (Shurtleff)  Atwood,  and 
he  is  the  only  survivor  of  their  five  children  — 
Flora,  Gardener,  Reuel,  Polly,  and  Ichabod. 
He  attended  district  schools  and  Peirce  Acad- 
emy   in   his   native   town    in    his    early  years, 


making  such  good  progress  in  his  studies  that, 
at  the  age  of  fifteen,  he  began  teaching.  For 
more  than  thirty  years  he  was  engaged  in  this 
profession,  and,  with  the  exception  of  a  single 
year,  confined  his  efforts  to  Plymouth  County. 
For  several  years  he  was  connected  with  the 
mills  at  Fall  Brook  and  Rock,  where  he  has 
resided  since  1866. 

In  politics  Captain  Atwood  is  a  Republi- 
can, and  he  has  been  very  influential  in  town 
affairs,  serving  in  many  important  local 
offices,  namely:  as  Justice  of  the  Peace  over 
forty-five  years;  Surveyor,  forty  years;  Se- 
lectman and  Overseer  of  the  Poor,  three  years; 
School  Committee  several  years;  and  also  as 
Auditor  and  Assessor.  Having  an  excellent 
knowledge  of  law,  he  was  often  called  upon 
during  his  official  term  as  Selectman  to  settle 
estates.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Methodist 
church  at  Middleboro. 

In  1 84 1  Captain  Atwood  married  Miss  Abi- 
gail Thomas,  of  Middleboro.  Four  children 
were  born  of  this  union,  and  all  of  them  are 
now  living;  namely,  Emery  ¥.,  Charles  N., 
Harvey  N.,  and  Hannah  Z. 


LDEN  ROUNESVILLE,  a  prosperous 
umber  manufacturer  of  Rochester, 
Mass.,  was  born  April  10,  1827,  in 
F"reetown,  Bristol  County,  son  of  Alden  and 
Cornelia  (Ashley)  Rounesville.  When  he 
was  thirteen  years  old  he  went  to  Rochester 
to  live,  and  there  acquired  his  education  in' 
the  district  school  and  at  Rochester  Academy. 
At  the  age  of  si.xteen  he  shipped  before  the 
mast  on  a  whaling  vessel  bound  for  the  Indian 
Ocean,  and  was  out  twenty-seven  months. 
Although  life  on  a  whaler  is  a  hard  one,  the 
travel  and  adventure,  the  excitement  of  the 
pursuit  and  capture  of  the  ocean  leviathan, 
pleased   the   lad,    and  he  shipped  for  another 


484 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


voyage.  This  time  he  sailed  over  both  the 
Atlantic  and  the  Indian  Oceans,  being  gone 
twenty-five  months  and  five  days.  On  his 
return  to  New  Bedford  in  1849,  he  was  in- 
terested by  the  stories  of  fortunes  to  be  had 
for  the  taking  in  the  gold  fields  of  California, 
and  at  the  first  opportunity  shipped  on  a  sail- 
ing-vessel bound  for  the  new  El  Dorado  by 
the  Cape  route.  Mr.  Rounesville  engaged  in 
prospecting  and  mining  with  varying  results, 
and  remained  until  February,  1853,  when  he 
returned  by  way  of  the  Isthmus.  After  stay- 
ing a  short  time  in  Rochester  he  shipped  once 
more  on  a  whaling  vessel.  During  this  voyage 
he  was  third  mate,  and  was  out  one  year.  He 
next  joined  a  vessel  at  Honolulu  as  first  mate, 
prolonging  his  absence  from  home,  and  was  on 
the  sea  some  two  and  a  half  years  more.  On 
the  next  voyage,  which  was  his  last,  he  sailed 
as  first  mate.  He  was  gone  eighteen  months 
whaling  in  both  the  Atlantic  and  the  Pacific 
Oceans.  Having  visited  almost  every  known 
quarter  of  the  globe,  and  met  all  sorts  and 
conditions  of  men,  he  settled  down  in  his 
present  home  in  Rochester,  among  the  friends 
and  associations  of  his  childhood.  At  first  he 
engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  lumber  and 
grist-milling.  His  grist-mill  was  destroyed 
by  fire  in  1881,  since  which  time  he  has  de- 
voted himself  mainly  to  the  lumber  indus- 
try. His  chief  products  are  box  boards  and 
shingles.  He  also  carries  on  general  farming, 
owning  eleven  hundred  acres  in  the  town  of 
Rochester,  and  four  hundred  acres  in  other 
places. 

In  1854  Mr.  Rounesville  was  married  to 
Miss  Rosie  Gammons,  who  has  borne  him 
five  children  —  Frances,  Arthur,  Ella,  Horace, 
and  Albert.  Ella  is  now  deceased.  Mr. 
Rounesville,  who  is  a  Republican  in  politics, 
and  has  served  as  Selectman  of  Rochester  for 
twelve  years,  is  widely  known  and  respected. 


ARREN  B.  STETSON,  shoe  manu- 
facturer, of  Middleboro,  Mass.,  is 
one  of  the  prominent  and  influential 
citizens  of  this  place,  active  in  all  movements 
of  public  importance.  A  son  of  David  B.  and 
Abigail  (Spear)  Stetson,  he  was  born  in 
Quincy,  Mass.,  September  26,  1842. 

David  B.  Stetson  was  born  in  Weymouth, 
Mass.  He  was  in  trade  in  Quincy  for  fifty- 
four  years,  and  no  other  merchant  in  the  place 
had  so  long  a  record.  He  died  in  Middleboro 
in  1895,  at  the  age  of  seventy-eight.  His 
wife,  Mrs.  Abigail  S.  Stetson,  died  in  1864, 
aged  forty-eight  years.  Five  children  com- 
pleted the  household  circle  of  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
David  B.  Stetson:  Warren  B.  ;  Abbie  E., 
wife  of  H.  O.  Studley,  of  Quincy;  Arthur 
Lorin,  who  died  when  about  four  and  a  half 
years  old,  a  remarkable  child,  who  could  solve 
on  a  slate  the  most  intricate  mathematical 
problems;  Ella  Lorin,  who  is  now  managing 
the  store  in  Quincy,  the  business  being  still 
conducted,  by  his  request,  in  her  father's 
name;  and  Arthur  Woodward,  also  living  in 
Quincy. 

Warren  B.  Stetson,  the  subject  of  this 
sketch,  attended  school  in  Quincy,  taking  a 
high  rank  in  scholarship,  and  graduated  at  the 
high  school  at  the  age  of  sixteen  as  saluta- 
torian.  The  storm  of  secession  was  brewing 
during  his  last  years  of  study,  and  the  firing 
on  Fort  Sumter  aroused  many  of  the  Quincy 
school  boys  to  take  up  arms  for  the  Union. 
Young  Stetson  was  one  of  these.  On  May 
16,  1 861,  he  enlisted  in  Company  B,  Thir- 
teenth Massachusetts  Volunteer  Infantry,  the 
Fourth  Battalion  of  Rifles  being  the  nucleus 
from  which  the  regiment  was  formed.  His 
term  of  enlistment  was  three  years,  but  was 
cut  short  on  account  of  illness.  After  the 
second  battle  of  Bull  Run  he  was  in  Fairfax 
Seminary  Hospital,  and  when  able  to  go  about 


C^.e^.  /tT'  ^r^-^-i-i^*!:^-*-^ 


fiiOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


487 


he  was  employed  as  steward,  nurse,  surgeon's 
assistant,  and  clerk  in  the  dispensary;  but  his 
health  was  very  poor,  and  on  December  31, 
1862,  he  was  discharged  on  account  of  dis- 
ability. 

After  a  season  of  recuperation  at  home  he 
offered  himself  again,  but  was  rejected,  being 
physically  too  weak  for  military  service.  He 
was  then  employed  as  travelling  salesman  for 
a  large  shoe  firm  in  Boston,  and  subsequently 
acted  in  the  same  capacity  for  another  house, 
giving  some  three  years  and  a  half  to  this 
line  of  effort.  At  the  end  of  that  time  he 
started  in  business  for  himself,  opening  a  re- 
tail shoe  store  in  Stamford,  Conn.,  which  he 
successfully  managed  for  thirteen  years  and  a 
half.  He  then  removed  to  North  Middleboro, 
and  later  to  Middleboro,  buying  in  1S79  the 
business  of  E.  E.  Perkins  &  Son.  In  1882 
he  established  his  factory  at  its  present  loca- 
tion. Mr.  Stetson  thoroughly  understands  the 
quality  and  make-up  of  shoes  of  all  grades, 
and  has  been  very  successful  in  business. 

He  married  Miss  Margaret  H.  Hoyt,  of 
Concord,  N.H.,  and  has  five  children  —  Will- 
iam W.,  Maybelle  Howe,  Ella  H.,  Arthur  O., 
and  Edward  L.  He  has  been  a  Republican 
since  qualified  to  exercise  the  right  of  suf- 
frage, and  he  cast  his  first  Presidential  vote  for 
Abraham  Lincoln.  In  local  politics  he  takes 
an  active  interest;  and  for  the  past  twelve 
years  he  has  been  in  office,  serving  alternately 
as  Chairman  and  as  Secretary  of  the  Republi- 
can Town  Committee.  He  is  now  serving  a 
second  term  as  member  of  the  Board  of  Regis- 
tration. As  a  Mason  he  has  taken  ten  de- 
grees, and  is  a  member  of  Union  Lodge,  No. 
5,  of  Stamford,  Conn.;  Rittenhouse  Chapter, 
No.  1 1  ;  and  of  Washington  Council,  No.  6, 
of  the  same  place.  He  belongs  to  the  Im- 
proved Order  of  Red  Men;  and  as  a  Grand 
Army  man  he  has  long  been  active  and  promi- 


nent. He  is  historian  of  E.  W.  Pierce  Post, 
No.  8,  and  was  Commander  of  the  post  during 
the  erection  of  the  beautiful  Soldiers'  Monu- 
ment in  Middleboro,  which  cost  about  four 
thousand,  two  hundred  dollars.  Mr.  Stetson 
was  the  originator  and  one  of  the  agents  in  the 
movement  to  erect  it,  collecting  funds,  and 
working  enthusiastically  and  successfully  for 
its  completion.  He  is  a  zealous  member  of 
the  Central  Baptist  Church,  and  a  teacher  in 
the  Sunday-school. 


ON.  GEORGE  W.  EMERY,  now 
resident  of  Marshfield,  Mass.,  was 
the  Governor  of  Utah,  who  so  ably 
piloted  the  Territory  through  the  most  trying 
period  of  its  history.  He  was  born  August 
I3>  1833,  in  Corinth,  near  Bangor,  Me.,  son 
of  Oliver  Hubbard  and  Hannah  Osgood  (Por- 
ter) Emery.  When  he  was  six  years  of  age 
his  parents  removed  to  Berwick,  Me.,  his 
father's  native  town,  and  not  very  long  after- 
ward they  removed  from  -Berwick  to  Medford, 
Mass.,  where  the  family  lived  for  nearly  fifty 
years,  and  where  his  father  and  mother  died 
and  are  buried. 

Mr.  Emery  comes  of  Puritan  stock  by  both 
parents.  On  the  father's  side  he  belongs  to 
the  eighth  generation  descended  from  Anthony 
Emery,  who  came  to  Boston  in  the  ship 
"James,"  June,  1635;  while  on  his  mother's 
side  he  is  of  the  eighth  generation  descended  _ 
from  John  Porter,  who  also  left  England  in 
1635,  and  settled  in  Hingham,  Mass.  Mr. 
Emery's  mother  was  a  daughter  of  Nathaniel 
Porter,  a  native  of  Ipswich,  Mass.,  who  was 
a  Revolutionary  soldier;  and  she  was  a  kins- 
woman of  the  Johnsons,  the  Osgoods,  the  Put- 
nams,  the  Endicotts,  the  Woodburys,  and  the 
Dodges  and  Ingallses,  of  Essex  County.  The 
blood  relations  on  his  father's  side  were  the 


488 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Lords,  the  Hoopers,  the  Hubbards,  the  God- 
wins, the  Chadbournes,  and  the  Stacys  of 
York  County,  Maine.  Two  of  Mr.  Emery's 
great-uncles  served  under  the  famous  naval 
hero,  Paul  Jones,  one  being  his  sailing- 
master. 

George  W.  Emery's  preparatory  course  for 
college  was  begun  at  the  Literary  Institute  in 
New  Hampton,  N.H.,  and  continued  at  Colby 
Academy,  New  London,  N.H.  Here  he  was 
graduated  in  June,  1854,  being  the  only  pupil 
who  had  that  honor.  In  the  same  year  he 
entered  Dartmouth  College,  where,  after  com- 
pleting a  four  years'  course,  he  was  graduated 
in  the  class  of  1858.  Without  loss  of  time  he 
then  pursued  a  full  course  at  the  Law  School 
at  Albany,  N.Y. ;  was  graduated  with  the 
degree  of  LL.B. ; -was  admitted  to  the  bar  in 
that  State;  and  immediately  entered  the  law 
office  of  the  late  General  Benjamin  F.  Butler 
in  Boston. 

In  1865,  after  the  close  of  the  Civil  War, 
abandoning  the  legal  profession,  Mr.  Emery 
went  to  Nashville,  Tenn.,  and  engaged  in 
planting  and  milling.  The  bitter  feeling 
with  which  all  Northern  men  were  then,  and 
for  many  years  afterward,  regarded  in  the 
South,  was  manifested  in  his  case  by  the  burn- 
ing of  his  mill  in  1868.  In  1869  he  was 
appointed  Supervisor  of  Internal  Revenue. 
The  district  at  first  placed  under  his  charge 
was  gradually  extended  until  it  included  the 
States  of  Tennessee,  Kentucky,  Alabama, 
Mississippi,  Louisiana,  and  Te.xas.  He  had 
under  him  more  than  twenty-five  hundred  men, 
whose  appointment  came  from  Washington, 
D.C. ,  and  he  had  the  care  of  si.x  hundred  and 
twenty-five  registered  grain  distilleries  in 
Kentucky  alone,  besides  a  large  number  of 
fruit  distilleries.  He  had  also  a  standing 
order  from  the  Secretary  of  War,  directed  to 
the  commanders  of  all  the  military  posts  in 


his  district,  instructing  them  to  render  all  the 
assistance  he  might  deem  necessary  to  enforce 
the  law;  and  this  required  at  times  from  five 
to  ten  squads  of  cavalry. 

This  enlargement  of  his  authority  was  elo- 
quent testimony  to  his  fitness  for  the  office, 
whose  duties  no  ordinary  man  could  then  dis- 
charge. It  was  in  the  "reconstruction  times," 
when  the  civil  agents  of  the  Federal  govern- 
ment were  frequently  resisted  with  outrage  and 
murder,  and  the  Kuklux  Klan  was  pursuing  its 
career  of  crime.  Combining  the  executive 
ability  desirable  in  a  military  leader  with  the 
tact  and  resource  that  should  characterize  a 
diplomat,  while  now  and  again  compelled  to 
call  the  troops  to  his  aid.  Supervisor  Emery 
amply  justified  the  confidence  of  the  national 
government.  During  his  residence  in  Ten- 
nessee he  was  for  several  years  Chairman  of 
the  Republican  Executive  Committee  of  the 
State.  While  in  the  South  he  became  per- 
sonally acquainted  with  many  of  the  leaders  of 
the  late  Confederacy,  among  them  its  Presi- 
dent, Jefferson  Davis,  with  whom  he  often 
conversed. 

President  Grant  was  so  well  pleased  with 
Mr.  Emery's  services  as  Supervisor  of  Internal 
Revenue  in  the  Southern  States  mentioned, 
that,  of  his  own  volition,  without  a  word  of 
suggestion  from  Mr.  Emery,  he,  in  the  spring 
of  1875,  appointed  him  Governor  of  Utah. 

At  the  time  Governor  Emery  went  to  Utah 
all  the  elective  offices  in  that  Territory  were 
filled  by  the  Mormons,  they  being  largely  in 
the  majority  over  the  Gentiles,  as  they  called 
all  who  were  not  of  their  faith.  Three  biennial 
legislatures  held  their  sessions  during  his 
term  of  office.  Every  member  of  these  legis- 
latures was  a  Mormon,  and  all  but  three  were 
living  in  polgyamy.  The  Governor  had  the 
absolute  veto  power,  Utah  being  the  only 
State  or  Territory  where  that  power  existed. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


489 


It  was  a  current  saying  among  members  of  the 
legislature  that,  "  it  was  the  Governor  against 
the  Mormons";  and  it  was  only  through  him 
that  the  Gentiles  could  expect  any  legislation 
favorable  to  themselves.  From  the  time  of 
Brigham  Young,  who  was  the  first  governor, 
there  had  been  a  constant  conflict  between  the 
Executive  and  members  of  the  legislature, 
the  result  being  that  but  little  legislation  had 
been  enacted  that  was  beneficial.  The  laws 
previously  enacted  had  not  been  compiled. 
The  session  laws  were  published  in  pamphlet 
form,  and  tied  together  with  red  tape,  this 
bundle  of  pamphlets  containing  all  the  laws 
that  had  been  enacted,  modified,  or  repealed 
up  to  this  date.  The  consequence  was  that 
neither  judges  nor  lawyers  knew  what  the  law 
was  on  any  subject,  especially  that  portion  of 
the  statutes  relating  to  the  criminal  law,  and 
as  a  further  consequence  there  were  then  only 
three  convicts  in  the  ]ienitentiary.  Another 
untoward  circumstance  lay  in  the  fact  that  the 
Territory  was  badly  in  debt.  Territorial  scrip 
had  really  no  value  except  for  payment  of 
taxes  at  thirty-five  cents  on  the  dollar. 

Governor  Emery,  however,  did  not  disap- 
point the  hopes  placed  in  him.  His  success- 
ful administration  is  now  a  matter  of  history. 
Its  earlier  part  was  a  stormy  period  in  Salt 
Lake  City.  Exercising  his  absolute  veto 
power,  he  rendered  nugatory  more  than  half 
the  legislation  passed  at  the  first  session  of 
the  legislature  under  his  governorship.  The 
effect  of  this  stern  resistance  was  seen  in  the 
diminished  aggressiveness  of  subsequent  ses- 
sions, but  the  struggle  continued  for  some  time 
after.  When  Governor  Emery  left  Utah,  ter- 
ritoral  scrip  was  as  good  as  greenbacks;  and 
instead  of  three  convicts  in  the  penitentiary 
there  were  eighty-seven.  Several  executions 
took  place  during  his  administration,  among 
them  that  of  John  D.  Lee,  who  was  connected 


with  the  Mountain  Meadow  Massacre,  he  beins: 
the  only  one  of  the  participants  that  was  tried 
and  convicted  for  that  offence. 

The  latter  part  of  the  Governor's  adminis- 
tration, which  lasted  five  years,  was  compara- 
tively quiet  and  pleasant  for  him.  Among  his 
visitors  in  Salt  Lake  City  were  President 
Grant  and  family ;  a  number  of  Senators  and 
members  of  Congress;  Dom  Pedro,  the  Em- 
peror of  Brazil;  Lord  and  Lady  Dufferin ;  Sir 
George  Bowen,  Governor-general  of  Australia; 
distinguished  military  men,  among  them  Gen- 
erals Sherman  and  Sheridan;  various  lords  and 
their  ladies  from  abroad ;  and  men  eminent  in 
science  and  literature.  All  these  were  guests 
of  the  Governor.  L^pon  his  departure  from 
the  Territory,  he  received  from  the  representa- 
tive people  a  souvenir  of  his  stay  in  the  form 
of  a  valuable  watch,  bearing  the  inscription, 
"Presented  to  Governor  Emery  by  his  friends 
in  Utah,  regardless  of  party";  and  some  time 
after,  the  legislature  testified  its  respect  for 
him  by  giving  his  name  to  a  new  county. 

On  April  11,  1866,  Mr.  Emery  was  united 
in  marriage  with  Miss  Marcia  Ives  Hall, 
daughter  of  Samuel  and  Huldah  Barstow 
(Sherman)  Hall,  of  Boston.  He  has  one 
child,  a  son,  Frank  Hall  Emery,  who  was  born 
in  Boston,  May  6,  1867.  Mrs.  Emery's 
parents  are  now  deceased.  Her  father  was  a 
distinguished  ship-builder,  and  President  of 
the  Maverick  Bank  of  Boston  until  his  death. 
Both  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Emery  affiliate  with  the 
Congregational  church.        — 

After  leaving  Salt  Lake  City  for  the  East, 
Governor  Emery  settled  in  that  part  of  Marsh- 
field  called  Sea  View,  where  he  has  a  beauti- 
ful country  seat.  The  commodious  dwelling, 
built  by  himself  in  1885-86,  is  picturesquely 
situated  on  a  sightly  elevation  near  the  shore, 
surrounded  by  extensive  grounds,  embracing 
several    hundred    acres   diversified   with    trees 


490 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


and  shrubbery,  which  form  a  part  of  his  es- 
tate. 

The  Hon.  George  W.  Emery  is  held  in  the 
highest  esteem  by  his  neighbors  in  Marshfield. 
In  politics  he  has  supported  the  Republican 
party  ever  since  he  attained  his  majority. 
He  takes  a  practical  interest  in  farming,  and 
was  for  several  years  President  of  the  Marsh- 
field  Agricultural  Society.  He  is  a  Trustee  of 
the  New  England  Agricultural  Society,  and  a 
member  of  the  Marshall  P.  Wilder  Club,  the 
oldest  dining-club  in  Massachusetts.  He  was 
made  a  Mason  in  Massachusetts  Lodge,  A. 
F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Boston.  He  is  also  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Sons  of  the  American  Revolution. 

Ex-Governor  Emery  is  a  good  illustration  of 
the  sagacious  remark  that  the  country  will 
never  lack  for  Presidential  timber  so  long  as 
we  have  our  State  and  Territorial  governments 
on  which  to  raise  it. 


W^' 


ARD  LITCHFIELD,  a  representa- 
tive of  one  of  the  oldest  families  of 
Scituatc,  who  died  at  his  home  in 
Egypt,  Plymouth  County,  Mass.,  January  24, 
1892,  was  born  in  Scituate,  September  11, 
18 19,  son  of  Thomas  and  Mabel  (Vinal) 
Litchfield.  His  parents  were  natives  of  Scit- 
uate, and  his  grandfather,  Deacon  Ward 
Litchfield,  was  in  his  day  one  of  the  best- 
known  residents  of  this  town. 

Ward  Litchfield  was  educated  in  the  public 
schools  of  his  native  town.  When  fourteen 
years  old  he  went  to  Quincy,  Mass.,  where  he 
served  an  apprenticeship  of  five  years  at  the 
painter's  trade,  which  he  followed  subse- 
quently as  a  journeyman  in  Boston.  He  was 
later  engaged  as  a  contracting  painter  in 
Quincy  for  a  number  of  years,  and  in  1853  he 
established  himself  in  the  same  business  in 
Scituate.      For    many   years    he    conducted    a 


successful  business,  doing  a  large  amount  of 
contract  work;  and  he  also  owned  and  culti- 
vated a  farm  of  forty  acres.  In  politics  he 
acted  with  the  Republican  party,  but  his 
modest  and  retiring  disposition  prevented  him 
from  taking  any  active  part  in  public  affairs. 
His  upright  character  and  strict  adherence  to 
principle  won  the  sincere  respect  and  admira- 
tion of  his  acquaintances,  and  his  death, 
which  took  place  upon  the  date  above  men- 
tioned, at  the  age  of  nearly  seventy-three 
years,  was  the  cause  of  general  regret.  On 
January  i,  1845,  Mr.  Litchfield  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Miss  Angeline  Woods,  who  was 
born  in  Mount  Vernon,  Kennebec  County, 
Me.,  a  daughter  of  Henry  and  Hannah  (Cram) 
Woods.  Her  parents  were  natives  of  Maine. 
Mrs.  Litchfield  still  occupies  the  homestead, 
and  is  highly  respected  in  this  town.  She  has 
an  adopted  daughter,  Ella  F.  She  attends 
the  Congregational  church. 


JHLEMON  W.  MAGLATHLIN, 
one  of  the  representative  business 
men  of  Plymouth  County,  and  a 
member  of  the  firm  of  F.  W.  Maglathlin  & 
Co.,  tack  manufacturers  of  Kingston,  was  born 
in  this  town,  July  12,  1844,  son  of  Peter  W. 
and  Marcia  G.  (Bradford)  Maglathlin.  The 
family  was  founded  in  America  by  John 
Maglathlin,  a  Scotchman,  who  settled  in 
Kingston  during  the  Colonial  period.  He 
died  here  in  1772,  and  his  mortal  remains 
were  buried  in  the  old  Kingston  Cemetery. 
His  son  Joseph,  who  was  born  in  Kingston, 
was  Philemon  W.  Maglathlin's  great-grand- 
father; and  his  son,  Peter  W.,  first,  was  Mr. 
Maglathlin's  grandfather.  He  was  a  native  of 
Kingston,  and  was  a  seafaring  man. 

The   second   Peter  W.    Maglathlin,    son    of 
the    first,    and   father  of    the    subject   of    this 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


491 


sketch,  was  born  in  Kingston;  and  his  wife, 
Marcia  G.  Bradford,  was  a  native  of  Maine. 
He  learned  the  trade  of  a  ship  caiker,  and  fol- 
lowed this  occupation  in  connection  with 
farming,  making  his  home  in  Kingston  until 
his  death,  which  took  place  in  the  seventies. 
He  was  a  man  of  considerable  prominence  in 
local  public  affairs,  and  served  as  a  member  of 
the  School  Committee.  In  politics  he  was 
originally  a  Whig,  and  later  a  Republican. 
He  was  twice  married,  and  of  his  children  the 
following  survive:  Harvey  W. ;  Philemon  W., 
the  subject  of  this  sketch;  Onslow  VV. ; 
Edwin  W.  ;  and  Horace  B.  —  all  of  Kingston; 
Angle,  wife  of  Elliott  Blanchard,  of  Turner, 
Me. ;  and  Helen  A.,  wife  of  Barker  Baker,  of 
North  Hanson,  Mass. 

Philemon  VV.,  the  second  son,  as  above 
named,  acquired  a  good  practical  education  in 
the  public  schools  of  Kingston,  and  grew  to 
manhood  in  this  town.  At  the  age  of  twenty- 
two  he  went  to  Worcester,  Mass.,  where  he 
began  to  learn  the  mason's  trade.  After  serv- 
ing an  apprenticeship  of  over  three  years,  he 
worked  at  the  trade  in  Worcester  for  five 
years.  He  then  became  master  mason  for  the 
Old  Colony  Railroad  Company,  and  for  twenty- 
three  years  had  full  charge  of  the  work  in  his 
line  completed  by  that  company.  In  1894  he 
erected  and  equipped  a  building  in  Kingston 
for  the  manufacture  of  tacks,  putting  in  im- 
proved machinery,  and  organizing  the  firm  of 
F.  W.  Maglathlin  &  Co.,  consisting  of  P.  W. 
Maglathlin  and  his  son,  F.  W.  Maglathlin, 
has  since  carried  on  a  large  and  successful 
business. 

On  April  26,  1863,  Mr.  Maglathlin  married 
Mahala  E.  Bonney,  of  Kingston.  She  is  a 
daughter  of  John  and  Mary  (Maglathlin) 
Bonney,  the  former  of  whom  was  born  in  Han- 
son, Mass.,  and  the  latter  in  Pembroke.  Mrs. 
Maglathlin's  father  is  still  residing  in  Kings- 


ton, and  her  mother  is  no  longer  living.  She 
has  one  brother,  Charles  F.  A.  Bonney,  who 
is  a  resident  of  this  town.  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Maglathlin  have  three  children  —  Frank  W., 
Elizabeth  F. ,  and  Grace  W. 

In  politics  Mr.  Maglathlin  is  a  Republican, 
and  has  served  with  ability  as  a  member  of  the 
School  Committee.  He  takes  an  active  inter- 
est in  the  general  improvement  of  the  town, 
and  has  an  extended  acquaintance  throughout 
the  county.  He  is  a  self-made  man  who 
owes  his  success  in  life  to  his  own  personal 
efforts,  and  he  has  every  reason  to  be  proud  of 
the  result.  He  occupies  one  of  the  finest 
residences  in  Kingston,  situated  on  Summer 
Street,  in  the  outskirts  of  the  village,  and  the 
family  enjoy  cordial  social  relations.  Mr. 
Maglathlin  is  a  member  of  Adams  Lodge,  In- 
dependent Order  of  Odd  Fellows. 


§OSHUA  WESTON,  formerly  in  busi- 
ness as  a  ship-calkcr  in  Boston,  now  a 
retired  resident  of  Du,\bury,  Mass.,  was 
born  in  this  town,  October  20,  1818,  son  of 
Asa  and  Eunice  (Bradford)  Weston.  The 
family,  which  is  of  English  origin,  descends 
from  an  early  settler  in  Duxbury;  and  Joshua 
Weston's  grandfather,  Asa  Weston,  first,  is 
said  to  have  served  in  the  war  for  indepen- 
dence. 

Asa  Weston,  second,  Mr.  Joshua  Weston's 
father,  was  a  native  and  lifelong  resident  of 
Duxbury.  In  his  younger  Tiays  he  followed" 
the  sea,  and  for  a  number  of  years  he  was 
master  of  a  vessel  engaged  in  making  fishing 
voyages  to  the  Grand  Banks  of  New  Found- 
land.  His  wife,  who  was  before  marriage 
Eunice  Bradford,  and  was  a  native  of  Dux- 
bury, became  the  mother  of  several  children, 
of  whom  five  are  living,  namely:  Bradford; 
Joshua,   the  subject  of   this  sketch;    George; 


492 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


William;  and  Sclina,  wife  of  Daniel  W. 
Symmes — ^all  of  whom  are  residents  of  Dux- 
bury. 

Joshua  resided  with  his  parents  until  he  was 
eleven  years  old,  and  then  went  to  live  with 
his  uncle,  George  Bradford,  in  Vermont, 
where  he  remained  for  over  three  years.  He 
acquired  a  common-school  education,  and  after 
his  return  to  his  native  town  he  was  for  some 
three  years  engaged  in  the  fishing  industry. 
He  then  learned  the  ship-calker's  trade  in 
Kingston,  and  later  established  himself  in 
that  business  in  Boston,  having  for  a  partner 
Daniel  T.  Samson.  The  firm  of  Samson  & 
Weston,  whose  office  was  located  at  317  Com- 
mercial Street,  carried  on  a  large  and  profit- 
able business,  as  shipwrights  and  calkers  for 
several  years.  They  finally  admitted  Syl- 
vester Goodwin  as  a  partner,  and  some  time 
later  Mr.  Weston  withdrew  from  the  firm,  and 
conducted  business  upon  his  own  account  until 
1886,  when  he  retired.  He  had  always  made 
Duxbury  his  summer  home,  and  since  his  re- 
tirement he  has  resided  here  permanently. 

Mr.  Weston  has  been  twice  married.  His 
first  wife  was  Olive  A.  Jones,  a  native  of 
Monmouth,  Me.  ;  and  his  present  wife,  whom 
he  wedded  in  1855,  was  before  marriage  Cor- 
delia W.  Bailey.  Her  father  was  a  native  of 
Nantes,  France,  and  served  as  a  soldier  under 
Bonaparte.  By  this  union  there  are  two  chil- 
dren, namely:  Annie  W. ;  and  Joshua  B., 
who  is  now  a  merchant  at  29  Arch  Street, 
Boston. 

During  his  business  career  Mr.  Weston  re- 
sided in  East  Boston,  and  for  four  years  he  was 
a  member  of  the  Common  Council  of  Boston 
from  Ward  i.  In  politics  he  supports  the 
Democratic  party.  He  has  advanced  in  Ma- 
sonry to  the  Royal  Arch  degree,  and  is  a 
member  of  St.  John's  Chapter  of  East  Boston. 
Like  the  majority  of  prosperous  business  men, 


he  has  made  his  own  way  in  life,  and  as  the 
result  of  his  industry  is  able  to  pass  his  de- 
clining years  in  rest  and  recreation  in  his  na- 
tive town,  where  he  is  respected  and  esteemed 
by  the  entire  community. 


/^Teorge  H.  WEATHERBEE,  of 
\Wj^  Marshfield  Hills,  Clerk  and  Treas- 
urer of  the  town  of  Marshfield,  was 
born  in  Boston,  Mass.,  November  29,  183 1, 
son  of  George  H.  and  Sarah  B.  (Clapp) 
Weatherbee.  The  Weatherbees  are  of  Scotch 
extraction.  John  Weatherbee  resided  in 
Billerica,  Mass.,  and  in  that  town  his  son, 
George  H.  Weatherbee,  Sr. ,  was  born. 

This  gentleman  settled  in  East  Marshfield 
now  Marshfield  Hills,  about  1832,  and  was 
engaged  in  mercantile  business  here  for  a 
number  of  years,  at  the  same  time  extensively 
manufacturing  ready-made  clothing  for  An- 
drew Carney,  of  Boston,  Mass.  He  was  a 
very  successful  business  man.  About  1857  he 
removed  to  Scituate,  where  he  died  in  1877. 
While  residing  in  Marshfield  he  was  Overseer 
of  the  Poor  for  a  number  of  years.  His  wife 
was  born  in  Scituate.  Of  their  children,  the 
following  are  living:  George  H.,  the  father's 
namesake;  Sarah  B.,  widow  of  Elisha  W. 
yall,  late  a  prominent  citizen  of  Marshfield 
Hills;  Georgiana,  wife  of  Daniel  Howard,  of 
South  Natick,  Mass.  ;  Amanda,  wife  of  S.  N. 
Bissel,  of  Providence,  R.I.  ;  and  John,  in 
Scituate,  Mass. 

George  H.,  the  elder  son  and  the  special 
subject  of  this  sketch,  was  one  year  old  when 
his  parents  came  to  East  Marshfield,  and  in 
this  town  he  acquired  his  education,  attending 
public  and  private  schools.  When  he  was 
sixteen  years  old  he  entered  the  employ  of 
Haughton,  Sawyer  &  Co.,  a  dry-goods  firm  of 
Boston,  Mass.,  and  was  with  them   five  years. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


493 


Returning  then  to  East  Marshfield,  he  was  in 
trade  for  a  number  of  years  as  partner  with 
Elisha  W.  Hall,  under  the  firm  name  of  Hall 
&  Weatherbee.  He  subsequently  started  an 
independent  mercantile  business  in  East 
Marshfield,  which  was  very  successful.  Mr. 
Weatherbee  is  practically  a  self-made  man, 
and  has  carved  his  fortune  with  his  own  hands. 
He  is  Treasurer  of  the  Railroad  Sinking 
Fund  of  Marshfield. 

On  January  13,  1859,  he  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Martha  W.  Bartlett,  of  Plym- 
outh, Mass.,  a  descendant  of  John  Alden, 
whose  quaint  romance  has  been  made  famous 
by  the  poet  Longfellow.  Six  children  have 
been  born  to  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Weatherbee, 
namely:  Martha  B.  (deceased);  Mabel  R., 
wife  of  W.  C.  Boyden,  sub-master  of  the 
Girls'  Norma]  School  at  Boston,  son  of  Pro- 
fessor A.  G.  Boyden,  principal  of  the  State 
Normal  School,  Bridgewater;  Blanche,  assist- 
ant teacher  in  the  West  Roxbury  High 
School  at  Jamaica  Plain,  Boston,  Mass. ; 
Alice,  wife  of  S.  C.  Morehouse,  of  Fair- 
field, Conn.  ;  Charles  G.,  a  grammar  school 
principal  in  Newton  Upper  Falls,  Mass. ; 
and  George,  a  civil  engineer  employed  in 
Brockton,    Mass. 

Mr.  Weatherbee,  who  is  a  Republican,  has 
been  in  office  as  Town  Clerk  and  Treasurer 
since  1894,  and  is  also  clerk  of  the  Registry 
of  Voters  and  a  Justice  of  the  Peace.  He  has 
been  a  member  of  the  School  Committee  for 
six  years.  As  a  Mason  he  belongs  to  Corner 
Stone  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Duxbury. 
He  is  a  member  of  the  Unitarian  Society,  and 
for  some  fifteen  years  was  Sunday-school 
superintendent.  In  every  position  which  he 
has  occupied  he  has  performed  his  duties  faith- 
fully and  efficiently,  and  no  citizen  of  Marsh- 
field stands  higher  than  he  in  the  esteem  of 
his  fellow -men.    . 


TTAAPTAIN  ZENAS  H.  CROCKER, 
I  Sr  proprietor  and  manager  of  a  lumber 
V»i£_^^  and  coal  yard  at  Marion,  Plymouth 
County,  was  born  August  25,  1845,  in  the 
village  of  Wareham,  a  son  of  Walton  N.  and 
Elizabeth  (Swift)  Crocker. 

He  was  educated  in  the  public  schools  of 
Wareham.  At  the  age  of  seventeen  years  he 
shipped  before  the  mast  on  board  a  merchant 
vessel,  on  which  he  remained  two  years.  He 
gradually  worked  his  way  upward  to  the  posi- 
tion of  second  mate,  thence  being  promoted  to 
that  of  first  mate,  and  at  the  age  of  twenty- 
seven  years  he  was  given  command  of  a  vessel. 
For  twenty  .years  thereafter  he  sailed  as 
master  of  different  vessels,  in  some  of  which 
he  was  part  owner,  being  engaged  in  general 
freighting  and  in  foreign  trade,  his  ventures 
proving  generally  successful.  In  1891  the 
captain  retired  from  seafaring  pursuits,  am] 
two  years  later  removed  to  Marion,  where  he 
has  since  carried  on  a  thriving  business  as  a 
dealer  in  lumber  and  coal.  Captain  Crocker 
is  a  firm  Democrat  politically.  He  is  identi- 
fied with  the  Masonic  fraternity,  being  a  mem- 
ber of  Pythagorean  Lodge,  of  Marion.  Re- 
ligiously, he  is  a  communicant  of  the  Epis- 
copal church.  Captain  Crocker  married  Miss 
Mary  H.  Hathaway,  daughter  of  Captain  John 
K.  Hathaway,  of  Marion,  their  union  being 
solemnized  January  6,  1896. 


I^ATHANIEL  WILLIAMS  GUSHING,' 
a  former  resident  of  Hanson,  was  born 

L!?  V>^  ^  there  January  29,  1812,  son  of 
Charles  and  Abigail  (Collamore)  Gushing. 
The  family  is  of  English  origin,  the  earliest 
known  ancestor,  having  been  Peter  Gushing, 
of  Norfolk,  England.  Peter's  son,  Matthew, 
who  was  born  in  1588,  embarked  in  the  good 
ship  "Diligent,"  with  his  wife  and  five  chil- 


494 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


dren  for  America  in  1638.  He  first  settled 
in  Boston,  but  moved  to  Hingham,  Mass.,  in 
1660.  His  son  John,  born  in  England  in 
1627,  was  for  many  years  a  Deputy  in  the 
Plymouth  Colonial  Council.  After  the  colo- 
nies were  united  he  served  as  Representative 
in  the  legislature.  He  married  Sarah,  daugh- 
ter of  Nicholas  Jacobs,  and  settled  in  Scituate, 
Mass.,  where  he  died  in  1708. 

The  next  in  the  ancestral  line  was  John 
Gushing,  Jr.,  who  was  born  in  1662,  and  died 
in  1737.  He  was  Justice  of  the  Superior 
Court  of  Plymouth  County  from  1710  to  1728, 
and  thereafter  Chief  Justice  of  the  Supreme 
Court  until  his  death.  He  married  Deborah 
Loring,  of  Hull,  Mass.,  by  whom  he  became 
the  father  of  Elijah  Cushing.  Elijah  located 
in  that  part  of  Pembroke,  now  included  in  the 
town  of  Hanson,  and  there  spent  the  remainder 
of  his  days  upon  a  hired  farm.  His  son  Na- 
thaniel, by  his  wife,  Elizabeth  (Barstow) 
Parker,  was  a  farmer  and  lifelong  resident  of 
Hanson.  Nathaniel  was  united  in  marriage 
with  Lucy  Turner,  and  their  son  Charles,  a 
native  of  Hanson,  born  in  1770,  at  the  age  of 
sixteen  years  settled  on  a  farm  in  the  west 
precinct  of  Pembroke,  now  included  in  the 
northern  part  of  this  town.  Here  he  spent 
the  remainder  of  his  life,  and  died  in  April, 
1843,  at  the  age  of  seventy-three.  He  mar- 
ried Abigail  Collamore,  of  Scituate,  who  sur- 
vived him  but  two  days. 

After  acquiring  a  good  education,  Nathaniel 
W.  Cushing  became  a  teacher.  He  inherited 
the  old  home  acres,  and  thereon  subsequently 
became  a  successful  farmer.  In  politics  he 
was  a  Whig,  until  the  formation  of  the  Re- 
publican party,  when  he  joined  that  organiza- 
tion. He  was  much  interested  in  the  cause 
of  education,  and  rendered  efficient  service  as 
a  member  of  the  School  Committee  for  many 
years.     Being    a    great    reader,    he    was    well 


posted  on  current  events.  Of  a  genial  dispo- 
sition, his  guests  found  in  him  a  cordial  en- 
tertainer. He  died  February  21,  1895,  in 
Hanson,  of  which  he  had  been  a  lifelong  resi- 
dent. He  was  twice  married.  On  the  first 
occasion  he  was  united  to  Sally  Blake,  of 
South  Abington,  Mass.,  who  died  in  1S39. 
The  maiden  name  of  his  second  wife  was 
Rachel  C.  Thomas.  Her  parents  were  Ira 
and  Betsy  (Cushing)  Thomas.  She  died  Jan- 
uary 22,  1892,  leaving  four  children  —  Sally 
Blake,  Charles,  Nathaniel,  and  Frederick. 
Sally  now  occupies  the  old  homestead; 
Charles,  who  resides  in  Neponset,  Mass.,  mar- 
ried Alice  T.  Briggs,  daughter  of  Thomas  and 
Eliza  A.  Briggs,  of  North  Pembroke,  and 
grand -daughter  of  Esquire  Alden  Briggs,  and 
has  had  two  children  —  Lucy  Turner  and 
Annie  T.  ;  Nathaniel  married  Mary  S. 
Holmes,  of  Pembroke,  and  has  one  daugh- 
ter, Maude  T;  Frederick  married  Elvina 
V.  Ellis,  of  Wareham,  and  has  one  son, 
P"  red  crick    Arthur. 


WILLIAM     H. 
prising     an 


MYRICK,  an  enter- 
and  successful  hardware 
merchant  of  Kingston,  was  born  in 
Orleans  on  Cape  Cod,  April  17,  1834,  son  of 
Captain  William  and  Mary  (Cobb)  Myrick. 
Both  parents  were  natives  of  Cape  Cod. 
The  father,  who  followed  the  sea  for  the 
greater  part  of  his  life,  becoming  a  ship- 
master in  the  merchant  service,  passed  his 
last  years  in  Duxbury,  Mass.,  where  he  died 
in  his  eightieth  year.  His  wife,  Mary,  was  a 
daughter  of  Captain  Elkanah  Cobb,  a  native 
of  Cape  Cod,  who  became  a  sea  captain  when 
he  was  twenty-one  years  old,  and  served  in  the 
United  States  Navy  during  the  War  of  1S12. 
Mr.  Myrick  has  in  his  possession  a  chair  capt- 
ured by  Captain  Cobb  in  a  naval  fight  of  that 


,0^" 


/ 


ISRAEL    OAKMAN. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


497 


period.  The  Captain  spent  his  last  years  in 
Eastham,  Cape  Cod.  The  surviving  children 
of  Captain  Myrickare:  William  H.,  the  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch;  James,  a  resident  of  Dux- 
bury;  and  Jerusha,  the  wife  of  Rufus  Halli- 
day,  of  Duxbury. 

After  attending  the  common  schools  of  Dux- 
bury  in  his  early  boyhood,  William  H.  Myrick 
considerably  increased  his  stock  of  knowledge 
by  a  carefully  selected  course  of  reading.  At 
the  age  of  eleven  years  he  shipped  on  a  fish- 
ing-vessel bound  for  the  Grand  Banks.  After- 
ward he  spent  four  summers  engaged  as  cook 
upon  similar  voyages,  and  in  the  winter  he 
went  to  sea  on  a  coaster.  When  eighteen 
years  old  he  began  to  serve  an  apprenticeship 
of  three  years  at  the  tinner's  trade  with  W.  R. 
Drew  in  Plymouth.  After  his  time  expired 
he  served  as  foreman  of  the  shop  for  a  year. 
Then  he  opened  a  tinware  store  in  Kingston, 
where  he  has  since  remained  in  business.  As 
trade  increased  he  enlarged  his  facilities,  and 
added  hardware  to  his  stock.  At  the  present 
time  he  carries  a  full  line  of  hardware,  tin, 
and  crockery  ware,  and  has  a  large  and  profit- 
able business.  In  187S  he  erected  the  Myrick 
Block,  in  which  his  store  is  now  located. 

Mr.  Myrick  wedded  Frances  D.  Weston, 
daughter  of  the  late  Captain  Harvey  Weston, 
of  Plymouth.  Born  of  the  union  were  five 
children,  of  whom  William  W.  and  Mary 
P" ranees  are  living.  Mary  married  George 
Frederick  Standish,  and  they  live  in  King- 
ston. Mrs.  Myrick  died  August  12,  18S4. 
Mr.  Myrick  is  a  member  of  the  Unitarian 
church.  In  politics  he  is  an  active  supporter 
of  the  Republican  party,  and  he  has  ably 
served  upon  the  School  Committee  and  as 
Overseer  of  the  Poor.  He  is  a  Mason  of 
Corner  Stone  Lodge  of  Duxbury.  A  progres- 
sive and  public-spirited  citizen,  who  can  be 
depended  upon  for  aid  in  forwarding  any  meas- 


ure introduced  for  the   benefit   of  the  commu- 
nity, he  is  highly  esteemed  in  the  town. 


ISRAEL  OAKMAN,  contractor  and 
builder,  of  North  Marshfield,  is  a 
member  of  one  of  the  old  and  reputable 
families  which  constitute  so  large  a  part  of 
the  population  of  this  ancient  Plymouth 
County  town,  a  portion  of  the  ancestral  dwell- 
ing in  which  he  resides,  and  which  was  his 
birthplace,  having  been  built  about  two  hun- 
dred years  ago.  He  was  born  February  18, 
1828.  His  parents,  Constant  and  Wealthy 
(Carver)  Oakman,  were  both  natives  of  Marsh- 
field.  (F"or  further  particulars  of  the  earlier 
generations  of  the  Oakman  family,  see  biog- 
raphy of  Colonel  Hiram  A.  Oakman  given  in 
this  work.) 

Constant  Oakman,  who  was  a  farmer,  was  a 
lifelong  resident  of  Marshfield,  his  homestead 
being  the  one  now  occupied  by  the  subject  of 
this  sketch.  An  upright,  kind-hearted  man, 
he  was  widely  known  and  esteemed,  and  in 
the  latter  part  of  his  life  was  commonly  called 
Uncle  Constant  by  all  who  knew  him.  He 
took  a  very  active  part  in  local  politics,  favor- 
ing the  Democratic  side  in  his  last  years. 
He  was  a  member  of  the  Unitarian  church. 
His  death  occurred  in  March,  1877,  his  wife 
having  passed  away  in  1S65.  Three  of  their 
children  survive,  namely:  Israel;  Howard 
W.,  residing  in  Boston;  and  Rachel  B.,  wife 
of  Andrew  L.  Damon,  of  Marshfield. 

Israel  Oakman  received  his  education  in  the 
common  schools  of  Marshfield.  He  began  to 
learn  the  carpenter's  trade  when  eighteen 
years  old,  and  served  an  apprenticeship  of 
nearly  three  years  with  Samuel  G.  Alden,  a 
contractor  and  builder  of  East  Bridgewater, 
who  at  that  time  managed  an  extensive  busi- 
ness.      After    finishing    his     apprenticeship, 


498 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


Mr.  Oakman  was  employed  for  a  nuniber  of 
years  as  a  journeyman,  and  then  started  in 
business  as  a  contractor  and  builder  in  East 
Boston.  There  he  remained  for  a  number  of 
years,  returning  to  Marshfield  in  1856.  A 
skilled  workman  and  upright  business  man, 
Mr.  Oakman  has  the  confidence  of  the  public, 
and  in  the  past  forty  years  has  erected  a  great 
many  buildings  in  this  locality.  He  remod- 
elled his  own  residence  in  1S56-57,  and 
has  made  many  improvements  on  the  farm  — 
a  generous  estate  of  one  hundred  and  thirty 
acres. 

He  was  married  in  1852  to  Anstrice  W. 
Hatch,  a  native  of  North  Marshfield,  daughter 
of  Samuel  and  Laura  (Hatch)  Hatch.  Mr. 
Hatch,  who  was  a  saw-mill  proprietor  and 
farmer,  died  in  1881,  and  his  wife  followed 
him  in  1882.  Of  their  children  two  besides 
Mrs.  Oakman  are  living  —  Marcellus  and  Sam- 
uel F.  Hatch.  Mrs.  Oakman  graduated  from 
the  Bridgewater  Normal  School  in  1848. 
She  is  the  mother  of  three  children:  Ida  A., 
wife  of  Theodore  Moorehead,  in  the  custom- 
house service  in  China;  Israel  H.,  in  Marsh- 
field, Mass.;  and  Emmeline  L,  wife  of  Nel- 
son E.  Bryant,  also  a  custom-house  employee 
in  China.  Israel  H.  Oakman  was  born  Au- 
gust 5,  1857.  He  married  November  25, 
1883,  Fannie  T.  Damon,  daughter  of  Gran- 
ville D.  and  I'^rances  (Tilden)  Damon.  They 
have  four  children  now  living;  namely, 
I'hilip  B.,  Wealthy  C,  Walter  F.,  and 
Israel  H.,  Jr.;  and  they  have  been  bereft  of 
three  — ■  Theresa  Louise,  Florence  Tilden,  and 
Irving  Howard.  Israel  H.  and  his  family 
live  in  the  old  Oakman  house  with  his  father, 
his  children  representing  the  si.xth  generation 
that  has  occupied  the  homestead. 

In  politics  Mr.  Oakman  is  independent,  vot- 
ing on  principle,  and  not  on  party  feeling. 
He  has   served    as    Constable    in    Marshfield. 


He  and  his  wife  attend  service   at   the   Unita- 
rian church. 

They   have  a  wide  circle  of    acquaintance, 
and  are  highly  esteemed  members  of  society. 


LIJAH  T.  CLAPP,  a  highly  esteemed 
resident  of  Greenbush,  was  born  in 
Scituate,  Mass.,  September  8,  1826, 
son  of  Elijah  and  Harriet  (Ford)  Clapp,  both 
likewise  natives  of  Scituate.  He  is  a  lineal 
descendant  of  the  Dorchester  Clapps.  Roger 
Clapp,  who  was  the  founder  of  the  family, 
emigrated  from  Dorchester,  England,  and 
landed  at  Hull,  Mass.,  about  the  year  1630. 
He  subsequently  became  a  military  com- 
mander of  Boston,  and  owned  a  large  estate  in 
Dorchester,  Mass.,  where  many  of  his  de- 
scendants are  still  residing.  Both  paternal 
and  maternal  ancestors  of  Elijah  T.  Clapp 
served  as  soldiers  in  the  French  and  Indian 
Wars,  and  in  the  struggle  for  independence. 
Thomas  Clapp,  his  grandfather,  who  was  a  na- 
tive of  Scituate,  and  a  tenant  farmer  on  the 
Stockbridge  estate  in  this  town  for  many 
years,  served  as  a  Captain  in  the  War  of  1812. 
His  father,  Elijah  Clapp,  who  followed  the 
trade  of  blacksmith  during  the  active  period 
of  his  life,  died  in  his  eighty-ninth  year.  His 
mother  lived  to  be  nearly  ninety  years  old. 
The  other  surviving  children  of  his  parents 
are:  Julia,  the  wife  of  George  Spaulding,  of 
Boston ;  and  Mercy  F". ,  the  wife  of  George 
Manson,  of  East  Boston.  His  brother,  Pelcg 
F.,  who  served  as  a  soldier  throughout  the 
Civil  War,  participating  in  several  important 
battles,  died  in  1895. 

Elijah  T.  Clapp  acquired  a  meagre  educa- 
tion in  the  schools  of  Greenbush.  At  the 
age  of  thirteen  he  began  to  learn  the  black- 
smith's trade  with  his  father.  Afterward, 
succeeding  his  father,  he  followed  it  until   he 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


499 


was  sixty-five  years  old.  He,  in  turn,  has 
been  succeeded  by  his  son,  William  H.  Clapp, 
who  is  also  engaged  in  the  grain  and  ice  busi- 
ness. His  shop  was  the  first  blacksmith's 
stand  established  in  Greenbush.  He  owns 
the  old  Stockbridge  mill,  together  with  the 
land  in  the  vicinity  of  the  pond  which  is 
named  after  the  Stockbridge  family.  In  the 
winter  season  he  does  quite  an  extensive  busi- 
ness in  sawing  shingles. 

Mr.  Clapp  wedded  Ann  R.,  daughter  of 
Thomas  Clapp,  and  became  the  father  of  seven 
children  —  Elijah  T.  Clapp,  Jr.,  Helen  A., 
William  H.,  Harriet  F.,  Everett  L.,  Richard, 
and  Frederick.  Helen  A.  is  the  wife  of 
Frederick  Rogers;  and  I'rederick  is  now  de- 
ceased. In  politics  Mr.  Clapp  is  a  Republi- 
can. He  contributed  much  toward  securing 
the  many  improvements  which  have  taken 
place  in  Scituate  during  his  time.  His  suc- 
cess in  life  has  been  attained  through  industry 
and  perseverance.  In  his  religious  views  he  is 
an  orthodox  Congregationalist,  and  he  is  a 
member  of  the  society  of  that  denomination  at 
Scituate  Centre. 


YP7\0BERT  H.  MOOREHEAD,  now 
I  l^-*-'  living  in  retirement,  was  formerly  a 
1P  V  ^  {irominent  business  man  in  Marsh- 
field.  He  was  born  August  30,  18 14,  in 
Duxbury,  this  county,  son  of  John  and  Dinah 
(Miller)  Moorehead.  The  parents,  both  of 
Scotch  descent,  who  were  natives  of  the  north 
of  Ireland,  came  to  America  a  few  years  be- 
fore the  birth  of  Robert  H.,  and  settled  in 
Duxbury,  where  the  father  followed  his  trade 
of  weaver  for  a  number  of  years.  In  1826 
John  Moorehead  moved  with  his  family  to 
Marshfield,  and  there,  after  spending  the  rest 
of  his  life  occupied  in  agriculture,  he  died  in 
his  seventieth  year.      Of  his  children,  Robert 


H.  is  now  the  only  survivor.      James  M.  died 
January  6,   1897,  in  New  York  City. 

Robert  H.  Moorehead's  schooling,  received 
for  three  months  each  winter,  ended  when  he 
was  sixteen  years  old.  He  acquired  the 
rest  of  his  good,  practical  education  by 
extensive  reading  and  intelligent  observation. 
In  his  seventeenth  year  he  began  to  learn  the 
blacksmith's  trade  with  Nathaniel  Stevens, 
who  was  i)lacksmith  and  edge  tool  manufact- 
urer. After  the  lapse  of  a  little  more  than 
four  years,  Mr.  Stevens  was  obliged  by  ill 
health  to  retire  from  business,  and  Mr.  Moore- 
head conducted  the  shop  in  his  own  name  for 
a  number  of  years.  Subsequently  he  spent 
several  years  in  shoemaking,  and  then  for  two 
years  in  the  employ  of  the  Old  Colony  Rail- 
road, having  been  the  first  railroad  agent  in 
Marshfield.  His  next  venture  was  in  the  mer- 
cantile line  as  a  retail  dealer  in  coal,  flour, 
wheat,  grain,  and  hay,  in  Marshfield.  After 
a  prosperous  career  in  this  business,  he  sold 
it  in  1895  to  Henry  Carver,  and  has  since  en- 
joyed the  leisure  earned  by  long,  years  of  ac- 
tivity. 

Mr.  Moorehead  has  been  twice  married. 
His  first  wife,  in  maidenhood  Sarah  P.  How- 
land,  was  a  daughter  of  Arthur  and  Sarah 
(Porter)  Howland,  of  this  town.  She  died 
after  bearing  him  six  children.  Of  these 
Theodore,  now  a  leading  official  in  the  custom- 
house service  at  Shanghai,  China,  is  the  only 
survivor.  His  second  marriage  was  con- 
tracted with  Mrs.  Rebecca  P.  (Dingley), 
Sampson,  a  daughter  of  Isaac  Dingley,  and 
the  widow  of  Charles  Sampson.  She  has  also 
passed  away.  In  politics  Mr.  Moorehead  is 
an  independent.  He  was  for  five  years  Select- 
man of  Marshfield,  and  for  equal  periods  As- 
sessor and  Overseer  of  the  Poor.  Also,  for 
the  ten  years  after  its  organization,  he  was 
Treasurer  of  the   Marshfield  Agricultural  'So- 


500 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


ciety,  and  lie  had  been  elected  for  the  eleventh 
year,  when  he  resigned. 


/^^^TkoRGE  H.  DAMON,  of  Scituate, 
V  ^  I  the  superintendent  of  Upham 
]5rothers'  shoe  factory  in  Stoughton, 
Norfolk  County,  was  born  here,  November  7, 
1833,  son  of  Henry  and  Elizabeth  (Litchfield) 
Damon,  both  also  natives  of  Scituate.  His 
grandfather,  Reuben  Damon,  likewise  born  in 
this  town,  who  was  a  descendant  of  an  early 
settler  of  the  district,  and  served  as  a  soldier 
in  the  Revolutionary  War,  followed  the  sea 
for  a  living.  Henry  Damon  was  a  lifelong 
resident  of  Scituate.  In  his  younger  man- 
hood he  also  followed  the  sea,  commanding  a 
number  of  schooners,  while  his  later  years 
were  occupied  in  farming.  In  politics  a  Free 
Soiler  and  a  Republican,  he  took  a  prominent 
part  in  local  affairs,  and  served  for  some  time 
as  Selectman.  Captain  Damon  was  an  active 
member  of  the  Congregational  church,  on  ac- 
count of  which  he  came  to  be  called  Deacon 
Damon.  He  died  in  1879  on  the  farm  now 
occupied  by  George  H.  Damon,  his  only  sur- 
viving child. 

George  H.  Damon  acquired  his  education  in 
the  public  schools  of  Scituate.  In  his  boy- 
hood he  went  to  sea  with  the  mackerel  fleet 
during  the  fishing  seasons.  After  attaining 
his  majority  he  learned  to  make  boots  and 
shoes,  and  worked  at  that  trade  as  a  journey- 
man for  a  number  of  years.  He  then  built  a 
shop  on  the  homestead  farm,  and  there  exe- 
cuted contracts  from  shoe  firms,  employing  at 
one  time  as  many  as  fifty  hands.  In  1885  he 
was  appointed  superintendent  of  the  shoe 
factory  of  Fogg,  Vinal  &  Co.,  at  Rochester, 
N.H.;  and  in  August,  1888,  he  was  made 
superintendent  of  the  shoe  bottoming  depart- 
ment in  the  factory  of   Edwin  Clapp,  of   East 


Weymouth,  Mass.  About  eight  years  later 
he  became  superintendent  of  Upham  Brothers' 
Shoe  Factory,  the  duties  of  which  he  has 
since  discharged  to  the  satisfaction  of  his  em- 
ployers. 

Mr.  Damon  was  married  in  1855  to  Harriet 
L.  Brown,  a  native  of  Scituate,  and  a  daughter 
of  Captain  Samuel  Brown.  Captain  Brown, 
like  Mr.  Damon's  father,  was  a  seafaring  man, 
and  commanded  a  vessel  when  he  was  eigh- 
teen years  old.  After  spending  his  last  years 
on  a  farm  in  Scituate,  he  died  in  i8gi.  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Damon  have  had  six  children,  four 
of  whom  are  living.  The  latter  were  born  as 
follows:  George  W.,  on  May  4,  1858;  Henry 
E.,  on  July  ij,  1861;  Frank  A.,  September, 
1874;  and  Benjamin  L. ,  on  December  7, 
1876.  The  others  were:  Chester,  born  De- 
cember 12,  1866,  who  died  June  10,  1889; 
and  Jessie  F.,  born  December  12,  1856,  who 
died  February,  1858.  The  father  is  a  member 
of  the  Republican  party.  He  has  made  many 
friends  in  his  business  relations,  and  is  highly 
esteemed  by  all  who  know  him. 


ATTAIN  NATHAN  P.  GIBBS  has 
had  a  remarkably  successful  and  fort- 
unate career  as  a  seaman  —  success- 
ful, as  his  ventures  were  lucrative;  fortunate, 
for  he  met  with  no  serious  mishap  while  on 
the  high  seas  He  was  born  in  Wareham, 
Mass.,  November  28,  1S27,  son  of  Seth  D. 
and  Delia  P.  (Perry)  Gibbs,  of  Sandwich, 
Mass.  He  was  one  of  a  family  of  eight  chil- 
dren. His  brother,  William  P.  Gibbs,  is  the 
only  one  besides  himself  now  living.  Their 
father  was  a  mariner. 

The  boyhood  of  Nathan  was  i)assed  on  a 
farm,  and  his  early  education  was  limited. 
At  the  age  of  sixteen  he  shipped  on  board  a 
whaling  vessel,  and  was  gone  from   home  fif- 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


SOI 


teen  months,  cruising  in  the  Atlantic  Ocean. 
The  adventurous  life  pleased  him,  and  he  bade 
farewell  to  the  quiet  fields  of  agriculture, 
shipping  next  as  seaman  on  a  merchant  vessel 
from  Boston.  At  the  end  of  this  voyage  he 
was  fully  qualified  as  an  able  seaman,  and  his 
next  birth  was  as  second  mate.  At  the  age 
of  twenty -five  he  was  master  of  a  vessel,  and 
that  year  (1852)  he  discovered  on  Little  Bird 
Island  a  rich  deposit  of  guano.  In  1854,  tak- 
ing with  him  a  crew  of  sixty  men,  he  settled 
on  this  island,  and  began  to  dig  the  guano  for 
the  firm  of  Sampson  &  Toppin,  of  Boston,  and 
P.  S.  Shelton,  of  the  same  city.  When  his 
men  had  been  at  work  for  about  seven  months, 
the  Venezuelan  government,  discovering  them, 
put  an  end  to  their  operations,  and  the  affair 
made  some  little  trouble  between  Venezuela 
and  this  country.  It  was  afterward  satis- 
factorily settled  by  the  United  States  govern- 
ment. Captain  Gibbs  followed  the  sea  for 
forty  years,  and  for  twenty  years  was  in  the 
California  trade.  In  1882  he  retired,  and  set- 
tled permanently  on  the  farm  where  he  now 
makes  his  home  in  Wareham.  His  farm 
covers  some  fifty  acres,  and  it  is  now  a  valu- 
able estate. 

Captain  Gibbs  was  married  in  1S54  '^^  Miss 
Hannah  Churbuck,  of  Wareham,  daughter  of 
Ca])tain  Willis  Churbuck,  and  has  two  chil- 
dren — ■  Nathan  A.  and  Edna  K.  The  daughter 
is  the  wife  of  Harry  E.  Churbuck,  of  New 
Bedford.  In  politics  the  Captain  is  inde- 
pendent, making  cause  with  neither  party. 
He  is  a  Mason  in  good  standing,  belonging  to 
Social  Harmony  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of 
Wareham. 


|ZRA    SMITH,    a    prominent    resident    of 
Marshfield,     was     born      February     16, 
1823,   in    Duxbury,    this   county,    son 
of    Captain    Jacob     and     Deborah    (Cushman) 


Smith.  Captain  Jacob  Smith,  who  was  also 
born  in  Duxbury,  followed  the  sea  for  thirty 
years  or  more,  and  was  the  captain  of  several 
vessels.  The  latter  part  of  his  life  was  spent 
in  farming  in  Marshfield,  where  he  died  some 
fifty  years  ago.  His  wife  was  a  native  of 
Marshfield.  Of  their  children  Jacob  Smith, 
of  Westford,  Mass.,  is  the  only  other  one 
living. 

Ezra  Smith  acquired  his  education  in  the 
common  schools  of  Duxbury  and  at  Lexington 
Academy.  He  was  in  his  eighteenth  year 
when  his  parents  removed  to  Marshfield. 
Since  then  he  has  resided  in  this  town,  iden- 
tifying himself  closely  with  its  growth  and 
progress.  His  time  is  given  chiefly  to  agri- 
culture, which  he  carries  on  in  a  progressive 
and  enterprising  way.  His  farm  is  one  of  the 
best  in  the  locality.  A  member  of  the  Repub- 
lican party,  he  attends  the  town  meetings  and 
caucuses,  and  exercises  much  influence  in 
matters  of  public  importance;  but  he  leaves 
the  cares  of  office  to  others. 

Mr.  Smith  was  married  April  9,  1851,  to 
Sarah  J.  Bessey,  a  native  of  Duxbury,  and  a 
daughter  of  Marshall  and  Sarah  B.  (Sampson) 
Bessey.  Mr.  Bessey,  who  was  born  in  Bridge- 
water,  Mass.,  died  in  1842.  Mrs.  Bessey, 
who  belonged  to  a  leading  family  of  Plymouth 
County,  was  descended  from  Henry  Sampson, 
who  came  to  Plymouth  with  the  family  of  his 
uncle,  Edward  Tilly,  in  the  "Mayflower." 
He  was  too  young  to  sign  the  compact  of  No- 
vember II,  in  the  cabin  of  the  "Mayflower". 
in  Provincetown  Harbor;  but  he  was  enumer- 
ated in  the  assignment  of  land  made  in  1623, 
and  in  the  division  of  cattle  in  1627;  and  he 
was  admitted  a  freeman  of  Plymouth  Colony 
in  1637.  Although  made  one  of  the  original 
grantees  of  Bridgewater  in  1645,  he  settled 
permanently  in  Duxbury,  of  which  he  was  ap- 
pointed   Constable    in    1661.       "This,"    says 


502 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Winsor,  "was  an  office  of  high  trust  and  re- 
sponsibility, and  none  were  elected  to  it  but 
men  of  high  standing."  Henry  Sampson  died 
December  24,  1684.  He  was  married  Febru- 
ary 6,  1635,  to  Ann  Plummer,  who  bore  him 
nine  children.  His  youngest  son,  Caleb, 
born  in  Duxbury  in  1660,  married  IVIercy, 
daughter  of  Alexander  and  Sarah  (Alden) 
Standish,  all  of  Uuxbury.  Alexander  Standish 
was  the  eldest  son  of  Captain  Miles  Standish, 
and  his  wife  was  a  daughter  of  John  Alden, 
the  Captain's  rival  in  love.  Mrs.  Smith  is  of 
the  sixth  generation  in  direct  line  from  Caleb 
and  Mercy  (.Standish)  Sampson,  tracing  her 
descent  through  their  son  Caleb,  Caleb's  son 
Paul,  Paul's  son  Chandler,  and  Chandler's 
daughter,  Sarah  B.  Sampson.  Mrs.  Sarah  B. 
(Sampson)  Bessey  died  in  1884.  Mrs.  Smith 
is  a  member  of  the  First  Congregational 
Church.  A  worthy  representative  of  the  fam- 
ilies from  which  she  springs,  she  is  very  pop- 
ular in  society.  She  is  the  mother  of  three 
children — ^  Persis  J.,  Bessie,  and  Henry  P. 


"OSEA    J.     STOCKBRIDGE,    one    of 

the  town  fathers  of  Scituate,  was 
ii®  V  _,  formerly  a  successful  merchant. 
He  was  born  February  21,  1839,  in  Norwell, 
Mass.  (once  a  part  of  old  Scituate),  son  of 
Joseph  and  Deborah  (Dwelley)  Stockbridge. 
The  Stockbridge  family  is  of  English  origin. 
The  first  member  of  it  in  this  section  of  the 
country  was  Samuel  Stockbridge,  whose  son, 
Joseph,  was  the  grandfather  of  Hosea  J.  Jo- 
seph Stockbridge,  Jr.,  a  native  of  Scituate, 
worked  at  carpentry  in  his  young  manhood, 
and  at  shoemaking  in  his  maturer  years.  In 
politics  he  was  a  Whig.  He  sjjent  his  life  in 
Plymouth  County,  and  died  in  1872.  His 
wife  was  born  in  Hanover,  Mass. 

Hosea  J.  Stockbridge,  who  is  the  only  sur- 


viving member  of  his  father's  family,  was  ed- 
ucated in  the  common  schools  of  Norwell. 
When  he  was  eighteen  years  old  he  began  to 
work  at  shoemaking,  which  he  followed  until 
1870.  In  that  year  he  moved  from  Norwell 
to  Scituate  Harbor,  and  there  engaged  in  the 
sale  of  general  merchandise  and  grain  as  a 
partner  in  the  firm  of  C.  A.  Cole  &  Co.  In 
1873  he  retired  from  business,  and  located  on 
his  present  farm,  where  he  has  since  found 
pleasure  and  profit  in  the  pursuit  of  agricult- 
ure. On  October  27,  1869,  he  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Julia  E.  Brown,  a  daughter  of 
the  late  William  Brown,  of  Scituate.  A  pop- 
ular member  of  the  Democratic  party,  Mr. 
Stockbridge  has  been  twice  nominated  for 
Representative.  He  has  been  a  Justice  of  the 
Peace  for  some  time,  and  was  first  elected  in 
iSgo  to  the  Scituate  Board  of  Selectmen,  on 
which  he  served  three  years  in  succession.  In 
1895  he  was  again  elected,  and  in  1896  he 
was  honored  with  re-election.  He  has  also 
served  as  Assessor,  Overseer  of  the  Poor,  and 
as  a- member  of  the  Board  of  Health.  Always 
in  favor  of  progress,  but  never  overstepping 
the  bounds  of  prudence,  his  opinions  are 
listened  to  with  respect,  and  have  m.uch  influ- 
ence with  hi.s  townsmen.  Mr.  Stockbridge  is 
a  member  of  Connihasset  Lodge,  A.  F.  & 
A.  M. ;  and  of  Cohasset  Lodge,  No.  192,  In- 
dependent Order  of  Odd  Fellows. 


ON.  FRANKLIN  W.  HATCH,  the 
popular  proprietor  of  the  Brant  Rock 
-^  V  _  and  Green  Harbor  coach  line,  is 
one  of  the  best -known  citizens  of  Marshfield, 
where  he  was  born  P'ebruary  12,  1836.  A 
son  of  Colonel  Charles  and  Mary  (Ames) 
Hatch,  both  of  whom  were  also  natives  of 
this  town,  he  is  a  descendant  in  the  seventh 
generation  of  Kenelem  Winslow,  who  came  to 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


5°3 


this  country  about  the  year  1630,  and  whose 
brother,  Edward  Winslow,  of  Plymouth,  was  a 
Colonial  governor.  Charles  Hatch,  grand- 
father of  Franklin  W.,  was  born  in  Marsh- 
field.  His  son.  Colonel  Charles  Hatch,  was 
engaged  in  farming  in  this  town  during  a 
great  part  of  his  life.  In  his  earlier  manhood 
he  had  managed  a  stage  line  between  Duxbury 
and  Boston.  His  military  title  was  obtained 
in  the  State  militia.  In  politics  he  was  suc- 
cessively a  Whig  and  a  Republican.  He  died 
in  1870.  Of  his  children,  five  are  living, 
namely:  Mary,  the  wife  of  Ezra  Ford,  of 
Marshfield;  Almera,  the  wife  of  Nathan  Ford, 
of  Weymouth,  Mass. ;  Ellen,  the  wife  of 
R.  F.  H.  Keen,  of  Marshfield;  Franklin  W. , 
the  subject  of  this  sketch;  and  Susan  A., 
the  wife  of  John  Magoun,  of  Marshfield. 

Franklin  W.  Hatch  acquired  his  early  edu- 
cation in  the  common  schools  of  his  native 
town.  He  remained  with  his  father  until  he 
was  of  age,  and  then  for  three  years  was  en- 
gaged in  driving  a  stage  for  his  brother, 
Charles  T.  Hatch,  who  was  the  proprietor  of  a 
coach  line.  Afterward  he  entered  into  part- 
nership with  his  brother;  and  then,  after 
another  interval,  became  the  sole  proprietor 
of  the  line,  which  he  has  successfully  carried 
on  since.  In  the  the  summer  his  coaches,  ply- 
ing between  Brant  Rock  and  Green  Harbor, 
often  carry  a  thousand  passengers  a  week. 
He  has  also  government  contracts  for  four 
mail  routes,  which  are  in  operation  the  year 
round. 

On  December  18,  i860,  Mr.  Hatch  was 
married  to  Vesta,  daughter  of  Sidney  Howard, 
of  Brockton,  and  has  one  daughter  living, 
named  Marcia  E.  His  political  principles  are 
Republican,  and  he  has  served  in  a  number  of 
public  offices.  He  was  Constable  of  Marsh- 
field for  a  number  of  years;  Deputy  Sheriff 
for   twelve  years;    and    he    sat    in    the    State 


legislature  of  1888.  He  is  a  member  of 
Corner  Stone  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Du.x- 
bury,  in  which  at  one  time  he  held  the  rank 
of  Master.  Mr.  Hatch  is  well  known  to  a 
large  contingent  of  summer  visitors,  and  is 
very  popular  with  all  classes.  His  success  in 
business  has  been  won  entirely  by  personal 
effort,  as  he  started  on  little  more  capital  than 
industry  and  pluck. 


— 4-»»*-*— 


T^APTAIN  JOHN  G.  DEXTER,  of 
I  Vp  Rochester,  who  has  had  a  remarkably 
^J^  ^^  successful  career  in  whale  hunting, 
was  born  in  Rochester,  l-'ebruary  28,  1834. 
He  was  reared  on  a  farm,  receiving  much  of_ 
his  early  education  at  Rochester  Academy. 
At  the  age  of  si.xteen  he  shipped  before  the 
mast  on  the  whaling  ship  "Canton"  of  New 
Bedford,  and  was  gone  a  year  and  a  half,  cruis- 
ing in  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  Oceans  and 
the  Okhotsk  Sea.  Having  become  an  e.vpert 
sailor  on  this  voyage,  he  was  next  engaged  as 
boat  steerer  on  the  ship  "Pacific,"  which  was 
out  thirty  months,  hunting  whales  in  the  same 
waters,  and  in  Chinese  and  Japanese  seas.  He 
went  on  the  next  trip  of  the  "Pacific"  as  third 
mate,  was  gone  forty-four  months,  cruising  in 
the  Atlantic,  Indian,  and  Pacific  Oceans,  and 
returned  as  second  mate.  Holding  this  rank, 
he  made  four  more  voyages  in  the  Pacific,  and 
became  very  familiar  with  the  whaling  grounds 
of  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  Oceans,  and  the 
Okhotsk  Sea.  He  then  became  Captain  of  the- 
bark  "Hercules,"  and  commanded  her  on  a 
voyage  from  New  Bedford,  lasting  forty 
months.  Captain  Dexter  has  circumnavigated 
the  globe  more  than  once,  and  sailed  around 
Cape  Horn  six  times;  and  the  vessels  on 
which  he  served  obtained  at  an  average  over  a 
thousand  barrels  of  whale  oil  per  year.  In 
1866  he  retired  from   the  arduous   life  which 


S04 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


he  had  followed  for  sixteen  years,  and  settled 
in  his  present  home. 

Captain  Dexter  was  married  in  1869  to  Miss 
Catherine  Ruggles,  of  Rochester.  They  have 
had  seven  children,  of  whom  Frank  G.  and 
Hattie  are  deceased.  The  others  are:  John 
W.,  Ellen  R.,  Lucy  R.,  Charles  R.,  and 
Mary  S.  Politically,  he  favors  the  Republi- 
can party.  He  was  Assessor,  Overseer  of  the 
Poor,  and  Trustee  of  the  Public  Library  for 
some  time;  Selectman  of  the  town  for  four 
years;  and  he  was  sent  to  the  legislature  in 
1893.  He  takes  much  interest  in  literary 
matters  and  educational  projects.  His  wide 
and  diversified  knowledge  of  men  and  things, 
gained  by  actual  observation  and  experience, 
gives  much  value  to  his  opinion  on  numerous 
subjects. 

«^«»» 

VOT  PHH.LIPS,  of  the  firm  of  Lot 
Phillips  &  Company,  large  box  manu- 
facturers in  Plymouth  County,  own- 
ing mills  in  various  places,  is  a  substantial 
citizen  of  the  town  of  Hanover.  He  was  born 
in  Hanson,  Mass.,  February  13,  1841,  a  son 
of  Ezra  and  Nabby  Phillips,  being  the  only 
child  of  his  parents.  He  received  a  public- 
school  education,  after  which  he  learned  the 
routine  of  farm  work,  remaining  on  the  home 
farm  in  Hanson  until  1863,  when  he  was 
twenty-two  years  of  age. 

The  eight  years  following,  from  1863  to 
1 87 1,  were  spent  in  the  work  of  a  millwright. 
In  1 87 1  he  erected  a  plant  for  the  manufactur- 
ing of  boxes  and  the  grinding  of  grain,  and 
established  the  business  now,  as  then,  con- 
ducted under  the  firm  name  of  Lot  Phillips 
&  Co.  Besides  this  they  own  a  saw-mill  in 
Hanson,  another  in  East  Pembroke,  a  third  in 
West  Du.xbury,  and  the  Alihab  mills,  located 
at  West  Hanover,  the  dimensions  of  the  box 
factory  being  eighty  by  one  hundred  and  sixty 


feet,  and  of  the  grist-mill,  forty  by  one  hun- 
dred feet.  Mr.  Phillips's  partners  in  this 
enterprise  were  E.  Y.  Perry  and  Josiah  H ink- 
ley.  They  cut  annually  about  three  and  one- 
half  million  feet  of  lumber  into  box  boards, 
and  saw  about  seventeen  hundred  cords  of 
wood,  which  is  sold  in  the  Boston  market. 
Mr.  Phillips  carries  on  a  farm  of  about  one 
hundred  and  seventy-five  acres  owned  by  the 
company.  He  was  also  connected  for  seven- 
teen years  with  the  grain  business  in  Hanover 
and  Rockland. 

Mr.  Phillips  and  Miss  Sarah  E.  Phillips 
were  joined  in  marriage  in  1863,  and  to  them 
seven  children  have  been  born,  as  follows: 
George  W.,  who  died  in  1878:  Mabel  G.  ; 
Fred  W.  ;  Flora  E. ;  Ezra  Burt;  Lee;  and 
Hugh.  Mr.  Phillips  is  a  Republican  in  poli- 
tics. He  is  a  member  of  North  River  Lodge, 
Independent  Order  of  Odd  F"ellows,  of  Han- 
over. He  attends  the  P'irst  Congregational 
Church  of  Hanover,  and  has  been  Treasurer  of 
the  parish  for  several  years. 


ENRY  S.  BATES,  of  Hanover,  who 
closed  a  successful  business  career 
in  1896  by  retirement,  was  born  in 
his  present  home  on  November  10,  1821.  He 
was  educated  in  his  native  town,  making  the 
most  of  the  limited  opportunities  offered  at 
that  time.  Ship-building  was  one  of  the  lead- 
ing industries  of  Plymouth  County  in  his  boy- 
hood, when  the  docks  were  thronged  with  busy 
workmen.  It  was  this  fact  that  prompted  him 
at  the  age  of  seventeen  to  learn  the  ship- 
carpenter's  trade.  Having  done  so,  he  fol- 
lowed it  for  thirteen  years,  during  which  he 
saw  launched  many  a  vessel  which  he  had 
helped  to  build.  In  1851,  when  he  was 
thirty  years  old,  he  and  his  brother  John 
opened  a  general  store  in  Hanover,   stocking 


^*a»^^ 


LOT    PHILLIPS. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


S°7 


it  with  the  variety  of  goods  made  necessary 
by  the  demands  of  country  trade.  This  was 
very  large  then,  as  there  was  no  railroad  con- 
nection with  the  cities,  and  goods  had  to  be 
transported  overland  by  team  from  Boston,  or 
shipped  by  way  of  the  North  River.  Hanover 
is  about  seven  or  eight  miles  from  the  mouth 
of  the  river  as  the  crow  flies;  but  following 
the  windings  of  the  stream,  the  distance  is 
much  greater.  The  river,  however,  was  the 
great  highway  of  commerce  when  Mr.  Bates 
was  a  young  man,  and  the  transportation  of 
goods  was  necessarily  slow  and  uncertain. 
With  a  natural  aptitude  for  business,  he  was 
able  to  make  his  store  a  commercial  centre  of 
the  district  for  forty-five  years. 

In  the  course  of  his  long  life  Mr.  ]5ates  has 
made  a  great  many  friends.  Aside  from  the 
respect  accorded  him  as  a  successful  business 
man,  he  has  won  the  lasting  regard  of  many 
by  the  intrinsic  worth  of  his  character.  A 
lifelong  resident  of  Hanover,  he  has  witnessed 
many  changes  in  the  pleasant  little  town,  the 
advent  of  railroads,  and  of  steam  power  in 
manufacturing.  Mr.  Bates  was  first  married 
in  iS6i  to  Miss  Angeline  S.  Gardner.  Sub- 
sequently he  contracted  a  second  marriage 
with  Mrs.  Emeline  (Pratt)  Sylvester,  who 
died  January  12,   1897,  leaving  no  children. 


— ♦■^••-♦— 


M 


ANIEL  D.  DEVEREUX,  the  well- 
known  and  popular  manager  of  the 
Western  Union  Telegraph  Office  at 
Duxbury,  was  born  in  Providence,  R.I.,  March 
26,  1839,  ^  son  of  Ralph  P.  and  Phebe  (Chase) 
Devereux.  The  family  is  one  of  the  oldest  in 
New  England,  John  Devereux,  its  American 
founder,  having  come  to  this  country  and 
settled  in  or  near  Marblehead  about  the  year 
1630.  Ralph  P.  Devereux,  a  native  of  Marble- 
head,  Mass.,  and  a  son  of  Nathaniel  K.  Dever- , 


eux,  was  engaged  in  business  in  Boston  and 
Providence,  but  always  resided  in  the  latter 
city. 

In  1854,  after  receiving  his  education  in  the 
elementary  schools  and  High  School  of  Provi- 
dence, Daniel  D.  Devereux  went  to  New  Bed- 
ford, Mass.,  where  he  secured  a  position  as 
messenger  boy  for  the  New  York  and  New 
England  Telegraph  Company.  While  so  em- 
ployed he  improved  his  opportunities  to  learn 
telegraphy,  and  was  shortly  after  promoted  to 
the  position  of  telegraph  operator.  Finding 
him  an  entirely  competent  man  the  American 
Telegraph  Company,  after  it  absorbed  the  New 
York  &  New  England,  and  the  Western  Union 
after  the  American  had  joined  it,  successively 
retained  him  in  their  employment.  He  was 
in  the  State  Street  office  in  Boston  for  a 
quarter  of  a  century,  during  the  greater  part  of 
which  he  had  charge  of  the  company's  city 
lines,  and  was  inspector  of  its  branch  and 
suburban  offices.  In  May,  1882,  he  came  to 
Duxbury,  and  has  since  been  in  charge  of  their 
office  here. 

On  December  11,  1862,  Mr.  Devereux  mar- 
ried Abbie  E.  Mott,  of  Providence.  They 
have  three  children  —  William  F.,  Lizzie  A., 
and  Charles  A.  Mr.  Devereux  is  a  Republi- 
can in  politics,  has  been  for  many  years  a 
member  of  the  Republican  Town  Committee, 
of  Duxbury,  of  which  he  served  as  Secretary, 
and  he  took  an  active  part  in  public  affairs 
while  living  in  Maiden.  He  is  a  member  of 
the  Duxbury  Yacht  Club,  andTt^" present  Sec- 
retary and  Treasurer.  He  is  also  affiliated 
with  Columbian  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of 
Boston,  St.  Paul's  Royal  Arch  Chapter  of  that 
city,  being  a  life  member  of  both  these  bodies. 
He  is  an  honorary  member  and  Past  Master  of 
Melrose  Council  at  Maiden,  Mass.  ;  also  a 
member  of  the  Hugh  De  Payens  Coramandery, 
of  Melrose,  Mass.  ;    and  he  is  a  Thirty-second 


So8 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


Degree  Mason.      At  present  he  is  Chairman  of 
the  Board  of  Registrars  of  Voters  for  Duxbury. 


[^ENJAMIN  F.  H.  KEENE,  Town 
Collector  of  Marshfield  and  the  Post- 
master of  Centre  Marshfield,  is  one 
of  the  most  esteemed  residents  of  the  town. 
He  was  born  here  January  20,  1832,  son  of 
Benjamin  and  Nancy  (Sherman)  Keene,  both 
also  natives  of  Manshfield.  His  grandfather, 
Benjamin  Keene,  Sr.,  resided  here  for  a  num- 
ber of  years.  His  father,  who  passed  his  life 
in  the  town,  died  in  1859.  His  mother,  who 
was  a  daughter  of  Amos  and  Nancy  (Holmes) 
Sherman,  lived  until  1895.  The  other  surviv- 
ing children  of  his  parents  are:  Kate  L.,  the 
widow  of  J.  Thaxter  Damon,  of  Marshfield ; 
and  Elsie  J.,  the  wife  of  Charles  L.  Ford,  of 
East  Pembroke,  Mass. 

Benjamin  F.  H.  Iveene  was  educated  in  the 
common  schools  of  his  native  town.  He 
learned  the  trade  of  ship-caulking  in  his  early 
manhood,  and  followed  it  continuously  after- 
ward for  about  fifteen  years.  Many  years  have 
elapsed  since  he  was  appointed  Postmaster  at 
Centre  Marshfield.  All  who  call  on  him  for 
mail  are  pleased  to  exchange  greetings  with 
him,  and  would  miss  him  sadly  were  he  not  in 
his  accustomed  place.  He  is  besides  engaged 
in  farming,  and  also  deals  in  agricultural  im- 
plements. In  politics  Mr.  Keene  is  a  stanch 
Republican.  He  believes  in  the  principles  so 
eloquently  advocated  by  Daniel  Webster,  who 
was  in  the  height  of  his  forceful  manhood  when 
Mr.  Keene  was  a  young  child,  and  whose  home 
in  Marshfield  is  still  an  object  of  interest  to 
visitors.  Mr.  Iveene  served  for  four  years  on 
the  Board  of  .Selectmen,  and  has  been  Assessor 
and  Overseer  of  the  I-'oor.  He  has  now  been 
in  office  as  Collector  some  four  years. 

On  January  i,  i860,  he  was  united   in  mar- 


riage with  Ellen  L. ,  daughter  of  Colonel 
Charles  Hatch,  of  Marshfield.  Colonel  Hatch, 
who  was  an  officer  in  the  State  militia,  and  at 
one  time  managed  a  stage  line  between  Dux- 
bury  and  Boston,  afterward  engaged  in  farming 
in  Marshfield,  where  he  died  in  1870.  Of  his 
children  four,  besides  Mrs.  Keene,  are  living. 
These  are:  Mary,  the  wife  of  Ezra  Ford  of  this 
town;  Almera,  the  wife  of  Nathan  Ford,  of 
Weymouth,  Mass.  ;  Franklin  W. ,  the  proprie- 
tor of  the  Brant  Rock  and  Green  Harbor  coach 
line;  and  Susan  A.,  the  wife  of  John  Ma- 
goun,  of  Marshfield.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Keene 
have  had  two  children  —  Nellie  F.  and  Flor- 
ence L.  Nellie  F.  is  now  deceased.  Mrs. 
Keene  and  her  daughter  Florence  are  members 
of  the  Congregational  church.  They,  with 
Mr.  Keene,  take  an  active  part  in  the  social 
events  of  the  town,  and  are  well  known  and 
popular. 

HOMAS  F.  BAILEY,  Selectman  of 
Scituate,  and  a  well-known  and  success- 
ful contractor  and  builder,  is  a  native  of 
Dorchester,  Mass.,  born  November  22,  1838. 
His  parents  were  Sevvall  and  Elizabeth  (Gerv- 
ing)  Bailey.  Sewall  Bailey,  who  was  born  in 
Scituate,  was  a  son  of  Israel  Bailey,  an  old 
settler  of  this  town,  and  a  soldier  of  the  War 
of  1812.  The  mother  of  Thomas  F.  was  born 
in  the  State  of  Rhode  Island. 

Thomas  F.  Bailey  spent  the  first  seven  years 
of  his  life  in  Dorchester.  His  parents  then 
removing  to  .Scituate  he  acquired  his  education 
in  the  schools  of  this  town,  ending  with  a 
course  of  study  at  the  high  school.  When  he 
was  seventeen  years  old  he  began  to  learn  the 
carpenter's  trade  at  Dorchester.  He  had 
served  three  years  and  seven  months  of  his 
apprenticeship  when,  answering  the  first  call 
for  troops  from  President  Lincoln,  he  enlisted 
in    April,     1861,    in    Company    K,    Eleventh 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


5^9 


Massachusetts  Volunteer  Infantry.  His  regi- 
ment was  assigned  to  the  army  of  the  Potomac, 
after  which,  until  his  discharge,  he  was  almost 
constantly  in  action,  sharing  in  some  of  the 
most  momentous  battles  of  the  war.  He  was 
in  the  disastrous  rout  of  the  first  Bull  Run  ;  in 
the  terrific  conflict  of  the  second  Bull  Run  ;  in 
the  engagements  of  Seven  Pines  and  Fair 
Oaks;  at  the  battle  of  Gettysburg,  where  he 
was  wounded  ;  in  the  conflicts  of  the  Wilder- 
ness;  and  in  the  battle  of  Cold  Harbor.  Hon- 
orably discharged  on  June  14,  1864,  he  re- 
turned to  Scituate,  where,  e.xcepting  a  period 
of  three  years  spent  in  Boston,  he  has  since 
made  his  home.  He  has  been  in  business  as  a 
contractor  and  builder  some  twenty  years,  win- 
ning the  confidence  of  the  public  by  his  close 
attention  to  business. 

Mr.  Bailey  married  Miss  Marion  L.  Mott, 
daughter  of  Paul  Mott,  of  Scituate,  and  has 
one  son,  George  S.  A  popular  Republican  he 
was  elected  Selectman  in  March,  1894,  and 
has  been  twice  re-elected  since.  He  is  a 
member  of  George  W.  Perry  Post,  No.  31, 
Grand  Army  of  the  Republic  of  Scituate 
Centre,  of  which  he  was  Commander  for  a 
year ;  and  also  belongs  to  Hatchet  Rock 
Assembly  of  Good  Fellow-s. 


-ABEZ  P.  THOMPSON,  a  large  land 
owner  and  a  successful  farmer  of  Hali- 
fax, was  born  July  24,  1853,  on  the 
farm  where  he  now  resides,  son  of  Ephraim  B. 
and  Eliza  R.  (Soule)  Thompson.  The 
founder  of  the  family  came  from  Wales  in 
1622,  and  settled  in  Halifa.x,  which  has  been 
the  birthplace  of  its  lineal  representatives 
since,  namely:  Thomas;  Ebenezer,  Sr.  ;  Eben- 
ezer,  Jr.  ;  Jabez  P.  ;  Ephraim  B.  ;  and  Jabez 
P.  Ephraim  B.  Thompson  and  his  wife  had 
five  children — Jabez  P.,  Ellen   A.,  Sarah   B., 


Lucy  M.,  and  Susan.  Lucy  IVL  died  in  1865, 
and  Susan  in  i860.  The  father,  who  died  in 
1889,  aged  seventy-six,  was  a  member  of  the 
Congregational  church,  served  several  years  as 
Selectman,  and  was  also  a  Representative  in 
the  Lower  House  of  the  State  legislature  for 
two  or  three  terras.  Grandfather  Thompson 
was  a  State  Senator  about  the  same  time, 
somewhere  in  the  forties. 

Jabez  P.  Thompson,  the  only  son  of  his 
parents,  remained  on  the  homestead,  attending 
the  district  school  at  intervals  until  eighteen 
years  of  age.  Thereafter  he  devoted  his  time 
to  farming  and  lumbering.  Since  his  father's 
death  he  has  become  the  owner  of  the  home- 
stead, a  farm  of  about  two  hundred  acres.  In 
addition  to  this  he  owns  forty  acres  of  timber 
land.  He  also  succeeded  to  some  of  the 
official  honors  bestowed  upon  his  father.  He 
was  Selectman  for  thirteen  years,  during  three 
of  which  he  was  Chairman  of  the  Board.  He 
has  served  the  community  as  Overseer  of  the 
Poor,  Assessor,  Tax  Collector;  was  Town 
Treasurer  for  ten  years.  Justice  of  the  Peace 
three  years,  and  in  1893  he  was  a  member  of 
the  State  legislature.  Like  his  father  he  is  a 
communicant  of  the  Congregational  church; 
and  he  is  affiliated  with  the  Knights  of  Honor, 
of  Middleboro. 

On  December  19,  1878,  Mr.  Thompson  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Abbie  P.  Wood, 
daughter  of  Aspah  S.  and  Abbie  L.  Wood,  of 
Halifax.  He  has  now  four  children,  as  fol- 
lows: Frederick  P.,  Clifford  B.,  Myron  W., 
and  Helen  L. 


SA  J.  MERRITT  is  a  respected  busi- 
ness man  of  Scituate,  long  identified 
with  the  building  trade  in  this  town 
as  a  member  of  the  firm  of  Merritt  Brothers, 
contractors.  He  was  born  in  Scituate,  No- 
vember 22,  1S28,  son  of  Asa  and  Betsey  (Cud- 


51° 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


worth)  Merritt.  (For  a  further  account  of  the 
Merritt  family  see  the  biography  of  Henry 
Merritt,  of  Scituate.) 

Asa  J.  Merritt  made  the  most  of  the  edu- 
cational advantages  offered  by  the  district 
school.  At  the  age  of  sixteen  he  began  to 
learn  the  trade  of  carpenter  and  joiner  from  his 
father,  with  whom  he  worked  for  a  number  of 
years.  Subsequently,  for  many  years,  he  was 
in  partnership  with  his  brother  Henry,  with 
whom  he  formed  the  firm  of  Merritt  Brothers, 
contractors  and  builders.  In  the  pursuit  of 
this  business  he  was  an  influential  factor  in  the 
development  of  Scituate  and  adjoining  towns. 
His  contracts  were  always  fulfilled  promptly 
and  honestly. 

Mr.  Merritt  was  married  January  i,  1856,  to 
Hannah  A.  Curtis,  a  daughter  of  Norton  and 
Mary  P.  (Chesbrook)  Curtis,  of  Scituate. 
The  Curtis  family,  which  is  of  English  origin, 
was  established  by  one  of  four  brothers  who 
came  to  this  country  in  Colonial  times.  This 
brother  settled  in  Scituate,  and  here  Thomas 
Curtis,  Charles  Curtis,  and  Norton  Curtis,  re- 
spectively the  great-grandfather,  grandfather, 
and  father  of  Mrs.  Merritt,  were  born.  Nor- 
ton Curtis,  a  lifelong  resident  of  Scituate,  was 
respected  as  an  exemplary  citizen.  His  wife, 
who  was  born  in  Camden,  Me.,  bore  him  a 
large  family  of  children,  six  of  whom,  besides 
Mrs.  Merritt,  the  eldest,  are  living.  These 
are:  Mary  N.,  the  wife  of  Ira  B.  Pratt,  of 
Cohasset,  Mass.  ;  Emeline  F. ,  the  wife  of 
B.  B.  W.  Litchfield,  of  Scituate;  Henry  N. 
and  Job  E. ,  both  residents  of  Weymouth, 
Mass.;  Arthur  H.,  residing  in  Boston;  and 
Sarah  E. ,  a  resident  of  Scituate.  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Merritt  have  three  children,  namely: 
Asa  E.,  born  February  12,  1857;  Wesley 
C. ,  born  June  29,  1859;  and  Anna  F. ,  who 
is  now  wife  of  John  F.  Turner,  a  constable 
of    Scituate.       Mr.     Merritt    votes     the     Re- 


publican    ticket.       A   public-spirited   citizen, 

he    is    much   interested   in  the  welfare  of  the 

community. 

« •  •  >  * 

OSHUA  W.  SWIFT,  Treasurer  and 
Collector  of  Duxbury,  was  born  in  this 
town,  January  ig,  1821,  son  of  Lot  and 
Mercy  (Weston)  Swift.  The  Swift  family  is 
said  to  be  of  English  origin,  and  Mr.  Swift's 
grandfather  was  a  native  of  Massachusetts, 
who  resided  in  Wareham.  Lot  Swift  was  born 
in  Wareham,  but  the  greater  part  of  his  life 
was  spent  in  Duxbury,  where  he  followed  agri- 
cultural pursuits,  and  his  wife  was  a  native  of 
this  town.  Of  their  children  but  two  now 
survive,  namely:  Joshua  W. ,  the  subject  of 
this  sketch;  and  his  sister  Lydia,  who  also 
resides  here. 

Joshua  W.  Swift  in  his  early  years  attended 
the  common  schools  of  his  native  town,  and  at 
the  age  of  seventeen  he  went  to  New  Bedford, 
where  he  served  an  apprenticeship  at  the  har- 
ness and  trunk-maker's  trade.  Returning  to 
Duxbury  on  November  i,  1841,  he  established 
himself  in  the  harness  business,  and  has  since 
followed  it  successfully. 

In  1842  Mr.  Swift  was  married  to  Caroline 
Kirby,  daughter  of  Noah  Kirby,  late  of  West- 
port,  Mass.  Of  four  children  born  to  them 
there  are  two  survivors  —  Amanda  M.  and 
Edgar  W.  The  two  who  have  passed  away 
were:  Alvah  L.  and  Herbert.  Mrs.  Swift 
died  in  1863. 

In  politics  Mr.  Swift  is  one  of  the  most 
prominent  and  active  supporters  of  the  Demo- 
cratic party  in  Duxbury.  For  ten  years  he 
served  as  a  Selectman,  Assessor,  and  Overseer 
of  the  Poor,  these  positions  coming  to  him  un- 
sought. He  was  Deputy  Collector  of  Customs 
for  the  Plymouth  District  for  three  years,  and 
has  acted  as  a  Justice  of  the  Peace  for  a  num- 
ber of  years.      He  has  held   his  present  offices 


JOSHUA   W.    SWIFT. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


513 


of  Treasurer  and  Collector  of  this  town  for  the 
past  twenty-one  years,  which  is  ample  testi- 
mony of  his  ability  and  faithfulness,  especially 
as  he  was  not  a  seeker  after  office.  In  1S76 
he  was  a  candidate  for  Representative,  but 
was  defeated  by  his  Republican  opponent, 
George  Bradford,  who  was  elected  by  a  small 
majority,  although  Mr.  Swift  polled  the  largest 
vote  ever  accorded  a  Democratic  candidate  in 
this  district.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Masonic 
fraternity,  and  has  been  an  Odd  Fellow  for 
over  fifty  years.  As  a  public-spirited  citizen 
and  an  able  official  he  is  widely  and  favorably 
known,  and  is  highly  respected  by  all  classes 
irrespective  of  politics. 


ARREN  LITCHFIELD,  one  of  the 
oldest  residents  of  Scituate,  belongs 
to  a  prominent  and  numerous  family, 
nativ^e  here  for  over  one  hundred  and  fifty 
years,  and  active  in  promoting  the  interests  of 
the  place.  Sketches  of  other  members  of  this 
family  will  be  found  elsewhere  in  this  volume. 
Mr.  Litchfield  was  born  here  June  3,  iSi^, 
son  of  Stephen  and  Rebecca  (Cudworth)  Litch- 
field. Stephen  was  a  son  of  Isaac  Litchfield, 
and  both  were  natives  and  lifelong  residents  of 
this  town.  An  extensive  land-owner,  Stejihen 
was  engaged  in  agriculture  during  his  active 
life.  In  prosperous  circumstances  himself  he 
gave  freely  to  the  deserving  poor.  His  death 
on  December  23,  1843,  was  mourned  in  Scitu- 
ate as  the  loss  of  a  benefactor  of  the  commu- 
nity. He  was  married  three  times.  Of  his 
children  the  only  survivors  are  Turner  Litch- 
field, of  Scituate,  and  Warren  Litchfield. 

Warren  Litchfield  was  educated  in  the  dis- 
trict school,  and  reared  to  agricultural  pursuits, 
working  on  the  farm  between  schools  terms. 
He  has  been  engaged  in  general  farming 
throughout  the  greater  part  of  his  life,  and  has 


the  independent  nature  and  sturdy  constitution 
which  his  mode  of  life  is  so  apt  to  foster.  His 
integrity  and  sterling  character  have  won  the 
confidence  and  esteem  of  his  townsmen. 

Mr.  Litchfield  was  first  married  to  Julia 
Litchfield,  who  bore  him  one  daughter,  Julia 
W. ,  now  deceased.  On  January  25,  1843,  he 
was  united  to  Helen,  daughter  of  Abram  and 
Rachel  (Nichols)  Litchfield,  all  natives  of 
Scituate.  This  lady,  who  is  yet  living,  be- 
came the  mother  of  eight  children,  four  of 
whom  have  passed  away.  Those  living  are: 
Rachel  N.,  the  wife  of  William  Burrows,  of 
Scituate;  Stephen,  who  also  resides  in  this 
town;  Helen  A.,  the  wife  of  Chester  Sylves- 
ter, of  Campello,  Mass.  ;  and  Nettie,  the  wife 
of  Harry  Bates,  of  Braintree,  Mass.  In  poli- 
tics Mr.  Litchfield  is  independent,  favoring 
always  the  candidate  whom  he  thinks  most 
capable  of  serving  the  interests  of  the  people. 
He  has  served  on  the  School  Committee,  and 
for  a  time  was  Road  Surveyor  of  his  district. 
Mr.  Litchfield  was  formerly  a  member  of  the 
Debating  Club.  His  wife  is  a  member  of  the 
Baptist  church.  Both  she  and  her  husband  are 
types  of  the  sturdy  and  fearless  pioneer  stock 
which  has  done  so  much  for  Plymouth  County. 


,I':LHAM  W.  BARROWS,  who  died 
in  Colorado  in  i8go,  was  a  native  of 
Carver,  Plymouth  County,  Mass.  He 
was  born  on  January  31,  1S29,  and  was  a  son. 
of  Lothrop  and  Sally  (Shaw)  Barrows.  His 
paternal  grandparents  were  Andrew  and  Sarah 
(Perkins)  Barrows. 

He  was  reared  on  a  farm,  but  having  no  taste 
for  agriculture  decided  to  learn  a  trade.  Ac- 
cordingly, in  early  manhood,  he  went  to  work 
in  an  iron  foundry,  first  in  South  Carver  and 
then  in  Watertown,  remaining  at  this  occupa- 
tion till  the  fall  of  iS6i,  when  he  enlisted   in 


514 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


Company  C,  Eighteenth  Massachusetts  In- 
fantry. He  was  eight  months  in  the  service, 
and  in  that  time  he  suffered  all  the  hardships 
of  a  soldier's  life,  taking  ]3art  in  the  terrible 
seven  days'  retreat  under  McClellan.  At  the 
end  of  eight  months,  on  account  of  physical 
disability,  he  was  discharged  with  the  rank  of 
Sergeant,  and  returned  to  Carver,  where  he 
lived  for  some  time  on  a  farm.  When  partly 
recovered  he  resumed  work  in  the  iron  foundry 
at  Watertown. 

In  1877  he  went  to  Albion,  Boone  County, 
Neb.,  locating  on  a  homestead  claim,  and  re- 
siding there  seven  or  eight  years.  He  then 
went  to  Colorado,  where  he  had  a  son  with 
whom  he  lived;  and  he  journeyed  subsequently 
to  California.  He  was  in  poor  health  when  he 
made  this  trip,  and  he  soon  returned  to  Colo- 
rado, hoping  to  be  benefited  by  the  pure  dry  air 
of  that  State;  but  disease  had  made  such  deep 
inroads  on  his  constitution  that  recovery  was 
impossible,  and  he  died  in  1890.  His  remains 
were  forwarded  from  Colorado,  and  were  in- 
terred in  the  Central  Cemetery  of  Carver. 
Mr.  Barrows  was  a  charter  member  of  the 
Plymouth  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic  Post. 
He  was  an  enterprising  and  ambitious  man, 
and  was  a  popular  member  of  society;  and  his 
death,  occurring  as  it  did  when  he  was  removed 
so  far  from  home  and  old  friends,  aroused  imi- 
versal  interest  and  sympathy  for  his  bereaved 
family. 

Mr.  Barrows  was  married  in  1854  to  Miss 
Priscilla  J.  Shaw,  who  was  born  in  Carver  in 
1832,  a  daughter  of  Captain  Joseph  and 
Hannah  (Dunham)  Shaw.  Six  children  were 
the  result  of  this  union:  Joseph  W.,  Eilis  H. 
(deceased),  Pelham  A.,  Laura  L. ,  Hannah  B. 
(deceased),  and  F"rank  E.  While  Mr.  Barrows 
was  in  the  West  his  wife  removed  to  the 
pleasant  home  where  she  now  lives.  She  is  a 
lady  of  ability,  culture,  and  self-reliance,  and 


has  for  some  time  been  acting  as  Postmaster's 
assistant  at  Carver.  A  sketch  of  her  father. 
Captain  Shaw,  may  be  found  elsewhere  in  this 
volume. 


—«-•■•■♦-♦— 


T^APTAIN  JOSEPH  SHAW,  formerly 
I  Tf^  well  known  in  Carver  and  vicinity, 
V^y  ^  the  son  of  Lieutenant  Joseph  Shaw 
and  his  wife  Lydia,  was  born  in  this  town, 
February  17,  1782,  and  was  descended  from 
early  settlers  of  the  Old  Colony.  Captain 
Shaw  devoted  himself  mainly  to  farming 
throughout  his  active  life,  but  in  the  winter 
months  he  worked  in  the  old  blast  foundry. 
He  took  a  keen  interest  in  civil  and  political 
affairs,  and  became  one  of  the  leading  men  in 
the  community.  He  was  appointed  Captain  of 
a  company  of  State  militia,  and  in  the  second 
war  with  Great  Britain  was  drafted  for  service 
in  the  army.  Owing,  however,  to  illness  in  his 
family,  he  was  unable  to  respond  to  the  call, 
and  furnished  a  substitute,  Mr.  Benjamin  Har- 
low. Captain  Shaw  died  September  26,  1855. 
By  his  first  wife,  Sarah  Murdock,  whom  he 
married  in  1804,  he  had  si.x  sons,  the  eldest, 
born  in  1804,  the  youngest  in  18 14.  The  fol- 
lowing is  a  brief  record  in  order  of  their 
births:  Joseph  died  unmarried  in  1865. 
Linus,  who  died  in  1854,  married  Dicy  Allen 
in  1833,  and  had  George  H.  and  Linus  A. 
(who  both  served  in  the  late  war),  Jeannette 
H.,  Arlotha  M.,  Calvin  R.,  and  Betsy.  Bart- 
lett  married  in  1833  Almira  Atwood,  had  one 
child,  and  died  in  1835.  Martin  was  born  and 
died  in  181 1.  Dennis,  who  died  in  1875, 
married  Emmeline  Skinner,  and  had  Will- 
iam B.,  Henry  and  Henrietta  (twins),  Albert, 
Charles,  Emmeline,  Susannah,  and  Apollos. 
He  and  his  four  elder  sons  served  in  the  Civil 
War,  two  of  them  being  wounded.  One  son 
died  in  the  regular  army.  Harrison  Shaw 
married   Adaline  Bent,   had   eight   children — ■ 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


SIS 


William  B. ,  Sarah  M.,  Deliverance,  Charles 
H.,  Emma  B. ,  John,  Mary,  and  Erastiis, — 
and   died   in    iS6i. 

Captain  Joseph  Shaw  married  Hannah  Dun- 
ham, his  second  wife,  in  1818,  and  by  this 
union  became  the  father  of  nine  children, 
namely:  William  H.,  who  was  born  and  died 
in  1819;  Nathaniel,  born  1820,  died  in  1821  ; 
Ebenezer;  Erancis ;  Sally  M.  ;  Hannah  M.  ; 
Oliver;  Priscilla  J.  (Mrs.  Pelham  W.  Bar- 
rows) ;  and  Bartlett.  Ebenezer  Shaw,  born  in 
1823,  was  married  first  in  1848,  to  Nancy 
Bisbee.  Their  children  were:  Frederick, 
Aravesta,  Josephus,  and  Eugene  E.  He  mar- 
ried the  second  time  Hannah  Dennison,  and 
their  children  were:  Fred  W.,  Aravesta  B., 
Elmer  F. ,  Bartlett,  and  Myra.  Ebenezer 
Shaw  was  a  man  of  much  business  ability. 
He  built  at  Middleboro  an  iron  foundry,  which 
he  conducted  for  some  years.  The  foundry 
was  eventually  burned,  and  at  the  time  of  his 
death,  in  1889,  he  was  residing  in  Carver. 
Francis  S.  Shaw,  born  in  1824,  married  Abbie 
Southworth  in  1849,  and  died  in  1885.  Their 
children  were  thirteen  in  numi^er,  but  only  two 
are  living — Emma  L.  and  Jennie.  Sally 
Murdock  Shaw,  born  in  1S26,  was  married  to 
Ira  C.  Bent  in  1847.  Their  children  were: 
Ellen  F.,  now  Mrs.  Philander  J.  Holmes;  and 
Nathaniel  Warren.  Hannah  M.,  born  in 
1827,  married  Eli  Atwood  in  1850,  and  died 
in  1892;   she  had  one  child,  Betsy  S. 

Oliver  Shaw,  born  February  5,  1831,  mar- 
•  ried  Miranda  Atwood  in  1855,  and  had  Al- 
ton E.,  and  Bradford  O.  and  Bartlett  E., 
twins,  all  now  deceased.  Oliver  Shaw  learned 
the  trade  of  iron  moulder,  and  in  1863  he  was 
called  upon  to  take  charge  of  the  Miles  Pratt 
&  Co. 's  Stove  Works  at  Watertown  as  Super- 
intendent. He  remained  thoughout  his  life 
with  this  firm,  and  from  1S77  was  one  of  the 
directors  of  the  corporation.      A  stanch  Repub- 


lican in  politics  he  served  as  Selectman  for 
fifteen  years;  and  in  1S94  he  was  elected  to 
the  .State  .Senate  from  the  Second  Middlesex- 
District.  Mr.  Shaw's  financial  and  business 
abilities  were  of  a  high  order.  He  was  one  of 
the  organizers  of  the  Watertown  Savings  Bank 
and  a  Trustee  of  that  body  from  its  incorpora- 
tion. He  was  also  President  of  the  Union 
Market  National  Bank  from  1893  until  his 
death,  December  26,  1894.  He  was  a  member 
of  Company  K,  Third  Regiment  of  the  State 
militia,  from  1852  to  1857.  Mr.  Shaw  was 
well  known  socially,  and  belonged  to  the  Mid- 
dlesex Club  of  Boston,  and  to  the  Village  Club 
of  Watertown.  He  attended  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  church. 

Bartlett,  youngest  son  of  Captain  Joscjjh  and 
Hannah  Shaw,  born  March  12,  1835,  ''Iso 
learned  to  be  a  moulder;  but  when,  in  i86r 
the  war  broke  out,  inspired  with  enthusiasm 
for  the  preservation  of  the  Union,  he  threw 
aside  the  implements  of  industry  and  assisted 
in  raising  a  company  in  Carver.  He  was  ap- 
pointed Orderly  Sergeant  of  this  company,  and 
later  was  promoted  to  the  rank  of  Second  Lieu- 
tenant. Owing  to  the  sickness  of  his  superit)r 
officer,  he  was  placed  in  charge  at  the  second 
battle  of  Bull  Run,  and  lost  his  life  in  that 
engagement.  As  he  gallantly  led  his  com- 
mand he  gave  the  direction,  "  Boys,  keep  cool 
and  fire  low."  He  had  scarcely  said  the  words 
when  he  fell  dead  with  a  bullet  in  his  fore- 
head. He  was  an  exemplary  young  man  and 
greatly  beloved  by  all  his  comrades. 


,APTAIN  JOSEPHUS  DAWES,  a 
retired  shipmaster  of  Duxbury,  was 
born  in  this  town,  April  7,  1820, 
the  son  of  Abraham  and  Deborah  (Darling) 
Dawes.  Deborah  Dawes  was  a  native  of  Dux- 
bury,   and   her   family  was    of    Scotch   origin. 


Si6 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Abraham  Dawes  was  a  native  of  Kingston. 
His  ancestry  will  be  found  in  a  sketch  of  Cap- 
tain James  H.  Dawes,  which  appears  iqxMi 
another  page  of    this  work. 

Josephus  Dawes  attended  the  public  schools 
of  his  native  town  at  intervals  until  he  was 
fourteen  years  of  age.  When  he  was  seven 
years  of  age  he  began  to  accompany  his  father 
upon  fishing  trips  along  Massachusetts  Bay; 
and  he  assisted  in  disposing  of  the  fish  in  Bos- 
ton. At  the  age  of  fourteen  he  shipped  before 
the  mast  on  board  a  vessel  which  was  com- 
manded by  his  elder  brother,  the  late  Captain 
Allen  Dawes;  and  he  sailed  with  him  in  the 
coasting  and  foreign  trade  until  he  was  twenty- 
one  years  old.  He  was  then  able  to  command 
a  vessel  himself,  and  his  first  voyage  as  master 
was  made  in  the  brig  "  August,"  which  was 
owned  by  Joseph  Holmes,  of  Kingston.  He 
afterward  commanded  various  vessels  belonging 
to  Mr.  Holmes,  in  whose  employ  he  sailed  for 
nineteen  years.  He  was  subsecjuently  part 
owner  and  master  of  several  merchantmen, 
among  them  being  the  barks  "Fruiter," 
"Jehu,"  and  "  Valetta.  " 

In  the  years  of  1852  and  1853  Captain 
Dawes  spent  his  time  in  the  northern  and 
southern  mines  of  California.  At  the  close 
of  the  second  year  his  old  love  for  the  sea  re- 
turned to  him,  and  during  the  next  ten  years 
we  find  him  engaged  in  the  Mediterranean  fruit 
trade.  At  this  time  he  was  making  many  of 
the  fastest  passages  on  record.  For  four  years 
he  traded  on  the  Chinese  Coast,  visiting  all 
the  principal  ports.  His  last  vessel  was  the 
"  Annie  W.  Weston,"  in  which  he  traded  be- 
tween San  Francisco  and  lingland.  For  over 
thirty  years  he  was  a  successful  as  well  as  a 
fortunate  master-mariner,  never  meeting  with 
a  single  disaster  or  loss  of  a  man  at  sea. 
During  his  long  experience  he  doubled  Cape 
Horn  and  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  circumnavi- 


gated the  globe  several  times,  and  visited  the 
principal  parts  of  Europe,  Asia,  Africa,  and 
South  America.  In  one  of  his  voyages  to  the 
Cape  of  Good  Hope  he  was  obliged  to  conceal 
the  name  of  his  vessel  under  a  canvas  on 
account  of  the  nearness  of  the  "  Alabama, " 
which  was  commanded  by  Captain  Semmes. 

Captain  Dawes  wedded  Sally  Freeman, 
daughter  of  the  late  Bradford  Freeman,  of 
Du.xbury.  She  accompanied  him  upon  many 
of  his  voyages,  thus  proving  herself  a  loving 
and  faithful  companion,  who  did  not  hesitate 
to  brave  the  dangers  of  the  sea  in  order  to  be 
with  her  husband  in  the  hour  of  peril,  should 
such  be  the  case.      She  died  April  2,  1887. 

Captain  Dawes  has  three  children,  as  fol- 
lows: Wilfred  C,  who  is  Chief  Inspector  of 
the  Money  Order  Department  of  the  Boston 
Post-ofifice;  Frank  H.,  a  resident  of  Haverhill, 
Mass.  ;  and  Eunice  F.,  wife  of  Henry  C.  Tan- 
ner, that  city. 

Although  the  Captain  passes  his  winters  in 
Haverhill,  during  the  summer  he  occupies  his 
pleasant  residence  at  Island  Creek  Station,  in 
Duxbury,  amid  the  haunts  of  his  childhood  and 
close  beside  the  sea,  which  was  for  so  many 
years  his  home.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Uni- 
tarian   society  of  Duxbury. 


'Hudson  ewell,  of  Marshfidd,  who 

has  been  Chairman  of  the  Board  of 
Selectmen  for  a  number  of  years,  was 
born  in  this  town,  October  23,  1840.  His 
parents  were  Ezra  D.  and  F"rances  L.  (Wash- 
burn) Ewell,  and  his  paternal  grandfather  was 
Isaac  Ewell,  a  resident  of  Marshfield. 

Henry  Ewell,  the  first  of  this  surname  in 
the  Plymouth  Colony,  married  in  1638  Sarah 
Annable,  daughter  of  Anthony  Annable,  who 
came  over  in  the  "Ann"  in  1623.  Their 
son,    Ichabod,    born    in    1659   in    Scituate,    had 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


517 


sons,  it  is  said,  who  settled  in  Marshfield. 
Ezra  D.  Ewell,  son  of  Isaac,  was  born  in 
Marshfield,  and  made  his  home  in  this  town  up 
to  the  time  of  his  death.  He  was  a  stone 
mason  by  trade,  and  worked  also  at  various 
other  occupations.  His  wife  was  born  in 
Taunton,  Mass.  They  were  the  parents  of  the 
following  children:  Frances  M.,  Judson,  Kim- 
ball \V.,  Adeline  W.,  and  Antoinette  C. 

Judson  Ewell  was  given  good  educational 
opportunities,  attending  the  public  schools  of 
Marshfield  and  Hanover  Academy.  He  began 
at  eighteen  to  learn  the  blacksmith's  trade, 
and  served  his  time  with  Waldo  Bradford  in 
North  Bridgewater  (now  Brockton),  Mass., 
working  with  him  until  1859;  and  he  was  sub- 
sequently employed  as  a  journeyman  in  differ- 
ent places.  In  January,  1862,  he  enlisted  in 
Company  G,  Second  District  of  Columbia  Vol- 
unteers, and  was  assigned  to  the  arm\'  of  the 
Potomac,  General  Griffin's  Brigade,  General 
Morrell's  Division,  and  General  Fitz  John 
Porter's  Army  Corps.  He  was  in  the  battle 
of  Antietam,  September  17-18,  1862,  and  took 
part  in  a  number  of  minor  engagements  while 
attached  to  the  army  of  the  Potomac,  his  regi- 
ment being  subsequently  on  detached  duty  on 
the  lookout  for  John  S.  Mosby  and  his  gue- 
rillas. Mr.  Ewell  was  promoted  to  the  rank 
of  Sergeant  of  Company  G,  and  served  in  that 
capacity  aljout  a  year.  While  in  action  against 
the  Confederates  he  had  a  number  of  narrow 
escapes  from  death  and  imprisonment. 

E.xperiencing  his  share  of  the  hardships  of  a 
soldier's  life,  he  was  also  privileged  to  enjoy 
the  pomp  and  glitter  of  military  display  in 
social  affairs.  During  the  last  year  and  a  half 
of  his  service  he  was  a  member  of  the  band  of 
the  Second  Regiment,  District  of  Columbia 
Volunteers,  and  played  at  the  fair  for  the  benefit 
of  the  Sanitary  Commission  in  the  Patent 
Office  at  Washington.      Honorably  discharged 


in  October,  1865,  he  returned  home;  and  in 
1867  he  opened  a  forge  of  his  own  in  Marsh- 
field, which  he  still  manages.  He  has  been 
very  successful  in  financial  matters,  doing  his 
work  well  and  jiaying  strict  attention  to 
business. 

Mr.  Ewell  has  been  twice  married.  His 
first  wife,  Maria  (deceased),  was  a  daughter  of 
the  Rev.  George  Leonard,  of  Marshfield  Hills. 
She  bore  him  four  children,  of  whom  but  two 
survive,  namely:  Leonard  G. ,  born  February 
6,  1873;  and  Emmeline  W.,  born  June  14, 
1877.  The  others  were  :  Walter,  born  Novem- 
ber I,  1870;  and  George  L.,  born  July  8, 
1 88 1.  His  second  wife,  who  was  formerly 
Miss  Julia  F.  Rogers,  became  the  mother  of 
five  children,  the  eldest  being  Grace,  born 
September  21,  1883,  with  whom  they  were 
soon  called  to  part.  The  four  now  living  are: 
Ralph  J.,  born  December  5,  1885;  Marion  R., 
born  January  30,  1888;  Ezra  G.,  born  March 
21,  i8go;  and  Edna  F. ,  born  October  4, 
1891. 

As  a  public  man  Mr.  Ewell  is  very  popular. 
He  has  served  as  Chairman  of  the  Republican 
Town  Committee;  was  first  elected  to  the 
Board  of  Selectmen  in  18S3,  and  has  been  hon- 
ored with  re-election  every  year  since;  and  as 
Chairman  of  the  Board  he  has  given  universal 
satisfaction.  He  is  a  member  of  North  River 
Lodge,  Independent  Order  of  Odd  Fellows,  at 
Hanover,  Mass.,  and  a  charter  member  of 
David  Church  Post,  No.  189,  Grand  Army  of 
the  Republic,  of  which  he  was  one  year  Com- 
mander. 


(^AMES  W.  O'NEIL,  one  of  the  partners 
of  O'Neil  &  Howes,  successful  contrac- 
tors of  Brockton  for  interior  house 
finish,  was  born  in  1854,  in  Brechan,  Forfar- 
shire, Scotland,  near  Kirrimuir,  the  home  of 
Barrie,    the    novelist.       His    father,    William 


5i8 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


O'Neil,  also  a  native  of  Brechan,  is  still 
living  there,  being  now  seventy-two  years 
of  age,  and  an  Elder  of  the  Free  Church  of 
Scotland.  His  mother,  Elizabeth  (Webster) 
O'Neil,  now  deceased,  was  a  daughter  of  Will- 
iam Webster,  a  farmer  of  Brechan.  They  had 
five  children  —  Da'vid  W.,  William,  James  W., 
Mary,  and  Alfred.  David  W.  is  a  member  of 
the  firm  of  Bradley  &  Currier,  New  York  City, 
and  of  Freeman  &  O'Neil,  of  Claremont,  N. H. 
The  New  York  firm,  whose  place  of  business 
is  located  at  the  corner  of  Hudson  and  Spring 
Streets,  are  counted  among  the  most  extensive 
dealers  in  sashes,  doors,  and  blinds  in  the 
United  States.  William  is  employed  in  a  car- 
riage factory  in  Waterbury,  Conn.  ;  Mary  is 
the  wife  of  George  Priest,  of  New  Haven, 
Conn.  ;  and  Alfred  is  employed  in  the  linen 
mill  of  Lyman  Scott  at  Brechan,  Scotland. 

James  W.  O'Neil  was  educated  in  his  native 
town.  At  the  age  of  ten  years  he  went  to 
work  in  a  flax-mill.  Subsequently,  he  was 
employed  in  the  office  of  the  Brechan  Adver- 
tiser iov  eight  months.  Then,  owing  to  trouble 
with  his  eyes,  he  was  obliged  to  seek  outdoor 
employment.  Accordingly,  he  learned  the 
carpenter's  trade  under  Alexander  Smith,  of 
Brechan,  with  whom  he  worked  for  about  four 
years.  He  came  to  this  country  in  1872,  and 
obtained  employment  in  W.  F.  Badger's  stair- 
shop  on  Wareham  Street,  Boston.  There  he 
remained  some  five  years,  and  then  for  six 
years  had  charge  of  the  stair  department  for 
Freeman  &  O'Neil,  of  Claremont,  who  have  a 
large  plant  and  do  an  extensive  business. 
After  spending  another  year  with  Mr.  Badger 
in  Boston,  he  came  to  Brockton  in  1884,  and 
entered  into  a  copartnership  with  William  \l. 
Howes  for  the  manufacture  of  interior  house 
and  store  finish,  such  as  mouldings,  stairs,  and 
mantels.  The  firm  started  in  a  small  way  by 
hiring    a    room    in    A.    C.    Thompson's    wood- 


turning  factory  on  Railroad  Avenue,  and  which 
remained  their  place  of  business  for  three  or 
four  years.  In  October,  1888,  they  purchased 
Howard  &  Clark's  furniture  factory,  where 
they  have  carried  on  their  business  since,  and 
now  employ  about  a  dozen  men.  They  have 
filled  some  costly  and  extensive  contracts,  in- 
cluding the  interior  finish  of  Emerson's  shoe 
store  on  the  corner  of  Water  and  Washington 
Streets,  Boston;  a  handsome  drug  store  in 
Marlboro,  Mass.  ;  Goldthwaite's  drug  store  on 
Main  Street,  Brockton;  and  some  twenty 
others  in  this  vicinity. 

In  1880  Mr.  O'Neil  married  Adele,  daugh- 
ter of  Archibald  Atherton,  of  Claremont,  N.  H. 
Of  the  four  children  born  to  him,  two  are 
living  —  Amy  E.  and  James  Donald.  Mr. 
O'Neil  votes  the  Republican  ticket.  He  be- 
longs to  a  number  of  social  orders,  including 
Paul  Revere  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Brock- 
ton, and  the  American  Benefit  Society  of  this 
city,  of  which  he  is  President.  A  member  of 
the  Baptist  church,  he  takes  an  active  interest 
in  its  welfare,  and  has  been  superintendent  of 
the  Sunday-school. 


T^jYMAN  E.  COPELAND,  a  member  of 
the  firm  of  L.  E.  and  E.  Copeland, 
milk  dealers  and  successful  general 
farmers  of  West  Bridgewater,  was  born  here 
June  24,  1848,  a  son  of  Lyman  and  Susanna 
(Holmes)  Copeland,  both  natives  of  Plymouth 
County,  Mass. 

Salmon  Copeland,  the  father  of  Lyman,  was 
a  grandson  of  Jonathan  Copeland  (son  of  Will- 
iam and  grandson  of  Lawrence,  of  Braintree), 
who  married  Betty  Snell  in  1723,  and  settled 
in  West  Bridgewater.  Lyman,  who  was  a  life- 
long resident  of  this  town,  devoted  his  energies 
almost  entirely  to  farming.  In  politics  he  was 
a  Republican,  and  a  leader  in  local  affairs;  and 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


5'9 


though  not  a  church  member,  he  was  an  attend- 
ant of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  churcli.  He 
died  December  26,  1884.  Two  of  his  chil- 
dren are  living,  namely:  Lyman  E.,  the  direct 
subject  of  this  sketch  ;  and  Edmund,  who  was 
born  June  20,  1852.  A  younger  brother,  Wil- 
ton, born  August  14,  1858,  met  his  death  by 
accident  in  December,  1886,  being  run  over  by 
the  cars.  He  left  a  widow  and  two  children. 
Mrs.  Susanna  H.  Copeland,  who  still  lives  at 
the  homestead,  was  born  on  May  9,  1817,  and 
has  now  nearly  completed  her  eightieth  year. 

Lyman  E.  Copeland  grew  to  manhood  on  the 
farm  where  he  now  resides.  After  attending 
the  public  schools  of  West  Bridgewater  he  was 
a  student  for  a  time  at  ]3rockton  Academy  and 
later  at  the  Bryant  and  Stratton  Commercial 
College  of  Boston,  where  he  was  graduated  in 
1867.  It  is  now  about  twenty  years  since  he 
started  in  his  present  business,  selling  milk  at 
retail  in  Brockton.  His  brother  Edmund  is  a 
partner  in  this  enterprise,  which  has  proved  a 
profitable  one  to  them.  They  are  also  success- 
fully engaged  in  general  farming. 

Lyman  E.  Copeland  and  Miss  Louise  F. 
Hartwell,  of  Brockton,  were  joined  in  marriage 
on  February  26,  1S80.  They  have  two  chil- 
dren: a  son,  Wilton;  and  a  daughter,  Myrtle 
L.  True  to  the  political  instruction  and 
e.vample  of  his  father,  Mr.  Copeland  has  ever 
been  a  faithful  supporter  of  Republicanism. 
Fraternally,  he  is  a  member  of  St.  George 
Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Campello,  Mass. 


M 


EACON     GEORGE    W.     BAILEY, 

formerly  one  of  the  most  prominent 
and  highly  respected  business  men  of 
North  Scituate,  who  died  at  his  home  in  this 
town,  January  11,  1891,  was  born  in  Scituate, 
August  I,  1830,  son  of  Job  and  Lydia  (Wade) 
Bailey.      His  parents  were  natives  of  Scituate, 


and  he  was  a  representative  of  highly  reputable 
ancestry  on  both  sides  of  the  family. 

George  W.  Bailey  as  a  boy  availed  himself 
of  every  advantage  offered  by  the  public  school 
system- in  his  day.  He  was  by  nature  a  studi- 
ous seeker  for  knowledge,  and  in  his  youth  he 
devoted  his  spare  time  to  the  reading  of  the 
works  of  Josephus  and  other  standard  authors. 
At  the  age  of  twenty  years  he  decided  to 
engage  in  business  pursuits,  and,  establishing 
himself  as  a  shoe  manufacturer  upon  a  small 
scale  at  North  Scituate,  he  entered  upon  his 
business  career  with  an  energy  which  promised 
success  from  the  start.  When  Mr.  Bailey 
began  shoe  business  he  formed  a  copartnership 
with  Mr.  Jotham  W.  Bailey,  under  the  firm 
name  of  G.  W.  and  J.  W.  Bailey,  and  this 
association  continued  for  twenty  years.  After 
that  the  subject  of  this  sketch  continued  the 
business  alone,  but  under  the  name  of  G.  W. 
Bailey  &  Co.  As  his  prosperity  increased  he 
enlarged  his  facilities,  and  for  many  years  em- 
ployed an  average  of  fifty  hands.  The  firm  of 
G.  W.  Bailey  &  Co.  became  well-known  in  the 
shoe  trade,  was  financially  successful,  and  con- 
tinued in  active  operation  until  the  death  of  its 
founder. 

The  late  Mr.  Bailey  was  prominently  identi- 
fied with  the  progress  and  development  of  the 
business  interests  and  with  the  general  im- 
provement of  the  town,  and  was  one  of  North 
Scituate's  most  progressive  and  public-spirited 
citizens.  He  took  a  deep  interest  in  local 
affairs  ;  and  as  Chairman  of  TITc  School  Board, 
over  which  he  presided  for  a  number  of  years, 
he  rendered  valuable  service  in  behalf  of 
public  education.  His  death,  which  took  place 
as  above  stated  at  the  age  of  nearly  sixty-one 
years,  was  not  only  a  serious  blow  to  the  indus- 
tries of  North  Scituate,  but  removed  from  the 
community  one  of  its  most  valuable  and 
esteemed  citizens,  a  man   of  noble  nature  and 


520 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


an  affectionate  disposition,  the  home  circle 
which  he  so  ardently  cherished  being  depr-ved 
of  a  loving  husband  and  an  indulgent  a*  de- 
voted father.  In  politics  he  was  a  Republican, 
and  for  many  years  he  was  connected  with  the 
Baptist  church  as  Deacon,  Clerk,  and  Treas- 
urer. Mr.  Bailey  was  especially  a  benevolent 
man.  The  widow  and  the  fatherless  always 
found  in  him  a  helper  and  a  friend;  and  he 
was  ever  ready  to  assist  with  his  means  any 
good  cause. 

On  November  26,  1856,  Mr.  Bailey  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Hannah  W.  Briggs, 
who,  with  one  son,  Herbert  B. ,  now  teller  of 
the  Boylston  National  Bank,  Boston,  and  resid- 
ing in  Wollaston,  Mass.,  survives  him.  Mrs. 
Bailey  was  born  in  Scituate,  daughter  of  James 
Sylvester  and  Selina  (Curtis)  Briggs,  and  her 
ancestors  for  several  generations  were  residents 
of  this  town.  Walter  Briggs,  founder  of  this 
branch  of  the  family  in  America,  bought  a  farm 
in  Scituate  in  165 1,  and  it  is  said  "was  long  a 
useful  man  in  the  plantation."  The  "History 
of  Shipbuilding  on  the  North  River,"  by  L. 
Vernon  Briggs,  contains  many  interesting  par- 
ticulars in  regard  to  the  Briggs  family,  several 
members  of  which  have  been  prominent  ship- 
builders. From  this  volume  we  learn  that 
Walter  Briggs  had  a  son,  Lieutenant  James 
Briggs,  whose  son  Benjamin,  born  in  1695, 
was  the  father  of  James,  born  November  16, 
1735,  who  held  the  office  of  Town  Clerk 
twenty-five  years,  and  was  known  as  "Clark" 
Briggs.  He  died  in  1834,  aged  ninety-nine 
years.  His  son,  Joseph,  born  in  1776,  was  the 
father  of  James  Sylvester  Briggs,  and  grand- 
father of  Mrs.  Bailey.  The  Briggs  family 
built  ships  at  Hobart's  Landing,  probably  as 
.early  as  1750,  James,  born  in  17 19,  being  the 
first  builder  of  this  surname.  James  Sylvester 
and  his  brother,  Barnabas  W. ,  built  at  the 
Harbor  as  early  as  1834. 


Mrs.  Bailey  occupies  the  homestead,  and  has 
for  a  companion  her  sister,  Mrs.  C.  M.  Gray. 
These  ladies  are  quite  prominent  in  social 
circles,  and  arc  members  of  the  liiptist 
church. 


e[A  WINSLOW  ELLIS,  dealer  in 
general  merchandise  at  Manomet,  a 
part  of  Plymouth,  I'lymouth  County, 
Mass.,  was  born  near  Sagamore,  October  29, 
1837,  son  of  Elisha  and  Priscilla  (Crowell) 
Ellis.  His  birthplace  and  that  of  his  father 
was  the  old  tavern  situated  in  the  village  of 
Ellisville,  South  Plymouth,  which  was  the 
home  of  his  paternal  grandparents,  Thomas 
and  Rebecca  (Burgess)  Ellis. 

His  grandmother  p;ilis  was  born  November 
29,  1779,  in  Sandwich,  daughter  of  Elisha 
Burgess,  who  was  born  in  1743,  son  of  Zac- 
cheus  Burgess.  Jacob  Burgess,  father  of 
Zaccheus,  was  a  son  of  Jacob,  first,  and  grand- 
son of  Thomas  Burgess,  who  arrived  in  Salem, 
Mass.,  with  a  small  family  in  1630,  removed 
to  Sandwich  (Sagamore),  Mass.,  in  1638,  and 
died  in  1685,  aged  eighty-two  years. 

The  maternal  grandparents  of  Mr.  Ellis 
were  Paul  and  Sally  (Sears)  Crowell,  who  re- 
moved from  East  Dennis,  Cape  Cod,  to  Saga- 
more in  the  early  part  of  the  century. 

The  children  of  Elisha  Ellis  and  his  wife 
Priscilla  were:  Ellisha  Winslow,  the  subject 
of  this  sketch,  commonly  known  as  E.  Win- 
slow  or  E.  W.  Ellis;  Priscilla  Ann,  born  in 
December,  1840,  who  died  in  June,  1842; 
Priscilla  Crowell,  born  January  4,  1845; 
Nathan  Crowell,  born  December  i,  1847,  who 
died  in  January,  1891  ;  Thomas  Prince,  born 
in  November,  1849;  Sarah  Sears,  born  P'ebru- 
ary  10,  1852;  Edmund  Sears,  born  December 
31,  1853,  who  died  in  Florida  in  December, 
1890;  and  Benjamin  I-'ranklin,  born  in  Novem- 
ber, 1857.      The  father  was  a  farmer,  and  was 


ELISHA   W,    ELLIS. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


523 


a  lifelong  resident  of  riyniouth.  Elisha  Ellis 
passed  away  in  1892,  at  eighty-six  years  of 
age,  his  wife,  Mrs.  Priscilla  Ellis,  having 
died  in  August,   18S0,  aged  sixty-eight. 

E.  Winslow  Ellis,  their  eldest  child,  grew 
to  maturity  on  the  home  farm  in  I'lymouth,  ac- 
quiring his  elementary  education  in  the  primary 
and  grammar  schools  of  his  native  town.  He 
then  for  two  terms  attended  Phillips  Academy 
at  North  Andover,  Mass.,  whither  he  went  in 
September,  1855;  and  in  1856  he  went  to  the 
Providence  Conference  Seminary,  located  at 
East  Greenwich,  R. I.,  which  he  attended  for 
five  successive  terms.  Returning  home  in 
1861,  he  took  charge  of  a  coasting  vessel  as 
master;  and  in  that  capacity  he  sailed  for  four 
years,  always  owning  an  interest  in  the  vessels 
which  he  ran.  Having  the  misfortune  to  lose 
his  vessel  in  1865,  he  went  to  Worcester, 
Mass.,  where  he  learned  the  machinist's  trade, 
serving  an  apprenticeship  of  two  years  at  the 
shops  of  E.  Holbrook.  He  then  removed  to 
Boston,  and  was  employed  in  the  Old  Colony 
Locomotive  Works  for  nine  years,  acting  for 
the  last  half-decade  in  the  capacity  of  foreman 
of  his  department.  In  1880  he  went  to  Chi- 
cago, 111.,  where  he  was  superintendent  of  the 
mechanical  department  of  Swift  &  Co.,  beef 
packers,  for  nine  years.  After  spending  two 
years  at  Omaha,  Neb.,  for  the  company,  in 
1889  he  resigned,  and,  returning  East,  settled 
at  Natick,  Mass.,  where  he  had  purchased  a 
place,  and  where  he  resided  for  about  eighteen 
months.  Removing  thence  to  Plymouth,  he 
erected  a  dwelling  and  a  store,  in  which  latter 
he  conducts  a  thriving  business  in  general 
merchandise,  including  hay,  feed,  ice, 
builders'  hardware,  and  the  like.  Since  the 
winter  of  1892  Mr.  Ellis  has  officiated  as  Post- 
master at  Manomet. 

On  November  8,  1863,  Mr.  Ellis  was  united 
in     marriage    with     Miss     Gertrude     Nichols, 


daughter  of  Otis  and  Sarah  (Clark)  Nichols, 
and  they  have  had  two  children.  A  daughter, 
Birdie  H.  Ellis,  born  August  25,  1866,  in 
early  womanhood  was  married  to  George  De 
Loriea,  of  Chicago.  .She  died  in  that  city 
on  July  I,  1892,  shortly  after  the  birth  of 
a  daughter.  This  little  girl,  Truellis  De 
Loriea,  a  native  of  Chicago,  now  in  her  fifth 
year,  has  lived  with  her  grandparents,  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Ellis,  ever  since  she  was  four  days 
old.  The  other  child,  also  a  daughter,  was 
born  in  April,   1868,  antl  li\'ed  but  four  days. 


ON.      EBENEZER     T.      FOGG,     for 

many  years  the  leading  merchant  of 
Norwell  village  and  one  of  the  best 
known  and  most  highly  respected  citizens  of 
this  place,  was  born  in  South  Scituate,  now 
Norwell,  October  30,  1826,  and  was  one  of 
seven  children  of  Ebenezer  Thayer  Fogg. 

As  a  lad  he  was  sent  with  his  brothers  and 
sisters  to  the  public  schools  of  Scituate;  and 
at  the  age  of  seventeen  he  went  to  Boston  to 
serve  an  apprenticeship  to  a  ship-joiner. 
Having  learned  the  trade,  he  worked  at  it  for  a 
number  of  years  in  the  old  town  of  Scituate,  of 
which  Norwell  was  then  a  part;  and  he  after- 
ward opened  the  large  general  store  in  Norwell 
now  managed  by  Litchfield  &  Curtis.  For 
twenty-nine  years  prior  to  18S6  he  conducted 
this  business,  and  during  that  time  he  made  an 
extended  acquaintance  with  the  people  in  all 
the  towns  about  and  gained— tmiversal  respecb 
and  esteem.  No  one  doubted  Mr.  Fogg's 
integrity;  widows  came  to  him  with  business 
entanglements;  men  named  him  in  their  wills 
as  executor.  He  settled  a  large  number  of 
estates,  and  always  with  scrupulous  honesty 
and  a  judgment  in  business  that  was  considered 
by  his  fellow-townsmen  almost  infallible. 

In  all   matters    touching    the  affairs   of   the 


524 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


town  Mr.  Fogg  was  actively  interested;  and 
he  was  always  a  leader  in  any  movement  look- 
ing toward  the  general  good  of  the  community. 
His  fellow-citizens  showed  their  appreciation 
of  his  abilities  and  his  disinterestedness  by 
appointing  him  to  various  positions  of  public 
trust.  For  over  a  quarter  of  a  century  he  was 
Postmaster  of  Norwell,  for  forty  years  he  was 
Town  Clerk,  and  from  1861  until  the  time  of 
his  death  he  was  the  Town  Treasurer.  For 
over  thirty-five  years  he  was  a  qualified  Justice 
of  the  Peace,  and  for  many  years  a  member  of 
the  School  Board.  In  1880  Mr.  Fogg  was  sent 
as  Representative  from  this  district  to  the  Sen- 
ate of  the  Commonwealth  and  served  for  two 
terms.  While  in  the  Senate  he  was  a  member 
of  the  committees  on  fisheries,  on  roads  and 
bridges,  and  on  woman  suffrage.  Well  known 
as  a  capable  financier,  he  was  appointed  Re- 
ceiver of  the  old  Scituate  Savings  Bank,  and 
was  Treasurer  of  the  South  Scituate  Savings 
Bank  from  i860  until  his  death.  He  was  also 
a  Director  in  the  Hingham  Fire  Insurance 
Company  of  Hingham,  Mass. 

Mr.  Fogg  and  Miss  Helen  L.  Smith,  of 
Du.xbury,  were  married  on  October  5,  1859. 
Three  sons  and  a  daughter  were  born  into  their 
home,  namely:  Ebenezer  T. ,  the  eldest  son, 
who  is  a  shoe  manufacturer  of  Cambridge, 
Mass.  ;  George  Hichborn,  who  died  in  infancy; 
Helen  H.,  the  wife  of  Walter  R.  Torrey,  a 
prominent  citizen  of  Norwell;  and  Horace  T., 
who  is  a  rising  young  lawyer  in  the  county. 

Hon.  Ebenezer  Fogg  died  February  i,  1897, 
lamented  by  all  who  had  the  good  fortune  to 
know  him.  In  religious  views  a  Unitarian,  he 
was  an  active  and  benevolent  member  of  the 
Norwell  church,  and  had  been  for  many  years 
Treasurer  of  that  organization. 

Horace  T.  Fogg,  the  youngest  son,  received 
his  preparatory  education  in  the  public  schools 
and  in  the  academy  at  Duxbury  and  at  Thayer 


Academy  in  l^raintree,  graduating  from  the  last 
named  in  18S6.  In  September  of  the  same 
year  he  entered  Harvard  in  the  class  of  iSgo; 
and  he  remained  in  the  University  until  1893, 
when  he  graduated  from  the  Law  School  and 
was  admitted  to  the  Suffolk  County  Bar.  He 
has  an  office  at  31  Milk  Street,  Boston,  and 
another  in  Norwell;  and  in  the  three  years 
since  beginning  his  career  as  a  lawyer,  owing 
somewhat  to  the  prestige  of  his  father's  name 
as  well  as  to  his  own  ability,  he  has  gained  a 
large  number  of  clients,  and  his  success  may 
be  considered  as  assured.  He  is  a  member  of 
Phoenix  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Hanover, 
Pilgrim  Chapter,  Royal  Arch  Masons  of 
Abington,  and  Old  Colony  Commandery  of 
Knights  Templars;  also  of  North  River 
Lodge,  Independent  Order  of  Odd  Fellows. 
On  the  death  of  his  father  he  was  appointed 
Treasurer  of  the  South  Scituate  Savings  Bank, 
which  he  had  been  identified  with  for  three 
years  as  a  Trustee.  He  was  also  appointed 
Town  Treasurer. 


TT^HARLES  E.  TISDALE,  leading 
I  >X  member  of  the  Cochesett  shoe  manu- 
Xi°  ^  facturing  firm  of  C.  E.  Tisdale  & 
Co.,  successors  to  E.  Ti.sdale,  who  established 
the  business  in  1848,  was  born  in  Cochesett, 
Plymouth  County,  Mass.,  February  6,  1853, 
son  of  Edward  and  Amanda  (Ripley)  Tisdale. 

Edward  Tisdale,  the  founder  of  the  business 
in  which  his  son  is  now  engaged,  was  a  native 
of  Sharon,  Mass.,  where  he  was  born  in  1822, 
son  of  Colonel  Israel  Tisdale.  He  received 
in  his  youth  a  good  common-school  education. 
When  he  began  the  manufacture  of  boots  and 
shoes,  the  work  was  done  entirely  by  hand ; 
but,  as  his  business  increased,  he  enlarged  his 
plant,  putting  in  machinery,  until,  in  1862  or 
1S63,    the   present   dimensions    were   attained. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


525 


The  factory  is  equipped  witli  modern  machinery 
and  steam-power,  and  can  furnish  employment 
to  fifty  hands,  although  one-half  that  number 
is  the  average  at  the  present  time.  Mr.  Ed- 
ward Tisdale  continued  to  conduct  the  business 
until  1892,  when  he  was  succeeded  by  his  son. 
He  died  December  6,  1896.  Mrs.  Tisdale 
died  November  29,  1869.  Five  of  their  chil- 
dren are  living,  namely:  Charles  E.  ;  Alice, 
wife  of  J.  Nelson  Harris,  of  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.  ; 
Frank  S. ,  in  Cochesett,  Mass.  ;  Lizzie,  resid- 
ing in  Boston;  and  Mary,  the  wife  of  A.  H. 
Alger,  of  Brockton.  A  daughter  Dora  has 
passed  away. 

Charles  E.  Tisdale,  the  eldest  child,  re- 
ceived his  early  education  in  the  Cochesett 
public  schools  and  at  Bridgewater  Academy, 
after  which  he  took  a  business  course  at  the 
Bryant  &  Stratton  Commercial  College,  Bos- 
ton. He  began  his  business  career  as  a  dealer 
in  general  merchandise  in  Cochesett,  conduct- 
ing  a  store  here  for  several  years;  and  after 
that  he  entered  the  employ  of  his  father,  whom 
he  served  a  number  of  years  as  book-keeper, 
salesman,  and  superintendent  of  the  business, 
finally  in  1892  becoming  a  partner  in  the  firm 
of  C.  E.  Tisdale  &  Co.,  with  which  he  is  still 
identified.  They  make  a  specialty  of  the  man- 
ufacture of  fine  calf,  satin  calf,  and  veal  calf 
boots  and  shoes,  welted,  machine-sewed,  stand- 
ard screw,  and  pegged.  Their  Boston  office  is 
at  91  Bedford  Street. 

In  1885  Mr.  Tisdale  married  Alice  L.  Pack- 
ard, a  daughter  of  the  late  Nahum  Packard,  of 
West  Bridgewater,  Mass. 

For  seven  years  Mr.  Tisdale  has  served  as 
Collector  and  Treasurer  of  West  Bridgewater, 
and  in  1896  he  was  elected  to  the  office  of 
Selectman.  His  father  has  been  a  member  of 
the  State  legislature.  Fraternally,  Mr.  Tis- 
dale is  a  member  of  St.  George  Lodge,  A.  F. 
&  A.  M.,  at  Campello,  Mass.      He  is  a  Trustee 


of  the  Howard  Fund  for  the  support  of  the 
Howard  Seminary  for  Young  Ladies  and  a 
Free  High  School  for  both  sexes.  Since  his 
father's  death  Mr.  Tisdale  has  been  acting 
Postmaster  of  Cochesett. 


OHN  F.  LUCE,  who  was  formerly  a 
mariner  and  is  now  an  ice  dealer,  is  an 
important  factor  of  the  industrial  inter- 
ests of  the  town  of  Marion,  Plymouth  County. 
The  only  child  of  the  late  Captain  John  G. 
Luce,  he  was  born  on  October  17,  1852,  in  the 
house  which  he  now  owns  and  occupies. 

Captain  Luce  began  life  as  a  sailor  boy,  and 
for  more  than  thirty  years  followed  the  sea, 
being  Commander  and  part  owner  of  many 
vessels.  He  visited  various  parts  of  the  globe, 
and  in  his  last  years  his  mind  was  filled  with 
reminiscences  of  his  voyages.  He  died 
November  8,  1888,  aged  nearly  fourscore. 
His  wife,  Nancy  C.  Hammond,  was  a  native  of 
Marion,  and  she  lived  there  until  her  death, 
which  occurred  in  April,  1S67,  at  the  age  of 
forty-seven  years. 

John  F.  Luce  acquired  a  good  common- 
school  education  in  the  village  of  Marion,  and 
at  the  age  of  fifteen  years  went  to  sea  with  his 
father,  under  the  Captain's  tuition  becoming 
familiar  with  the  duties  of  cabin  boy  and  deck 
hand.  Going  then  to  Boston  he  obtained  a 
situation  on  the  Nickerson  line  of  steamers 
running  from  that  city  to  Halifax,  N.S.,  and 
in  the  latter  part  of  his  sea  life  he  was  a  mate. 
Mr.  Luce  then  returned  to  the  place  of  his 
nativity  to  care  for  his  father,  who  was  in 
feeble  health,  and  has  since  been  prosperously 
engaged  in  his  present  business.  He  is  well 
known  throughout  the  locality  as  a  man  of  good 
business  principles  and  methods,  honest  and 
upright  in  his  dealings.  He  has  served  his 
fellow-townsmen  as   Selectman   six  years,  hav- 


526 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


ing  been  Chairman  of  the  Board  two  years,  and 
as  Assessor  and  Overseer  of  the  Poor  the  same 
length  of  time.  In  politics  Mr.  Luce  is  a 
stanch  Republican,  never  swerving  from  party 
allegiance. 

On  October  29,  1S96,  he  was  married  to 
Miss  Louise  Hlankinship,  daughter  of  Seth  and 
Katherine  G.   Blankinship,  of  Marion. 


■ENRY  J.  CURTIS,  President  of  the 
South  Scituate  Savings  Bank,  is  an 
influential  citizen  of  the  town  of 
Hanover,  where  he  has  taken  an  active  part  in 
the  conduct  of  public  affairs.  lie  was  born  in 
Scituate  (now  Norwell),  June  2,  1822.  His 
parents  were  Stephen  and  Mary  S.  Curtis,  both 
of  whom  died  when  he  was  very  young. 

At  the  age  of  thirteen  Henry  J.  Curtis  came 
to  Hanover  to  live;  and  two  years  later  he  was 
obliged  to  assume  the  real  duties  of  life,  sup- 
porting himself  from  that  time  on.  When  six- 
teen he  went  to  work  at  the  shoemaker's  trade, 
and  this  was  his  occupation  for  several  years. 
In  1848  he  removed  from  Hanover  to  South 
Scituate,  and  resided  there  till  1864,  when  he 
returned  to  Hanover.  He  next  entered  a  store 
in  Hanover  as  clerk,  and  followed  that  occupa- 
tion for  several  years.  Having  gained  a  practi- 
cal knowledge  of  the  business  and  wishing  to 
embark  in  some  trade  or  occupation  in  which 
he  would  receive  larger  returns  for  his  labor 
than  he  had  realized  heretofore,  he  opened  a 
general  store  at  Assinnippi,  and  conducted  a 
prosperous  business  thereuntil  1872,  or  about 
fifteen  years,  since  which  time  he  has  lived 
retired,  having  laid  by  ample  means  for  his 
needs.  Although  deprived  of  educational  ad- 
vantages in  his  youth,  his  cpiickness  of  obser- 
vation and  careful  reading  have  stored  his  mind 
with  practical  information,  and  he  is  a  notable 
type  of  the  self-educated  man. 


In  politics  Mr.  Curtis  is  a  Republican. 
The  first  public  office  in  which  he  served  was 
that  of  Town  Clerk  of  South  Scituate,  being 
elected  in  1850,  and  serving  until  1855.  A 
year  later,  in  1856,  he  was  elected  to  represent 
South  Scituate  in  the  Lower  House  of  the 
State  legislature;  and  again,  in  1871,  he  was 
elected  from  South  Scituate  and  Hanover,  the 
two  towns  forming  one  representative  district. 
From  1872  to  1876  he  served  as  Selectman, 
Assessor,  and  Overseer  of  the  Poor  of  Han- 
over; and  he  has  held  the  office  of  School 
Committee  several'  years  in  this  town.  He 
was  appointed  Justice  of  the  Peace  by  Gover- 
nor N.  P.  Banks,  and  has  often  been  called 
upon  to  settle  estates  of  deceased  persons 
through  the  probate  courts.  He  has  been  one 
of  the  Trustees  of  the  South  Scituate  Savings 
Bank  thirty-seven  years,  its  Secretary  for 
twenty-six  years,  and  is  at  the  present  time 
(1897)  President  of  said  bank. 

In  1848  Mr.  Curtis  was  married  to  Miss 
Abbie  S.  Jacobs,  daughter  of  Ichabod  R. 
Jacobs,  Esq.,  and  his  wife,  Clarissa  Jacobs,  of 
South  Scituate.  They  have  no  children. 
During  his  whole  life  Mr.  Curtis  has  been  in- 
terested in  the  Universalist  church,  and  with 
his  wife  has  been  constant  in  attendance  at  the 
church  services. 


RESCOTT  H.  JACKSON,  a  well- 
known  citizen  of  Brockton,  where  he 
carries  on  business  as  a  contractor 
and  builder,  was  born  in  East  Bridgewater, 
Plymouth  County,  Mass.,  August  8,  1859,  his 
parents  being  Abner  C.  and  Lydia  S.  (Wade) 
Jackson.  His  grandfather,  George  Jackson, 
a  native  of  Halifax,  Plymouth  County,  was  for 
a  number  of  years  profitably  engaged  in  nail 
manufacturing.  Abner  C.  Jackson  was  born 
in  Halifax,  and  received  his  education   in  the 


I 


CHARLES    S.    GLEASON. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


529 


common  schools  of  that  town.  He  afterward 
settled  in  East  Bridgewater,  where  he  carried 
on  a  large  business  as  contractor  and  builder, 
doing  work  in  most  of  the  towns  in  Plymouth 
County.  He  was  a  master  of  his  craft,  and 
when  at  the  height  of  his  active  career  was 
said  to  be  the  best  framer  and  builder  in  the 
county.  He  was  in  business  for  fifty-five 
years;  and  he  still  resides  in  East  Bridge- 
water,  being  now  eighty-four  years  of  age. 
By  his  wife,  Lydia  S. ,  who  was  a  daughter  of 
John  Wade,  of  Halifa.x,  Mass.,  he  had  eight 
sons,  of  whom  four  are  living;  namely,  John 
A.,  George  W.,  Abner,  and  Prescott  H. 

Prescott  H.  Jackson,  who  was  the  youngest 
child  of  his  parents,  received  a  practical  com- 
mon-school education.  At  the  age  of  eighteen 
he  became  an  apprentice  to  the  carpenter's 
trade,  coming  to  BrDckton  in  the  spring  of 
1877,  and  serving  three  years.  He  then  went 
into  business  in  company  with  A.  E.  Wood- 
ward, under  the  style  of  Woodward  &  Jackson, 
and  the  firm  lasted  for  about  two  years.  Since 
severing  his  connection  with  Mr.  Woodward 
Mr.  Jackson  has  conducted  business  alone. 
He  has  built  several  school-houses  and  public 
buildings,  besides  private  residences  in  Brock- 
ton and  the  vicinity.  In  1881  he  married 
Lizzie  H.  Nash,  daughter  of  Henry  F.  Nash, 
of  North  Bridgewater.  He  has  one  son,  Ralph 
Prescott,  who  is  attending  school.  The  fam- 
ily attend  the  Universalist  church  of  Brockton. 
Mr.  Jackson  is  a  member  of  the  Commercial 
Club,  also  of  Damocles  Lodge,  No.  16, 
Knights  of  Pythias.  In  politics  he  is  a  Re- 
publican. 

*^*^» 

jHARLES  S.  GLEASON,  M.D.,  a 
descendant  of  Thomas  Gleason,  who 
came  from  England  in  1760,  and  a 
promising  young  physician  of  Wareham, 
Mass.,    was    born    on    February    8,    1865,    in 


Oakland,  Kennebec  County,  Me.  He  is  a 
son  of  Benjamin  and  Caroline  V.  (Mclntire) 
Gleason,  and  one  of  a  family  of  ten  children, 
as  follows:  Carrie  E. ,  B.  Frank,  Laura  B. , 
Lincoln,  Charles  Shuman,  Harry  C. ,  Chester 
E.,  Susie  N.,  Howard  P.,  Arthur  A.,  all 
to-day  living,  the  youngest,  Arthur  A.,  being 
now  twenty-two  years  of  age.  Dr.  Gleason's 
great-grandfather,  Elijah  Gleason,  was  born 
in  Pomfret,  Conn.,  in  1771  ;  his  grandfather, 
Bryant  Gleason,  a  soldier  of  the  War  of  181 2, 
was  born  in  Waterville,  Me.,  in  1793;  and 
his  father,  Benjamin  Gleason,  was  born  in 
Canaan,  Me.,  March  8,   1828. 

Charles  S.  Gleason  obtained  his  early  edu- 
cation in  his  native  town,  attending  the  com- 
mon schools,  the  high  school,  and  Oak  Grove 
Seminary,  Vassalboro,  Me.  He  subsequently 
took  the  prescribed  course  of  study  at  the 
Maine  Wesleyan  Seminary  at  Kents  Hill, 
Me.,  where  he  was  graduated  in  1888.  The 
following  four  years  he  was  a  student  of  the 
Boston  University  School  of  Medicine,  from 
which  he  received  his  diploma  in  1892.  Dur- 
ing the  last  two  years  at  Boston  University  he 
was  resident  physician  at  the  Consumptives' 
Home,  Ro.xbury  District,  Boston.  After  his 
graduation  Dr.  Gleason  succeeded  Dr.  George 
H.  Earle  at  Wareham,  where  he  is  fast  building 
up  a  lucrative  practice,  his  skill  and  prompti- 
tude already  winning  for  him  a  good  patronage. 
During  his  college  days  he  earned  his  own  way, 
receiving  no  financial  assistance.  He  is  a 
close  student  in  his  profession  and  a  deep' 
thinker  upon  all  matters  pertaining  thereto. 

Politically,  the  Doctor  is  a  stanch  Republi- 
can. Fraternally,  he  is  identified  with  the 
Masonic  order,  being  a  member  of  Social  Har- 
mony Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Wareham; 
of  St.  Paul  Chapter,  Royal  Arch  Masons,  of 
Boston  ;  and  of  Boston  Commandery,  Knights 
Templars.     Dr.  Gleason  also  belongs  to  various 


53° 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


medical  associations,  notably  the  Massachu- 
setts Homceopathic  Medical  Society,  the  Mas- 
sachusetts Surgical  and  the  Gynaecological  So- 
ciety, the  Boston  Medical  Society  and  Ameri- 
can Institute  of  Homoeopathy.  In  Wareham 
he  is  serving  as  Chairman  of  the  Board  of 
Health. 

«^*»» 

"ENRY  HOWARD  NORTHEY,  of 
Scituate,  is  the  proprietor  and  mana- 
L^  V^_^  ger  of  the  "Old  Oaken  Bucket 
Farm,"  on  which  is  the  well  made  famous  by 
Samuel  VVoodworth : — 

"  How  dear  to  this  heart  are  the  scenes  of  my  childhood, 

When  fond  recollection  presents  them  to  view  !  — 
The  orchard,  the  meadow,  the  deep-tan<;led  wildwood, 

And  every  loved  spot  that  my  infancy  knew ; 
The  wide-spreading  pond,  and  the  mill  that  stood  by  it, 

The  bridge,  and  the  rock  where  the  cataract  fell ; 
The  cot  of  my  father,  the  dairy-house  nigh  it. 

And  e'en  the  rude  bucket  that  hung  in  the  well, — 
The  old  oaken  bucket,  the  iron-bound  bucket, 

The  moss-covered  bucket  that  hung  in  the  well." 

Mr.  Northey  was  born  in  Scituate,  October 
28,  1828.  His  parents  were  Joseph  and  Han- 
nah (Wade)  Northey.  His  family  has  long 
been  established  in  Scituate.  His  grand- 
father, Captain  Joseph  Northey,  a  lifelong 
resident  here,  was  a  descendant  of  one  of  the 
early  settlers,  John  Northey  by  name,  whose 
infant  son  figured  in  connection  with  the  early 
struggles  with  the  Indians.  The  town  was 
unexpectedly  attacked  during  the  absence  of 
the  said  John;  and  the  distracted  mother  fled 
to  the  garrison  house,  leaving  her  infant  son 
asleep  and  unprotected  in  the  cradle.  The 
Indians  entered  the  dwelling,  and,  having  sat- 
isfied their  curiosity  in  regard  to  some  bread 
baking  in  the  oven,  departed,  leaving  the  child 
unharmed,  as  was  soon  ascertained  by  a  party 
from  the  garrison-house. 

Joseph  Northey,  Jr.,  father  of  Henry  How- 
ard, and   foster-brother   of    the   author   of    the 


"Old  Oaken  Bucket,"  was  born  in  Scituate, 
and  passed  his  life  on  the  farm  now  owned  by 
his  son.  He  served  in  the  War  of  1812,  and 
was  for  years  Lieutenant  in  the  State  militia. 
His  wife  also  was  born  in  this  town.  They 
were  the  parents  of  four  sons  —  Joseph,  Har- 
vey D.,  George,  and  Henry  Howard,  the  third, 
who  is  the  only  one  of  the  family  now  living. 

Henry  Howard  Northey  was  reared  amid  the 
scenes  of  farm  life,  and  educated  in  the  public 
schools  of  Scituate.  He  succeeded  his  father 
as  manager  of  this  farm,  and  has  been  engaged 
in  agricultural  pursuits  practically  all  his  life. 
The  famous  well  is  situated  cjuite  near  his 
house,  and  the  water  is  as  sweet  and  satisfying 
as  it  was  when  the  poem  was  written.  Mr. 
Northey  is  one  of  the  leading  farmers  of  the 
town,  and  has  been  for  a  number  of  years  a 
Director  in  the  Marshfield  Agricultural  and 
Horticultural  Society. 

In  1 866  he  was  united  in  marriage  with 
Ellen  Harrub,  a  native  of  Scituate,  daughter 
of  Darius  and  Matilda  (Schultz)  Harrub  (both 
deceased) ;  and  three  children  have  blessed 
their  union:  Mary  Alice;  Isabel,  wife  of 
Charles  Thompson  Murray ;  and  Samuel 
Woodworth  (deceased).  Mary  Alice  is  a 
graduate  of  the  Scituate  High  -School  and  the 
New  England  Conservatory  of  Music,  Boston. 
Isabel  is  a  graduate  of  the  Scituate  High 
School  and'  Wellesley  College,  Wellesley, 
Mass.  Mr.  Northey,  who  is  a  Republican, 
has  served  on  the  Scituate  Board  of  Selectmen 
for  a  number  of  years.  A  Unitarian  in  relig- 
ious preference,  he  is  a  Trustee  of  the  church 
at  Scituate  Centre. 


■AMES     N.     CHAMBERLAIN,   a    suc- 
cessful real  estate  dealer  of  Brockton, 
Mass.,    was    born    in     Conway,     N.  H., 
March  15,  1837,  son  of  James  Otis  and  Betsy 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


531 


(Hill)  Chamberlain.  He  belongs  to  an  old 
English  family,  the  original  ancestors  in 
America  being,  it  is  claimed,  three  brothers 
who  came  hither  in  the  Colonial  days,  two  of 
them  settling  in  Eastern  and  Western  Maine, 
respectively,  the  other  brother  settling  in  Vir- 
ginia. Thus  the  traditional  account.  Savage, 
however,  mentions  a  number  of  early  settlers 
of  this  name,  among  them  Henry  Chamberlain, 
of  Hingham,  who  came  in  1638;  Edmund  (or 
possibly  Edward),  of  Woburn,  who  removed  to 
Chelmsford  in  1655;  Thomas,  of  Woburn, 
1644;  William,  of  Boston,  1647;  Richard,  of 
Portsmouth,  a  Counsellor  in  1682. 

John  Chamberlain,  father  of  James  Otis, 
was  a  faithful  tiller  of  the  soil  in  Conway, 
where  two  of  the  family  still  reside,  one  other 
being  in  North  Carolina.  During  the  War  of 
181 2,  Grandfather  Chamberlain  voluntarily 
laid  down  his  hoe  for  a  musket.  James  Otis 
Chamberlain  was  extensively  engaged  in  farm- 
ing and  lumbering,  being  a  drover  for  twenty- 
five  years.  He  married  Betsy,  daughter  of 
Henry  Hill,  of  Bromfield,  Me.,  and  they  be- 
came the  parents  of  seven  children,  all  of 
whom  grew  to  maturity;  namely,  Marshall, 
James  N.,  Clarinda,  Julia,  Tryphemia,  Will- 
iam, and  Nancy.  Clarinda  married  Mr.  Dol- 
oph,  of  Conway;  Julia  married  Albert  Pack- 
ard, of  Brockton;  and  Tryphemia  became  Mrs. 
Samuel  Waterman,  of  this  city.  Nancy  mar- 
ried William  Rounds,  of  Brownfield,  Me.,  and 
she  has  since  died.  The  father  and  mother, 
who  were  religiously  prominent  in  the  Baptist 
church,  both  passed  to  the  life  immortal  at 
the  age  of  seventy-three. 

James  N.  Chamberlain,  after  acquiring  a 
fair  knowledge  of  the  common  English 
branches,  left  home  when  he  was  twenty, 
going  to  Danvers,  Mass.,  where  he  worked  one 
year.  Alternating  a  year  of  work  with  a  year 
of  study,  he  finished  his  education,  attending 


Goshen,  Parsonfield,  and  Sandwich  Academies. 
He  also  paid  the  expenses  of  the  schooling  of 
his  two  sisters  for  two  years.  He  then  re- 
turned to  Danvers  and  worked  at  the  shoe  busi- 
ness, doing  contract  work  for  I.  P.  Boardman, 
and  subsequently  for  Ira  P.  Pope.  In  Octo- 
ber, 1865,  he  came  to  Brockton,  where  he  en- 
gaged in  shoe  contract  work;  and  while  thus 
engaged  he  invested  in  real  estate,  buying  a 
piece  of  land  about  nineteen  rods  by  four  and 
a  half  rods,  situated  on  the  corner  of  Belmont 
and  Bret  Streets  in  this  city.  He  bought  it 
for  four  hundred  and  twenty-five  dollars,  and 
later  sold  a  part  of  it  for  eighteen  hundred  dol- 
lars, thereby  proving  his  good  judgment  in  in- 
vesting. In  1884  Mr.  Chamberlain  opened  a 
general  merchandise  store,  in  which  he  did  a 
safe  business  for  nine  years,  selling  out  the 
plant  in  the  spring  of  1893  to  his  sons,  to 
whom  he  gave  their  time  when  they  were  but 
sixteen  years  old.  Mr.  Chamberlain  has  en- 
gaged with  success  in  breeding  fancy  pigeons, 
lop-eared  rabbits,  and  other  pet  stock,  receiv- 
ing for  the  birds  from  one  to  twenty-five  dol- 
lars a  pair.  In  view  of  the  fact  that  he  was 
ninety-three  dollars  in  debt  when  he  first  com- 
menced speculation,  his  financial  success  is  all 
the  more  marked. 

Mr.  Chamberlain  was  united  in  marriage 
on  October  15,  1866,  to  Susan,  daughter  of 
Benjamin  Eaton,  of  Brockton;  they  are  the 
parents  of  six  children  —  Carrie  S. ,  Alice  S., 
Lily  May,  James  F.,  Franklin  N.,  and  Clar- 
ence E.  Carrie  S.  Chamberlain  married  Lu- 
cian  McLoon,  and  resides  in  Tyngsboro, 
Mass.  ;  Alice  S.  was  married  May  18,  1896, 
to  Frank  Wade,  son  of  Hiram  Wade  of  this 
city,  and  died  December  16,  1896.  The  sons, 
as  before  mentioned,  manage  the  store.  Lily 
May,  the  youngest  child,  is  still  under  the 
paternal  roof.  In  politics  Mr.  Chamberlain 
is  a  Republican. 


532 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


In  1880  he  sold  his  property  on  the  corner 
of  Brett  and  Belmont  Streets,  and  bought  a 
lot  of  land  on  the  corner  of  Belmont  and  Brook 
Streets;  and  since  then  he  has  been  adding  to 
this  till  it  now  contains  nearly  fort^'-four  thou- 
sand square  feet,  with  twenty-four  tenements 
thereon,  mostly  built  by  himself.  Mr.  Cham- 
berlain also  owns  another  lot  on  the  north  side 
of  Belmont  Street,  which  contains  two  tene- 
ments. He  thinks  it  is  within  the  reach  of 
any  man  who  is  in  health  to  have  a  good  home. 


BNER  J.  CLARK,  a  shoemaker  and 
carpenter  by  trade,  is  now  devoting 
his  time  to  carrying  on  the  old 
Clark  farm  in  Middleboro,  which  was  settled 
by  Noah  Clark,  his  grandfather,  and  which  has 
been  his  own  home  since  he  was  two  years  old. 
He  was  born  at  Middleboro,  January  9,  1839, 
son  of  Zebulon  L.  and  Abigail  E.  (Barrows) 
Clark. 

Noah  Clark,  a  native  of  the  part  of  Middle- 
boro which  is  now  Lakeville,  was  a  son  of 
Noah,  Sr. ,  and  grandson  of  Ezra  Clark.  The 
father  and  grandfather  of  Ezra  were  Thomas 
and  Thomas,  Sr. ,  the  latter  of  Welsh  descent, 
but  a  native  of  England,  whence  he  came  to 
this  country  at  an  early  date.  He  married 
Martha  Curtis  in  1676,  and  had  eleven  chil- 
dren. Zebulon  L.  and  Abigail  Clark  were  the 
parents  of  four  children;  namely,  Maria  A., 
Abner  J.,  Alvira  F.,  and  Abbie  A. 

Abner  J.  Clark,  the  second  child  and  only 
son  of  his  parents,  enjoyed  but  scanty  oppor- 
tunities for  schooling  in  his  boyhood,  and  is, 
for  the  most  part,  self-educated,  having  taken 
up  the  active  duties  of  life  when  but  ten  years 
old.  He  began  with  shoemaking,  and  later  on 
engaged  in  carpentry,  which  he  followed 
during  the  summers  and  worked  at  shoemaking 
winters,  but  Middleboro  has  always  been  his 


home.  There  are  about  forty  acres  of  land  in 
the  homestead,  and  he  carries  on  general  farm- 
ing with  success.  Mr.  Clark  is  a  member  of 
Massasoit  Lodge,  No.  69,  of  the  Independent 
Order  of  Odd  Fellows.  In  politics  he  is  a 
Republican. 

ERRIE  A.  ELDRIDGE,  M.D.,  of 
Wareham,  Mass.,  was  born  in  the  town 
of  Harwich,  this  State,  November  18, 
1866.  His  parents  were  William  Marshall 
and  Hannah  A.  (Crowell)  Eldridge,  both  of 
old  Barnstable  County  families.  They  had 
five  children,  three  of  whom  died  in  infancy: 
William  A.  ;  and  Jerrie  A.,  the  special  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch,  are  the  two  now  living. 

Jerrie  A.  Eldridge  acquired  the  rudiments 
of  learning  in  the  public  schools  of  Harwich. 
Before  taking  up  his  professional  studies  he 
worked  in  a  drug-store  for  six  years,  becoming 
familiar  with  the  nature  and  use  of  chemicals 
and  medicines,  and  expert  in  putting  up  pre- 
scriptions. In  1887  he  entered  the  College 
of  Physicians  and  Surgeons  at  Philadelphia, 
and  after  three  years  of  close  and  earnest 
study  received  his  diploma  from  that  institu- 
tion in  1890.  He  also  attended  lectures  at 
Tufts  Medical  College,  and  was  there  gradu- 
ated in  June,  1897.  In  1890  he  settled  in 
Wareham ;  and  he  is  now  in  command  of  a 
growing  practice. 

Dr.  Eldridge  is  a  member  of  the  Massachu- 
setts Medical  Society.  In  1895  he  opened  a 
drug-store  in  Wareham,  which  is  already  the 
centre  of  a  successful  trade.  Besides  being 
town  physician  he  is  a  member  of  the  Board  of 
Health. 

He  was  married  in  1887  to  Miss  Eva  I. 
Despeaux,  of  Medway,  Mass.,  daughter  of 
Charles  and  Mary  (Howard)  Despeaux,  and 
has  three  children:  Fanny  S.,  born  June  26, 
18S9;    Stephen    M.,    born    March    25,     1891  ; 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


533 


and  Lydia,  born  May  1 1,  1892.  The  Doctor 
is  very  popular  in  society,  and  is  a  prominent 
member  of  the  Independent  Order  of  Odd  Fel- 
lows and  of  the  order  of  Pilgrim  Fathers.  He 
and  his  wife  are  members  of  the  Methodist 
Episcopal  church,  of  which  he  is  one  of  the 
trustees. 


WALTER    H. 
Board  of  ( 


FAUNCE,  one  of  the 
County  Commissioners  of 
Plymouth  County,  and  a  widely 
known  and  respected  resident  of  Kingston,  is 
a  scion  of  old  English  stock  well  rooted  in 
New  England  soil.  He  was  born  in  one  of 
the  oldest  houses  in  this  town,  November  16, 
1832,  son  of  Charles  C.  and  Amelia  (Wash- 
burn) P"aunce.  His  parents  were  natives  and 
residents  of  Kingston,  as  were  his  ancestors 
on  both  sides  for  several  generations;  and  he 
is  descended  through  various  branches  from 
some  of  the  original  Plymouth  colonists  who 
came  to  this  country  on  the  "Mayflower." 
The  P"aunces  are  lineal  descendants  of  John 
Faunce,  who  landed  at  Plymouth  from  the  ship 
"Ann"  in  August,  1623.  They  have  been 
active  in  the  public  affairs  of  this  town,  and 
many  of  them  have  worthily  filled  positions  of 
trust  and  responsibility.  John  Faunce,  of  the 
fifth  generation,  born  in  1747,  an  uncle  of 
Charles  C.  Faunce,  was  for  many  years  a 
Selectman,  Treasurer,  and  Overseer  of  the 
Poor,  and  also  a  member  of  the  State  legis- 
lature. 

The  great-grandfather  of  the  subject  of  this 
sketch  was  John  Faunce,  of  the  fourth  genera- 
tion, who  married  Mrs.  Hannah  (Bisbee) 
Cook.  Their  son,  Elijah,  the  ne.xt  in  line, 
married  Lydia  Waterman,  a  daughter  of  Icha- 
bod  Waterman,  of  Kingston.  Charles  C. 
Faunce,  son  of  Elijah  and  father  of  Walter  H. 
Faunce,  was  a  prominent  citizen  of  this  town, 
and    a    leading  spirit    in   public   affairs.      He 


served  as  Town  Clerk  for  fifteen  years.  His 
wife,  Amelia,  was  a  daughter  of  Seth  and 
Sarah  (Adams)  Washburn.  Her  father,  for- 
merly a  well-known  resident  of  this  town, 
lived  to  the  venerable  age  of  ninety-two 
years. 

Walter  H.  Faunce  acquired  his  education 
in  the  public  schools  of  Kingston  and  at 
the  academy  in  East  Greenwich,  R.I.  After 
finishing  his  preparatory  studies,  he  engaged 
in  educational  work  in  his  native  town,  where 
for  fifteen  years  he  was  actively  connected 
with  the  public  schools,  and  rendered  valuable 
services  to  the  town  as  a  member  of  the 
School  Committee  for  twenty-five  years,  sev- 
eral years  of  which  he  acted  as  Chairman  of 
the  School  Board.  In  politics  he  is  a  firm 
su]-)porter  of  Republican  principles.  His  con- 
nection with  the  Board  of  Selectmen  and  As- 
sessors of  Kingston  covers  a  period  of  twelve 
years,  eight  years  of  which  he  has  presided 
over  that  body  as  Chairman.  He  is  also 
Chairman  of  the  Board  of  Overseers  of  the 
Poor.  In  1880  he  was  elected  to  the  House 
of  Representatives,  where  he  served  upon  the 
Committee  on  Insurance.  He  is  now  serving 
his  tenth  year  as  a  County  Commissioner,  has 
been  a  Justice  of  the  Peace  for  over  thirty 
years,  and  was  a  member  of  the  Republican 
State  Central  Committee  for  two  years.  He 
is  actively  interested  in  all  measures  cal- 
culated to  improve  the  general  welfare  and 
development  of  the  industrial  and  agricultural 
resources  of  this  section,  has  acted  as  Vice- 
President  of  the  Plymouth  County  Agricult- 
ural Society,  and  as  Trustee  of  Marshfield 
Agricultural  Society.  He  is  a  member  of 
Corner  Stone  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Uu.v- 
bury,  Mass. ;  and  also  a  member  of  Adams 
Lodge,  Independent  Order  of  Odd  P"ellows,  of 
Kingston. 

Mr.  Faunce  has  been   twice   married.     His 


534 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


first  wife,  Arabella  Ryder,  a  native  of  Plym- 
outh, became  the  mother  of  two  children, 
namely:  Lucy  D.,  who  is  residing  at  home; 
and  Charles  M.,  a  graduate  of  Harvard 
College,  and  formerly  an  instructor  at  the 
Massachusetts  Institute  of  Technology  in 
Boston.  His  present  wife  was  before  mar- 
riage Elizabeth  Brown.  She  is  a  native 
of    Smithfield,    R.I. 


'Cm)/TlLIAM  W.  COPELAND,  station 
VpV^  agent  at  North  Hanson,  was  born  in 
East  Bridgewater,  Plymouth  County, 
Mass.,  January  lo,  1856,  son  of  Roland  and 
Elizabeth  O.  (Osborne)  Copeland.  Hezekiah 
Copeland,  his  grandfather,  was  a  native  of 
West  Bridgewater,  and  a  carpenter  by  trade. 
In  1822  he  moved  to  Acworth,  N.  II.  ;  and  he 
died  at  the  age  of  eighty-one  years.  He  mar- 
ried Lucy  Moore,  of  Acworth,  N.H.,  and  they 
had  six  children.  Their  son  Roland  was  also 
born  in  West  Bridgewater,  where  he  attended 
public  school  until  he  was  sixteen  years  of  age. 
He  then  turned  his  attention  to  agricultiu'al 
pursuits,  in  which  he  was  engaged  during  the 
rest  of  his  life.  He  and  his  wife  Elizabeth 
had  six  children. 

William  W.  Copeland,  the  youngest  child 
of  his  parents,  having  accpiired  a  common- 
school  education,  entered  the  employ  of  C.  L. 
Howland,  dealer  in  hay,  grain,  flour,  and  coal, 
as  clerk.  In  1879  he  was  appointed  station 
agent  of  the  Old  Colony  Railroad  at  North 
Hanson,  which  position  he  still  holds.  Mr. 
Copeland  also  carries  on  the  business  of  Mr. 
C.  L.  Howland  under  his  own  name.  In  poli- 
tics he  is  a  Republican.  He  has  served  the 
town  capably  as  Selectman,  Overseer  of  the 
Poor,  and  Assessor.  On  October  15,  1890,  he 
married  Cora  F.,  daughter  of  Aaron  Healy,  of 
Whitman. 


ILLIAM  J.  WRIGHT,  who  has 
been  a  permanent  resident  of  Dux- 
bury,  Mass.,  for  nearly  thirty  years, 
is  a  well-known  member  of  the  upper  stratum 
of  Boston  society,  belonging  to  the  Somerset 
and  other  clubs  of  that  city,  and  having  many 
social  connections  through  the  family  of  his 
mother,  who  resides  in  Boston.  This  lady  is 
the  elder  daughter  of  the  late  John  S.  Wright, 
one  of  the  merchant  kings  of  Boston,  for 
many  years  senior  partner  of  the  great  dry- 
goods  and  commission  house  of  J.  S.  &  .E. 
Wright.  Mr.  J.  S.  Wright,  who  was  one  of 
thirteen  children,  was  a  son  of  Dr.  Ebenezer 
Wright,  an  eminent  physician.  He  was  de- 
scended from  military  ancestors,  as  evidenced 
by  the  records  in  the  War  Department  at 
Washington  and  in  the  archives  of  the  Com- 
monwealth of  Massachusetts,  from  which 
sources  of  information  the  following  extracts 
are  taken  :  — 

"At  Scjuakheage  ye  2nd  of  Sept.,  1675, 
8  men  slayn.  Samuel  Write,  Sergt. "  Mas- 
sachusetts Archives,  vol.  68,  p.  33.  The  Sam- 
uel Write  here  mentioned  is  the  first  of  a 
direct  line  of  ancestors  of  whom  the  grand- 
father of  the  subject  of  this  sketch  was  the 
sixth,  the  others  being:  Elizur,  second;  Ben- 
oni  or  Benony,  third;  Moses,  fourth;  and 
Ebenezer,  fifth.  Of  Iillizur  Wright  no  mili- 
tary record  has  yet  been  found,  though  the  fact 
is  known  that  he  served  in  one  of  the  Colonial 
wars.  Pie  was  Town  Moderator  of  Northfield 
and  a  leading  man  of  that  place. 

The  name  of  Benoni  Wright  (or  Benony,  as 
it  is  sometimes  spelled)  occurs  several  times 
in  the  Massachusetts  military  archives,  once 
in  an  account  of  the  garrison  soldiers  at 
Northfield  (The  Third  Soldiery),  from  May  31 
to  July  24,  1772,  vol.  91,  p.  30,  and  again  as 
follows  :  — 

"A  muster  roll  of  the  company  in  his  Maj- 


WILLIAM     J.    WRIGHT. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


537 


esty's  service  under  command  of  Samuel  Ber- 
nard, Captain.  Benony  Wright,  Nortliamp- 
ton,  July  24  to  November  20,  1772,  service 
17  weeks,  i  da}',  -for  wages  due  X<S,  ii.v. ,  5^/." 
Vol.  gr,  p.  48. 

"An  account  of  the  soldiers'  names  under 
ye  command  of  Capt.  Joseph  Kellogg,  in  his 
Majesty's  service  at  Northfield — part  of  his 
company  at  Dearfield.  Benoni  Wright." 
Vol.  91,  p.   100. 

"A  muster  roll  of  the  company  in  his  Maj- 
esty's service  under  the  command  of  Joseph 
Kellogg  of  Suffield,  Captain,  Iknoni  Wright, 
Corporal,  Northfield,  Nov.  20,  May  19,  26 
weeks."  Vol.  91,  p.  loi.  See  also  vol.  91, 
p.  237,  and  vol.  91,  p.  240;  vol.  92,  p.  79; 
vol.  92,  p.   161. 

The  name  of  Moses  Wright,  of  Northfield, 
may  be  found  in  the  military  archives  of  Mas- 
sachusetts, where  it  appears  (in  vol.  92,  p.  gS) 
as  one  of  a  list  of  men  posted  at  Fort  Pelham 
under  command  of  Samuel  Child  in  1747.  On 
p.  116,  same  volume,  it  appears  on  the  muster 
roll  of  the  company  under  Cai)tain  Eleazer 
Melvin  in  1748,  his  term  of  service  being 
given  as  eleven  weeks,  and  pay  ^5,  14.?., 
4c/.  It  is  also  on  the  muster  roll  of  Captain 
Phineas  Stevens'  company,  October  21,  174S, 
to  April  13,  1749  (vol.  92,  p.  201),  and  on 
the  roll  of  the  "company  in  his  Majesty's  ser- 
vice under  the  command  of  John  Carl  in.  Cap- 
tain," dated  Deerfield,  November  29,  1749. 
In  a  manuscript  volume  entitled  "Minutes  of 
Counsel  of  Appointment,  vol.  i,"  in  the  cus- 
tody of  the  Regents  of  the  State  of  New  York, 
the  appointment  is  recorded  on  October  24, 
1778,  of  Moses  Wright  as  Captain  in  the  com- 
pany from  Rockingham,  Cumberland  County, 
N. Y.  (now  in  Vermont),  belonging  to  the 
First  Cumberland  County  Regiment  of  the  New 
York  militia,  which  regiment  was  commanded 
by  Colonel   Eleazer   Patterson ;  also   that   said 


regiment  was  employed  in  active  service  in  the 
Revolutionary  War.  The  records  in  the  Rec- 
ord and  Pension  Office  at  Washington,  D.  C. , 
show  that  Moses  Wright  served  in  the  Si.xth 
Company,  Third  Massachusetts  Regiment, 
commanded  by  Colonel  M.  Jackson,  Revolu- 
tionary War.  His  name  appears  on  the  com- 
pany muster  roll  for  August  and  September, 
1783,  dated  October  14,  1783,  which  bears 
the  remarks:  "Term  of  enlistment,  5,  22; 
time  since  last  muster  or  enlistment,  July  31." 

The  records  in  the  above-named  office  also 
show  that  I"]benezer  Wright  served  as  a  jjrivate 
in  Captain  Joseph  Esterbrook's  company,  in 
Colonel  Bedel's  New  Hampshire  Regiment, 
Revolutionary  War.  His  name  appears  on  a 
pay-roll  dated  at  Montreal,  April  26,  1776, 
without  remark.  On  the  Revolutionary  rolls 
in  the  archives  of  the  State  of  New  Hampshire 
the  name  of  Ebenezer  Wright  appears  on  the 
"Pay  roll  of  Capt.  Joseph  Esterbrook's  com- 
pany in  Col.  Bedel's  regiment  raised  by  order 
of  the  Continental  Congress  in  the  Colony  of 
New  Hampshire  in  defence  of  the  liberties  of 
America.  Joined  the  Northern  Continental 
Army,  1776." 

Thomas  Russell,  a  great-great-grandfather 
of  the  subject  of  this  sketch  on  the  maternal 
side,  took  an  active  part  against  the  British  in 
the  Revolutionary  War,  the  records  in  the 
Adjutant-general's  office  at  Hartford,  Conn., 
showing  that  he  "marched  from  the  town  of 
Wlethersfield  as  private  for  the  relief  of  Boston 
in  the  Lexington  alarm,  April  1775;  number 
of  days  in  service,  six. "— "Served  as  pri\'nte 
in  Captain  Squire  Hill's  Company,  Samuel 
McClellan's  regiment.  Arrived  in  camp  July 
I,  1775.  (This  company  engaged  until 
March  ist,  1776)."  The  records  of  the  State 
of  New  Hampshire  at  Concord  show  the  name 
of  Thomas  Russell  as  a  private  in  Captain 
Philip    Putnam's    Company,    Colonel    Nahum 


538 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Baldwin's    regiment,     raised     in     September, 

1776,  and  sent  into  the  State  of  New  York. 
This  regiment  was  in  the  battle  of  White 
Plains,  October  28,  1776,  and  was  dismissed 
early  in  December,  1776.  A  roll-call  of 
Colonel  Benjamin  Ikllows'  regiment  of 
militia  in  the  State  of  New  Hampshire,  which 
regiment  reinforced  the  garrison  at  Ticon- 
deroga  when  besieged   by  the   British   in  June, 

1777,  mentions  Thomas  Russell  as  a  private, 
engaged  June  28,  1777;  discharged,  July  9, 
1777. 

John  S.  Wright,  son  of  Ebenezer  Weight, 
M.D. ,  was  born  June  30,  1788,  in  Plainfield, 
Vt.,  and  started  in  business  in  Thetford,  that 
State,  when  a  very  young  man,  his  associate 
being  George  Peabody,  later  the  famous 
banker  (of  London,  England).  In  1824  Mr. 
Wright  went  to  Boston,  and  for  a  number  of 
years  he  was  engaged  in  the  management  of 
one  of  the  banks  of  that  city.  In  1832,  as  a 
member  of  the  firm  of  Parks,  Wright  &  Co., 
he  engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  cotton  goods, 
and  the  house  established  at  that  time  became 
one  of  the  permanent  and  reliable  commercial 
concerns  of  Boston.  Although,  as  the  years 
went  on,  there  were  some  changes  in  the  firm 
name,  which  was  at  one  time  Wright  &  Whit- 
man and  subsequently  J.  S.  &  E.  Wright,  the 
management  included  from  the  beginning  one 
or  more  of  the  same  partners,  and  Mr.  Wright 
was  always  at  the  head.  The  firm  controlled 
an  immense  business,  representing  seventeen 
large  manufacturing  companies;  and  its 
annual  sales  amounted  to  upward  of  fifteen 
million  dollars.  Having  passed  safely  through 
the  commercial  crash  of  1857,  the  house  had 
an  established  reputation  for  financial  solidity, 
and  its  mercantile  credit  was  always  remark- 
ably high.  Mr.  Wright  was  seldom  absent 
from  his  counting-room  in  business  hours, 
even  during  his  last  years,  and  was  prompt  and 


methodical  as  he  wished  his  clerks  to  be. 
Honest  and  upright,  he  was  just  to  all  men, 
and  a  kind  and  true  friend.  He  required  of 
no  one  what  he  would  not  have  done  himself 
under  the  same  circumstances;  and  it  was  by 
his  close  and  conscientious  application  to  busi- 
ness that  he  accumulated  his  immense  fortune 
—  over  two  million  dollars.  He  left  his  home 
in  Brookline  for  his  place  of  business  Friday 
morning,  June  27,  1874,  and  during  the  day 
was  slightly  indisposed.  The  trouble  he  at- 
tributed to  indigestion,  and  expected  to  be 
able  to  resume  his  duties  on  Monday;  but  on 
Sunday  he  began  to  lose  strength,  and  gradu- 
ally sank  into  the  last  long  sleep,  passing 
away  apparently  without  pain.  He  retained 
his  faculties  and  was  able  to  recognize  the 
different  members  of  his  family  up  to  within 
a  few  hours  of  his  death.  Mis  last  day  on 
earth — June  29,  1874  —  closed  his  eighty- 
si.xth  year,  June  30  being  his  birthday. 

Mr.  John  S.  Wright  left  three  sons :  John 
Harvey  Wright,  United  States  Navy;  Eben 
Wright,  of  the  firm  of  which  he  was  the  senior 
member;  and  George  Wellman  Wright,  of 
Du.xbury  ;  and  two  daughters  —  Mary  Eliza- 
beth and  Esther  P'idelia.  John  Harvey 
Wright  was  for  many  years  Acting  Surgeon  in 
the  United  States  Navy.  He  subsequently 
left  the  service  and  was  on  the  retired  list  of 
the  Medical  Board  until  his  death.  Upon  his 
retirement  he  became  a  member  of  the  firm  of 
J.   S.  and  E.  Wright  &  Co. 

Mary  Elizabeth  Wright,  the  elder  daughter, 
mother  of  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  married 
Mr.  Charles  H.  Todd,  who  was  for  years  inti- 
mately connected  with  leaders  of  commerce  on 
the  north  Atlantic  coast,  and  who  had  an  ex- 
tensive acquaintance  in  diplomatic  circles  in 
this  country  and  Europe.  His  father  sent  out 
whalers  and  merchant  vessels  to  all  parts  of 
the    known    world,    from    Newburyport,    Mass. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


539 


Equipped  with  a  fortune  Charles  H.  Todd 
started  in  business  in  Boston  at  the  age  of 
twenty-one  as  head  of  a  dry-goods  and  silk 
house;  but  his  inexperience  led  to  failure, 
and  in  1846  he  accepted  the  position  of  special 
agent  at  Washington  for  the  New  England 
merchants  in  relation  to  the  pending  tariff  bill. 

His  business  kept  him  in  Washington  about 
a  year,  and  while  there  he  established  an  inti- 
mate persona]  friendship  with  Webster,  Clay, 
Douglas,  and  other  prominent  men  of  the  time 
which  lasted  actively  for  years.  Returning  to 
Boston  after  the  tariff  bill  passed,  Mr.  Todd 
was  engaged  for  some  time  in  fitting  vessels 
for  whaling  and  the  South  American  trade. 
In  1 849  he  went  to  California  to  make  arrange- 
ments to  send  his  vessels  there  ;  but  the  under- 
taking was  too  expensive  for  his  resources,  and 
in  a  year  or  two  he  returned  east  and  became 
a  member  of  the  New  York  firm  of  which  An- 
thony Bleecker  was  head,  making  his  home  in 
New  York  City. 

In  1S60  he  went  abroad  as  agent  for  a  syndi- 
cate, and  procured  a  grant  for  a  ship  canal 
through  Denmark  from  the  government  of  that 
country.  In  Copenhagen  he  became  intimate 
with  Mr.  Buchanan,  the  representative  of  the 
United  States  government  there.  Stopping 
over  in  London  on  his  way  back  in  the  spring, 
Mr.  Todd  was  joined  by  Mr.  Buchanan.  The 
latter  had  allowed  his  salary  to  run  for  several 
nmnths,  and  was  afraid  the  government  might 
refuse  to  pay  it,  as  it  was  known  that  he  was 
in  sympathy  with  the  South.  Mr.  Todd  took 
him  to  Baring  Brothers,  who  honored  his  draft 
for  the  salary  due ;  and  Mr.  Buchanan  was  so 
grateful  for  this  favor  that  he  pressed  social 
attentions  on  Mr.  Todd  and  introduced  him  to 
Yancey,  Slidell,  Mason,  and  other  Confeder- 
ate agents  who  were  in  London.  The  meeting 
with  these  gentlemen,  however,  resulted  in 
trouble,  for  Mr.  Todd  was  a  strong  Unionist 


and  sharp  words  passed  between  him  and  Yan- 
cey. Mr.  Buchanan  interfered,  saying  that, 
as  Mr.  Todd  was  his  friend  and  the  meeting 
was  supposed  to  be  merely  social,  he  would 
resent  any  indignity  put  upon  him;  and,  if 
Yancey  wanted  to  fight,  Mr.  Buchanan  was 
ready,  in  behalf  of  his  guest,  to  meet  him.  No 
duel  took  place,  however,  though  the  gentle- 
men parted  in  anger.  On  his  return  to  the 
States  Mr.  Todd  reported  the  occurrence  to 
Secretary  Seward,  and  by  Mr.  Seward's  re- 
quest to  President  Lincoln.  The  President 
asked  Mr.  Todd  to  remain  in  Washington, 
and  in  a  few  days  Mr.  Seward  sent  for  him 
and  offered  to  send  him  to  England  as  the 
secret  agent  of  the  government;  but  he  pro- 
tested that  he  had  no  aptitude  for  detective 
work  and  must  act  openly  if  at  all ;  so  the  mat- 
ter was  dropped.  The  Rebellion  spoiled  the 
plans  of  the  syndicate  for  the  Danish  Canal; 
and  Mr.  Todd  resided  in  New  York  until 
1869.  In  that  year  and  the  year  following  he 
had  financial  charge  of  the  construction  of  the 
water  works  for  the  city  of  Portland,  Me. 
The  ensuing  seven  years  he  spent  in  travel 
with  his  wife.  Their  return  voyage,  in  1877, 
was  his  forty-fourth  trans-Atlantic  trip.  Mr. 
Todd,  who  had  a  leaning  toward  liberalism, 
was  especially  fond  of  theological  research, 
and  left  many  writings  to  support  his  views, 
including  a  synopsis  of  the  entire  Bible,  which 
he  compiled.  He  died  in  Nyack,  N.J.,  his 
place  of  residence  for  about  a  year,  in  Feljru- 
ary,  1885,  aged  seventy-three. 

William  J.  Wright  was  born  in  Brooklyn, 
N.  Y.,  November  11,  1846,  and  was  baptized 
on  the  United  States  sloop  "  Brandy  wine, " 
on  which  his  parents  were  passengers,  en  route 
for  San  Francisco.  In  that  city  he  spent  the 
first  seven  years  of  his  life.  In  his  fifteenth 
year  he  went  to  France,  and,  entering  the  In- 
stitut    de    France    at    Asnieres,     a    military 


54° 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


school  in  the  suburbs  of  Paris,  took  a  three 
years'  course  of  training,  and  was  subsequently 
graduated.  Returning  to  America,  December 
25,  i860,  he  was  received  as  a  cadet  in  the 
Highland  Military  Academy  at  Worcester, 
Mass.  Here  he  took  a  four  years'  course,  and 
attained  the  rank  of  First  Lieutenant;  also  of 
Acting  Adjutant,  drilling  the  cadets  and 
having  entire  charge  in  the  absence  of  Captain 
Baxter.  In  the  meanwhile,  in  1863,  while  at 
this  institution,  he  enlisted  as  a  private  in 
Company  G,  Forty  second  Regiment,  Massa- 
chusetts Volunteer  Infantry,  under  General 
Burrell  for  a  three  months'  term  of  service, 
and  was  with  the  army,  camjiaigning  in  the 
Shenandoah  Valley  under  General  Auger,  tak- 
ing part  in  a  number  of  skirmishes  and 
engagements. 

Receiving  an  honorable  discharge  he  re- 
turned to  Massachusetts  and  for  a  number  of 
years  was  associated  with  the  ]?oston  house  of 
J.  S.  &  E.  Wright,  being  subsequently  con- 
nected with  their  New  York  branch.  For 
some  time  previous  to  his  going  to  New  York, 
Mr.  Wright  had  spent  much  of  his  leisure  time 
in  Du.xbury,  and  in  1868  he  became  a  perma- 
nent resident  of  this  town.  He  has  long  been 
actively  identified  with  the  town  government 
and  institutions,  and  his  influence  and  knowl- 
edge of  the  world  have  had  a  marked  effect  on 
the  progress  of  the  place.  He  is  a  member  of 
the  Duxbury  Democratic  Committee,  of  which 
he  was  Chairman  for  a  number  of  years;  in 
1890  and  1 89 1  he  represented  in  the  State 
legislature  what  was  the  twelfth  and  is  now 
the  second  district,  serving  on  the  Committee 
on  Street  Railways.  He  has  always  been 
influential  in  legislation,  affecting  State 
highways,  and  is  Chairman  of  the  board  of 
that  name  in  Duxbury.  He  is  ex-President 
of  Marshfield  Fair,  having  served  as  President 
several  years.      He  is  a  Trustee  of  Partridge 


Academy,  of  Duxbury;  has  been  a  member  of 
the  Board  of  Trustees  of  the  Duxbury  Free 
Library  ever  since  the  founding  of  that  insti- 
tution; and  as  a  Justice  of  the  Peace  he  has 
been  for  a  great  many  years  identified  with 
important  legal  transactions. 

Mr.  Wright  is  a  member  of  William  Wads- 
worth  Post,  No.  165,  Grand  Army  of  the  Re- 
public, of  Duxbury,  and  of  the  Duxbury  Yacht 
Club.  Among  the  Boston  social  organizations 
with  which  he  is  connected  are  the  Somerset 
Club,  headquarters  on  Beacon  Street;  the  Al- 
gonquin Club,  headquarters  on  Commonwealth 
Avenue;  and  the  Easton  Yacht  Club.  He  is 
also  a  member  of  the  far-famed  Country  Club 
of  Brookline;  of  the  Kingston  Yacht  Club; 
and  of  the  Old  Colony  Club,  of  Plymouth. 


>  ^ARTIN  HATCH,  a  prosperous  box- 
manufacturer  of  Pembroke,  was 
born  here  on  August  29,  1833, 
son  of  Deacon  Isaac  and  Lavina  (Allen)  Hatch. 
This  highly  respected  family  is  of  English  ex- 
traction. William,  the  earliest  known  ances- 
tor in  America,  was  a  native  of  Sandwich, 
Kent  County,  England.  He  came  to  this 
country  in  1633,  and  the  records  show  that  the 
same  year  he  became  a  freeman  of  the  incorpo- 
rated town  of  Plymouth.  He  went  back  to 
England,  not  very  long  after,  and  in  March, 
1635,  returned  to  Massachusetts  with  his  wife 
and  five  children,  and  settled  in  Scituate. 
His  son  William  married  Abigail,  daughter  of 
John  Ilewes,  a  Welshman,  who  formerly  lived 
in  Plymouth,  but  who  in  1632  settled  in 
Scituate. 

Walter  Hatch,  another  son  of  the  first  Will- 
iam, and  the  next  in  ancestral  line  now  being- 
traced,  was  born  in  England  about  1625.  He 
was  a  ship-builder  in  Scituate,  having  a  ship- 
yard located  a  mile  below  Union  Bridge;  and 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


541 


he  also  had  an  interest  in  an  iron  mine.  His 
wife,  whose  maiden  name  was  Elizabeth  Hol- 
brook,  was  a  daughter  of  Thomas  Hoi  brook,  a 
resident  of  Weymouth,  Mass.  Their  son 
Samuel,  born  December  22,  1653,  was  a  ship- 
wright and  farmer.  He  married,  and  became 
the  father  of  nine  children.  His  son  Isaac, 
born  in  Scituatc,  December  20,  1687,  the 
great-great-grandfather  of  the  subject  of  this 
sketch,  was  a  farmer,  who  spent  his  last  days 
in  this  town.  He  was  married  three  times. 
By  his  first  wife,  Lydia  Clift,  he  had  a  son 
Isaac,  second,  born  in  1717.  Isaac,  second, 
was  the  father  of  Isaac,  third,  and  grandfather 
of  Isaac,  fourth,  born  in  1764,  who  was  a 
farmer  and  a  ship  builder,  owning  a  shipyard 
on  the  North  River  in  Pembroke,  where  he 
was  a  lifelong  resident.  Isaac  Hatch,  fourth, 
married  Sarah  Hatch,  of  this  town,  and  they 
both  lived  to  be  octogenarians.  They  had  si.x 
children. 

Isaac  Hatch,  fourth,  born  in  1796,  son  of 
Isaac,  third,  and  Sarah  Hatch,  acquired  his 
elementary  education  in  the  district  school, 
and  later  added  to  his  stock  of  knowledge  by 
attending  Bridgewater  Academy.  When  he 
was  seventeen  years  of  age,  his  father  pur- 
chased for  him  a  tract  of  land  in  Hatchville 
or  East  Pembroke.  Through  this  land  passed 
a  steadily  flowing  stream,  which  they  damned 
and  utilized  to  run  a  woollen-mill  that  they 
had  erected.  They  then  engaged  in  the  manu- 
facture of  satinet;  but  the  enterprise  not  prov- 
ing to  be  a  financial  success,  it  was  abandoned 
a  few  years  thereafter.  Having  previously 
built  a  saw-mill,  Deacon  Hatch  purchased 
standing  lumber,  which  he  manufactured  in 
large  quantities.  He  subsequently  became 
interested  in  the  manufacture  of  boxes,  and 
continued  engaged  in  the  management  thereof 
through  the  rest  of  his  life,  buikling  up  a 
lucrative  trade. 


He  married  Lavina,  a  daughter  of  Hezekiah 
Allen,  and  niece  of  the  Rev.  Morrill  Allen. 
She  was  a  native  of  Bowdoinham,  Me.  By 
this  marriage  there  were  seven  children,  but 
four  of  whom  came  to  maturity:  George  F. : 
Isaac,  fifth  of  the  name  in  direct  line;  Martin; 
and  Lavina.  Isaac  and  Lavina  reside  in  Bos- 
ton. The  father  died  at  the  age  of  fifty-four, 
but  the  mother  lived  to  be  eighty-three,  sur- 
viving her  husband  twenty-nine  years. 

George  F.  Hatch  was  a  public-spirited  and 
progressive  man,  who  took  much  interest  in 
the  growth  and  welfare  of  the  town  of  Pem- 
broke while  he  retained  his  residence  here. 
Eventually  he  removed  to  Quincy,  Mass., 
where  he  died  December  29,  1876,  aged  forty- 
nine  years  and  nine  months. 

Martin  Hatch,  after  attending  the  public 
schools  of  his  native  town,  took  a  supplement- 
ary course  of  instruction  at  a  private  school  in 
Kingston.  He  then  assisted  his  father  in  the 
work  of  the  mill.  When  Mr.  Isaac  Hatch 
died,  Martin  and  his  brother  George  succeeded 
to  the  management  of  the  concern,  carrying  on 
the  box  factory  with  excellent  results  for  a 
period  of  about  twenty-five  years,  or  until  the 
ill  health  of  both  compelled  their  retirement 
from  active  business.  Mr.  Hatch  has  since 
given  his  time  to  the  care  of  his  private  in- 
terests. He  owns  and  occupies  the  old  home- 
stead, which  suggests  many  tender  memories. 
In  politics  he  affiliates  with  the  Republican 
party.  In  his  religious  outlook  he  is  a  man 
of  liberal  and  progressi\'e  ideas. 


LIZA  BETH  A.  KINGMAN,  for  many 
years  a  prominent  and  successful 
teacher  in  the  public  schools  of 
Brockton,  is  the  daughter  of  the  late  Albert 
Kingman  of  this  city  and  his  wife  Lavina 
Alden.      She   was  born   October  31,    1841,    in 


542 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


North  Britlgevvater,  now  Brockton,  and  has 
spent  the  greater  part  of  her  life  in  her  native 
place,  closely  identified  with  its  social  and 
intellectual  interests.  Miss  Kingman  has  a 
worthy  ancestry,  being  descended  on  her 
mother's  side  from  Richard  Williams  (who  has 
been  called  the  father  of  Taunton,  and  who 
was  a  cousin  of  Oliver  Cromwell),  also  from 
John  and  Priscilla  Alden;  and  on  her  father's 
side  from  Henry  Kingman,  who  settled  in 
Weymouth  in  1630. 

Miss  Kingman  received  her  early  education 
in  the  public  schools  of  the  town,  and  later, 
wishing  to  prepare  herself  for  teaching,  took 
a  training  course  in  the  Bridgewater  Normal 
School.  She  entered  that  institution  while 
Marshall  Conant  was  at  its  head,  and  was 
graduated  in  1861  under  Albert  G.  Boyden, 
A.M.,  the  present  principal.  Miss  Kingman 
gained  a  reputation  for  herself  among  both 
pupils  and  teachers  as  a  thorough  student  and 
a  young  woman  of  fine  abilities.  She  was 
valedictorian  of  her  class,  and  a  successful 
future  in  the  line  of  her  chosen  profession  was 
predicted  for  her.  Accepting  an  offer  of  a 
school  in  Easton,  she  taught  there  for  a  year, 
fully  justifying  the  e.xpectations  of  her  friends. 
Leaving  I^aston  she  went  to  .Stoughton  for  a 
year,  and  after  that  time,  up  to  1893,  she 
taught  in  Brockton.  Many  of  her  former 
pupils,  now  men  and  women,  and  engaged  in 
various  callings,  remember  with  gratitude  and 
appreciation  the  untiring  jiatience  and  kindly 
help  with  which  she  lured  them  along  the 
rugged  and  devious  paths  of  learning. 

In  1893  Miss  Kingman  decided  to  give  up 
teaching  and  to  devote  her  time  to  her  favorite 
study  of  history  and  to  the  development  of 
plans  for  benevolent  work.  .She  has  long  been 
deeply  interested  in  the  work  of  the  Woman's 
Christian  Temperance  Union,  and  is  an  ardent 
advocate  of  the  principles  of  that  organization. 


In  1S94  she  was  appointed,  by  the  Massachu- 
setts Women's  Christian  Temperance  Union, 
State  Suj^erintendent  of  Sunday-school  work, 
a  position  which  she  still  occupies.  She  has 
also  been  leader  of  the  Loyal  Temperance 
Legion,  a  children's  organization  in  Brockton, 
since  1884.  She  has  frequently  addressed 
conventions  on  Sunday-school  as  well  as  on 
temperance  work.  She  is  connected  with  the 
Porter  Congregational  Church,  and  is  Superin- 
tendent of  the  primary  department  of  the  Sun- 
day-school. Miss  Kingman  is  a  pleasing 
writer,  and  has  often  been  called  upon  in  fam- 
ily gatherings  and  festivities  to  express  in 
verse  the  sentiment  of  the  occasion,  four 
golden  weddings  and  many  anniversaries  hav- 
ing thus  tested  her  poetic  ability. 


LISHA  HOWLAND  JOSLYN,  founder 
ot  the  Joslyn  Express  Company,  was 
born  in  that  part  of  Pembroke,  Plym- 
outh County,  Mass.,  included  in  the  town  of 
Hanson,  January  24,  181 1,  and  was  the  son  of 
Eleazer  and  Alice  (Howland)  Joslyn.  He 
was  educated  in  the  public  schools  of  Hanson, 
and  at  an  early  age  began  to  work  in  a  cotton 
factory  in  that  town,  and  later  in  Marshfield. 
Here  he  made  a  careful  study  of  the  machin- 
ery, and  became  familiar  with  all  the  details 
of  the  business,  so  that  at  the  age  of  twenty 
he  was  called  u]ion  to  take  a  position  as  fore- 
man of  a  mill  in  Pembroke.  Later  he  re- 
moved to  Lowell,  where  he  spent  about  three 
years.  He  was  then  waited  ui)on  by  gentle- 
men from  Newburyport,  who  solicited  him  to 
go  to  that  place  to  equip  and  manage  a  new 
mill.  He  accepted  the  offer,  and  remained  in 
Newburyport  for  two  years,  when  ill-health 
prompted  him  to  resign,  and  he  returned  to 
Hanson. 

He   afterward   built   the    branch   of   the   Old 


SYLVANUS    W.    HALL. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


545 


Colony,  Railroad  extending  from  Stoughton  to 
North  Easton.  Me  also  put  in  the  public 
water-works  at  Plymouth.  For  some  years 
following  this  he  kept  a  market  in  North 
Bridgewater,  now  l^rockton.  In  i860  he  was 
asked  by  the  President  of  the  Old  Colony  Rail- 
road to  open  an  express  route  between  Boston 
and  North  Bridgewater,  and  was  offered  the 
exclusive  right  of  the  railroad  for  that  purpose. 
After  carefully  deliberating  the  matter,  he 
concluded  to  start  the  business,  which  later 
became  so  successful.  For  many  years  Mr. 
Joslyn  gave  his  direct  supervision  to  the  work, 
or  until  personal  considerations  made  it  desir- 
able for  him  to  retire  and  devote  himself  to  his 
private  interests,  which  he  did  until  his  death 
in  October,  1892. 

Mr.  Joslyn  was  twice  married.  By  his  first 
wife,  Hannah,  daughter  of  Daniel  Sawin, 
M.D.,  of  East  Bridgewater,  he  had  three  chil- 
dren—  Cornelia,  Elmer,  and  Alice.  In  1857 
he  married  Mrs.  Ellen  Gurney,  daughter  of 
Albert  Kingman.  One  son,  Albert  Kingman 
Joslyn,  survives  him. 

Mr.  Joslyn  was  a  member  of  the  Porter  Con- 
gregational Church  and  a  strong  advocate  of 
temperance.  In  politics  he  was  a  Republican, 
and  filled  various  offices.  He  was  a  fine  speci- 
men of  a  self-made  man,  and  his  life  is  an  ex- 
ample of  what  may  be  accomplished  by  untir- 
ing activity  and  close  attention  to  business. 
During  his  life  he  earned  a  reinitation  for 
ability  and  business  integrity  that  any  man 
might  envy. 

YLVANUS  W.  HALL,  Postmaster 
at  Marion,  Plymouth  County, 
Mass.,  and  a  worthy  representative 
citizen  of  this  town,  was  born  at  Rochester, 
now  Marion,  November  6,  1832.  His  father, 
Daniel  Hall,  was  a  native  of  Duxbury,  this 
county.      For  thirty  years  of  his  active  life  he 


served  as  Deputy  Sheriff  of  Plymouth  County, 
and  a  part  of  that  time  also  for  Bristol  and 
Barnstable  Counties,  being  widely  and  favor- 
ably known  throughout  the  south-eastern  part 
of  Massachusetts  as  a  man  of  genuine  worth 
and  ability.  The  maiden  name  of  his  wife 
was  Hannah  King.  They  had  five  children, 
namely:  Charles  D.  ;  Sylvanus  W.  ;  Abner, 
deceased;  Julia  A.  ;  and  Jennison  C. 

Sylvanus  W. ,  the  second  son,  was  born  and 
reared  on  a  farm.  He  stayed  at  home  with  his 
parents  luitil  fourteen  years  of  age,  when  he 
began  life  on  his  own  account,  going  to  the 
neighboring  town  of  Mattapoisett,  where  he 
was  employed  as  a  clerk  for  a  year.  The  fol- 
lowing two  years  he  was  similarly  engaged  at 
Providence,  R.I.  The  next  three  years  he 
spent  in  New  Bedford.  He  was  then  assistant 
at  the  Marion  Railway  Station  a  year,  and 
afterward  station  agent  at  Fairhaven,  Bristol 
County,  three  years.  Returning  to  Marion 
in  1 86 1,  Mr.  Hall  was  appointed  to  the  charge 
of  the  post-office  here,  which  position  he  ably 
filled,  discharging  its  duties  with  promptitude 
and  efficiency  for  thirty-five  years,  or  until  his 
resignation,  which  took  effect  on  April  i, 
1896.  He  was  succeeded  by  his  son-in-law, 
Frank  M.  Tripp,  the  present  Postmaster. 

Mr.  Hall  was  married  on  November  6,  1859, 
to  Miss  Annie  M.,  daughter  of  Dr.  W.  N. 
Ellis,  who  was  for  many  years  a  popular  physi- 
cian of  Marion.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hall  have  four 
children,  namely:  Lucy  M.,  Assistant  Post- 
master at  Marion;  Hannah,  wife  of  Richard 
A.  Cowing;  Mattie  C,  wife  of  Captain  Will- 
iam Kelley;  and  IClizabeth  B.  S. ,  wife  of 
P"rank  M.  Tripp. 

Politically,  Mr.  Hall  is  a  stanch  adherent 
of  the  Republican  party.  He  served  as  Town 
Treasurer  and  Collector  sixteen  consecutive 
years,  and  for  three  years  was  Collector  of  the 
Port  of  Marion.      He  belongs  to  the  Masonic 


546 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


order,  being  an  active  member  of  Pythagorean 
Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  which  he  was 
Secretary  ten  years.  Mr.  Hall  is  a  member 
of  the  Congregational  church. 


I^TARVEY  CROCKER,  an  energetic  and 
r^\  enterprising  business  man  of  Plym- 
Ji®  ^^^ ^  outh  County,  engaged  in  harness- 
making  and  saddlery  at  Wareham,  is  a  native 
of  this  town,  born  September  ii,  1847,  being  j 
one  of  a  family  of  six  sons  and  five  daughters 
born  to  Walton  N.  and  Elizabeth  (Swift) 
Crocker.  His  father  was  from  Hyannis, 
Barnstable  County,  and  his  mother  a  native  of 
Wareham. 

Harvey  Crocker  attended  the  public   schools 
until  sixteen  years  of  age,  when,  his  patriotic 
ardor  being  thoroughly  aroused,  he  enlisted  in 
defence    of    the    Union,    joining    the    Fourth 
Massachusetts  Cavalry  January  20,    1864,   and 
being   mustered     into    service    at    Readville. 
With  his  comrades   in  arms    he    went  first   to 
Port    Royal,    thence   shortly   after   to   Virginia 
to  join  General  Butler's  forces,  from  that  time 
till  after  the  close  of  the  war  being  detailed 
for  special  duty  until   his  discharge,  which  he 
received   December   14,    1865.      On   returning 
home,  Mr.  Crocker  worked  in  his  father's  har- 
ness  shop  three   years,   serving  a  full    appren- 
ticeship to  the  trade,  which   he  is  now  follow- 
ing.     He  next  spent  three  years   in   seafaring 
pursuits,    cruising    on    a    whaling   vessel    two 
years,  and  one  year  on  a  coaster.      His  father 
having  died   in    the  mean  time,    Mr.    Crocker 
then  retired  from   nautical   pursuits  to  assume 
charge  of  the  harness  shop;  and   he  has   since 
carried  on  a  prosperous  and  lucrative  business, 
dealing    largely    in    horses    and     carriages    in 
addition  to  his  manufacturing. 

Mr.  Crocker  was  first  married  on   March  19, 
1874,    to    Sarah    Shaw    Bump,    of    Lakeville, 


Mass.  ;  and  one  son,  Harvey  Shaw  Crocker, 
was  the  fruit  of  the  union.  His  second  mar- 
riage, uniting  him  with  Louise  Stanwood 
Barnes,  took  place  October  27,  18S6.  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Crocker  have  three  daughters, 
namely:  Lucy  Fenderson,  born  August  5, 
1S87;  Louise  Stanwood,  born  April  14,  1890; 
and  Elizabeth  Swift,  born  April  9,   1892. 

In  politics  he  adheres  closely  to  the  prin- 
ciples promulgated  by  the  Republican  party,  in 
which  he  is  an  active  and  intelligent  worker. 
Since  1884  he  has  been  a  member  of  the 
Board  of  Registrar  of  voters,  and  in  1895  he 
represented  the  Seventh  Plymouth  District  in 
the  State  legislature.  He  is  identified  with 
several  local  social  organizations,  being  a 
member  of  Wareham  Post,  No.  208,  Grand 
Army  of  the  Republic;  of  Social  Harmony 
Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.  ;  and  of  Wankinquoah 
Lodge,  No.  119,  Independent  Order  of  Odd 
Fellows,  of  Wareham.  Mr.  Crocker  is  well 
known  in  this  section  of  Plymouth  County, 
and  stands  remarkably  high  in  the  community 
as  an  honorable,  upright,  and  trustworthy 
citizen. 


HARLES    H.    COLE,    a  trusted   fore- 


man in  H.  M.  Kingman's  shoe  factory 
of  l^rockton,  was  born  October  15, 
1835,  in  Boston,  Mass.,  son  of  Charles  and 
Abigail  Griggs  (Harvey)  Cole.  His  father,  a 
native  of  Paris,  Me.,  was  reared  on  a  farm, 
and  attended  the  common  schools  in  his  native 
town.  When  Charles  Cole  attained  his  ma- 
jority he  removed  from  Maine  to  Dedham, 
Mass.,  where  he  worked  in  a  cotton-mill  for 
some  time,  and  first  made  the  acquaintance  of 
his  future  wife.  Later  he  came  to  Boston, 
and  followed  the  trade  of  carpenter.  While 
there,  among  other  buildings,  he  erected  a 
block  on  Pine  Street,  and  a  larger  one  on 
Shawmut  Street,  now  Shawmut  Avenue.      He 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


547 


subsequently  moved  to  Campello,  where  he 
died  at  the  age  of  seventy-five  years.  He 
married  Abigail  Griggs  Harvey,  of  Spring 
Street,  West  Roxbury,  who  bore  him  six  chil- 
dren —  Susan,  Lucinda,  Charles,  John  Har- 
vey, George  William,  and  Hattie.  Susan 
married  Horace  Baker,  and  they  reside  in 
Brockton.  Lucinda  married  the  Hon.  H.  A. 
Monk,  a  heel  manufacturer  also  of  this  city. 
The  mother  lived  to  be  seventy-four  years  of 
age. 

Charles  H.  Cole  obtained  his  early  educa- 
tion in  the  old  Brimmer  School  on  Common 
Street,  Boston.  At  the  age  of  ten  he  removed 
with  his  parents  to  Sharon.  Here  he  assisted 
in  the  cultivation  of  the  farm,  of  which  he 
soon  took  entire  charge.  At  the  age  of  six- 
teen, however,  he  learned  the  carpenter's  trade 
with  his  father,  and  subsequently  worked  at  it 
until  the  fall  of  1859.  In  the  mean  time  he 
had  removed  to  Stoughton,  and  from  there 
came  to  Brockton,  October  17,  icSs3,  to  en- 
gage in  rebuilding  the  old  South  Congrega- 
tional Church,  which  had  been  destroyed  by 
fire  on  May  23  of  that  year.  After  this  he 
was  employed  throughout  the  winter  season  at 
the  factory  of  A.  &  A.  B.  Keith  at  Campello, 
and  at  his  trade  in  summer  until  1859,  when 
he  abandoned  the  latter  calling,  as  already  in- 
timated. While  in  the  employ  of  Messrs. 
Keith  he  learned  the  business  of  sole-leather 
cutting,  in  which  industry  he  was  a  pioneer, 
and  one  of  the  first  to  adopt  new  methods. 
During  the  war  he  made  army  shoes,  and  after- 
ward remained  in  charge  of  his  department 
until  the  firm  went  out  of  the  business  seven- 
teen years  later.  The  Keith's  establishment 
was  the  first  and  largest  steam  factory  in 
Brockton,  then  North  Bridgewater,  and  the 
firm  had  the  first  dies  and  first  pegging  and 
stitching  machines.  When  a  strike  occurred 
in  the  winter  of   1859,  Mr.  Cole  stood  by  his 


employers.  The  esteem  in  which  he  was  held 
by  the  company  is  best  shown  by  the  fact  that, 
while  he  neither  sought  promotion  nor  increase 
of  wages,  he  was  advanced  with  due  regard  to 
emoluments. 

After  Messrs.  Keith  retired  from  business, 
Mr.  Cole  entered  the  C  W.  Copeland  shoe 
factory  as  foreman  of  sole-leather  department, 
which  position  he  held  until  Mr.  Copeland's 
failure  in  July,  1883.  In  February,  1884,  he 
took  a  similar  position  in  the  factory  of  H.  M. 
Kingman.  Later,  at  the  urgent  request  of 
Mr.  Copeland,  he  returned  to  assist  him  for  a 
time  in  cutting  sample  stock.  While  so  en- 
gaged he  had  the  misfortune  to  lose  a  finger, 
after  which  he  re-entered  the  H.  M.  Kingman 
factory.  During  the  thirteen  years  "spent  here 
he  has  been  foreman  of  the  sole-leather  room, 
and  is  now  in  addition  superintendent  of  the 
factory.  In  politics,  from  his  first  vote  to  the 
present  time,  he  has  steadily  supported  the 
Republican  party.  In  the  first  year  that  the 
new  law  went  into  force  he  was  appointed  by 
Mayor  Keith  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Regis- 
trars for  the  term  of  one  year.  He  was  after- 
ward reappointed  by  Mayor  Whipple  for  the 
term  of  three  years,  but  he  resigned  after  serv- 
ing one  year.  Mr.  Cole  was  one  of  the  pro- 
moters of  the  Campello  Co-operative  Bank, 
which  was  established  in  October,  1S77,  and 
has  been  on  the  Security  Committee  since  its 
organization,  that  being  the  only  ofifice  he 
would  accept.  During  the  Rebellion  he 
served  as  Collector  of  the  money  demanded 
for  substitutes  in  District  No.  6,  paying  the 
amount  received  into  the  hands  of  the  Hon. 
H.  W.  Robinson.  In  the  year  1864  he  fur- 
nished a  substitute,  who  entered  the  marine 
service  for  foui^  years. 

On  February  24,  1856,  he  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Olive  A.,  daughter  of  Sylvanus 
French.      She   was    born    October    16,    1834, 


548 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


and  has  had  four  children  —  Mary  Abbie, 
Lizzie  Augusta,  George  French,  and  Lucia  E. 
Mary  Abbie,  who  married  Henry  Newton,  of 
Brockton,  died  November  20,  1885;  Lizzie 
Augusta  married  Henry  Crane,  of  Bridge- 
water;  George  French  married  Lillie  Perkins, 
of  Norwell,  Plymouth  County;  and  Lucia  took 
for  her  life  partner  Dr.  J.  F.  Allen,  of  Arling- 
ton. He  is  a  dentist  of  Campello.  Frater- 
nally, Mr.  Cole  is  a  member  of  Brockton 
Lodge,  No.  218,  Knights  of  Honor.  In  re- 
ligion he  is  a  member  of  the  South  Congrega- 
tional Church. 


T^HARLES  L.  RICE,  a  prominent  cit- 
I  St^  izen  of  Rockland,  Mass.,  was  born 
V>^  ^  at  Brookfield,  Vt.,  December  31, 
1841,  a  son  of  Alphonso  and  Mary  (Cardell) 
Rice.  The  father  was  a  plain,  hone-st  New 
England  farmer,  who  spent  the  greater  part  of 
his  life  in  the  "Green  Mountain  State"  in 
tilling  the  soil,  but  eventually  removed  to 
Brooklyn,  la.,  where  he  died  at  the  age  of 
seventy-five  years.  His  wife,  whose  maiden 
name  was  Mary  Cardell,  was  a  native  of  the 
State  of  New  York,  born  near  Lake  George. 
On  both  sides  Mr.  Rice  comes'  from  a  long- 
lived  stock,  several  of  his  paternal  ancestors 
having  lived  to  be  over  ninety  years  old.  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Alphonso  Rice  were  the  parents  of 
nine  children,  namely:  John  A.,  a  dry-goods 
merchant  of  Rockland;  Mary,  who  resides  in 
Brooklyn,  la. ;  Cynthia  Louise  (deceased) ; 
Lovina,  a  resident  of  Rockland;  Hannah,  who 
resides  in  Boston;  Carrie,  now  a  resident  of 
Minneapolis;  Charles  L.  ;  George  E.,  who 
lives  in  Maiden,  and  is  a  dry-goods  merchant; 
and  Eugene  M.,  a  resident  of  Boston,  Mass., 
who  conducts  an  extensive  dry-goods  business 
in  Chelsea. 

Charles  L.    Rice,  the  seventh  child  of  his 


parents,  was  brought  up  on  his  father's  farm, 
on  which,  after  he  was  twelve  years  old,  he 
worked  during  the  summers,  learning  the 
routine  duties  of  farm  life.  His  education 
was  obtained  by  attendance  during  the  winters 
at  the  district  school  and  by  a  supplementary 
course  of  study  at  Barre  Academy.  Like  his 
brothers  and  sisters,  he  followed  for  a  time 
the  calling  of  a  teacher,  being  thus  engaged 
for  three  terms. 

He  made  the  farm  his  home  until  August, 
1862,  when,  obeying  the  voice  of  patriotism, 
he  enlisted  as  a  private  soldier  in  the  Tenth 
Regiment  of  Vermont  Volunteer  Infantry. 
On  October  27,  1863,  he  was  commissioned 
a  Captain,  being  assigned  to  the  command 
of  Company  A,  Seventh  Regiment,  United 
States  Colored  Troops.  After  serving  in  this 
capacity  until  March  4,  1864,  he  was  ordered 
to  Hilton  Head,  S.C.,  thence  to  Jacksonville, 
Fla.,  which  latter  place  he  reached  about  the 
end  of  the  month.  Here  he  was  prostrated 
by  an  attack  of  rheumatic  fever,  from  which 
he  did  not  recover  until  October.  In  the 
mean  time  his  regiment  had  been  transferred 
to  Virginia,  where  he  rejoined  it  after  an  en- 
forced absence  of  seven  months.  After  his  re- 
turn he  was  detailed  with  his  company  as 
provost  guard  of  Major-general  VVeitzel's 
headquarters.  A  few  months  later  he  was 
appointed  Acting  Assistant  Inspector-general, 
First  Brigade,  Second  Division,  Twenty -fifth 
Army  Corps.  On  May  24  he  was  ordered  to 
Tekas,  and  in  the  following  June  was  detailed 
Acting  Assistant  Inspector-general  of  the 
sub-district  of  Victoria,  and  in  February, 
1866,  detailed  with  the  same  rank  to  the  Cen- 
tral District  of  Texas.  On  October  13  the 
command  was  moved  east  to  Baltimore,  where 
it  was  mustered  out,  Captain  Rice  being 
brevetted  Major  and  Lieutenant-Colonel  of 
volunteers  for  services. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


549 


Soon  after  his  return  to  the  North  he  came 
to  Rockland,  where,  in  1867,  he  went  into 
business  with  his  eldest  brother,  the  firm 
being  known  as  J.  A.  &  C.  L.  Rice.  Dealing 
first  in  dry  goods  and  similar  wares,  they  sub- 
sequently, in  1870,  added  a  furniture  depart- 
ment, and  were  very  successful  in  both  lines. 
The  combined  enterprise  at  length  attained 
such  large  proportions  that  in  1872  the 
brothers  decided  to  separate,  John  A.  Rice 
taking  the  original  dry-goods  business,  and 
Charles  L.  the  furniture  trade  in  its  several 
branches.  In  1874  he  added  the  department 
of  undertaking.  Eight  years  later  he  estab- 
lished a  branch  house  in  South  Weymouth ; 
and  in  1887  he  bought  and  improved  the  large 
stores  now  occupied  by  him  on  Park  Street. 

On  November  7,  1865,  Mr.  Rice  married 
Hattie  E.  Perry,  a  native  of  Worcester,  Vt., 
and  daughter  of  the  Rev.  David  Perry.  Her 
father  was  a  minister  of  the  gospel,  a  very  able 
and  worthy  man,  who,  after  following  his 
sacred  calling  in  Worcester  and  elsewhere,  at 
the  age  of  seventy-five  accepted  a  charge  at 
Falmouth,  Mass.,  where  he  died  three  years 
later.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Rice  have  had  seven 
children  —  Julia  P.,  Clarence  E.,  David  Perry, 
Mary  L.,  Cora  H.,  Hattie  Adele,  and  Charles 
L.  Julia  P.  married  George  W.  Wakefield, 
and  resides  in  Minneapolis,  Minn.  ;  Clarence 
E. ,  who  is  an  able  business  man,  married 
Sadie  Tolman,  and  lives  in  Rockland.  He  is 
the  superintendent  of  the  Sunday-school  of  the 
Congregational ist  church,  where  he  and  his 
wife  attend  worship.  They  have  one  child, 
Louise  T.,  born  June  5,  1896.  David  Perry, 
who  has  chosen  to  devote  his  life  to  the  min- 
istry, is  now  pursuing  his  theological  studies. 
Mary  L.  became  the  wife  of  Frank  A.  Shel- 
den,  is  a  resident  of  Rockland,  and  is  an  as- 
sistant teacher  in  Volkman"s  Fitting  School, 
Boston.      Cora  H.,  Hattie  Adele,  and  Charles 


L. ,  Jr.,  all  live  at  home,  and  are  pupils  in  the 
public  schools. 

Mr.  Rice  is  a  stanch  Republican  in  politics, 
but  has  hitherto  declined  to  accept  office.  He 
has  always  taken  a  great  interest  in  the  de- 
velopment of  the  town,  and  more  especially  in 
anything  that  would  tend  to  increase  its  im- 
portance as  a  business  centre.  He  was  one  of 
the  prime  movers  in  the  organization  of  the 
club,  which  has  accomplished  much  in  this 
direction.  The  idea  occurred  to  him  ten  years 
before,  and  he  went  at  that  time  to  the  neigh- 
boring city  of  Brockton,  where  there  was  an 
organized  Board  of  Trade.  After  a  careful 
examination  of  their  system,  rules,  and  by- 
laws, he  returned  to  his  own  town  with  a  very 
satisfactory  report,  which  he  laid  before  his 
fellow-citizens,  but  failed  to  impress  upon 
them  the  desirability  of  taking  steps  to  form 
a  similar  organization.  After  ten  years, 
another  and  more  successful  attempt  was 
made,  resulting  in  the  Rockland  Commer- 
cial Club,  of  which  Mr.  Rice  was  chosen 
first  President,  and  remained  so  for  a  period  of 
three  years. 

In  religious  opinions  Mr.  Rice  is  in  sym- 
pathy with  the  Congregational  church,  of 
which  he  is  an  active  and  useful  member.  He 
has  been  for  fifteen  years  Chairman  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees  of  the  church,  and  has  con- 
ducted a  Sunday-school  class  for  the  excep- 
tionally long  period  of  twenty-five  years. 
When  the  house  of  worship  was  destroyed  by 
fire,  he  rendered  valuable  service  in  securing 
the  erection  of  another,  and  was  elected  to  the 
Chairmanship  of  the  Building  Committee. 
The  result  of  his  efforts  in  this  direction  may 
be  seen  in  the  new  structure,  which  is  an  ad- 
mirable specimen  of  the  modern  church  edi- 
fice, containing,  in  addition  to  the  auditorium, 
handsome  and  convenient  parlors,  and  rooms 
for  Sunday-school  and    other  purposes.     The 


55° 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


building  was  erected  and  furnished  at  an  ex- 
pense but  little  short  of  forty  thousand  dollars. 
Mr.  Rice  fills  a  wide  sphere  of  usefulness,  and 
is  highly  respected  by  his  fellow-citizens  as  an 
honorable  business  man,  and  a  whole-souled, 
Christian  gentleman. 


ILLIAM  T.  DAVIS,  the  accom- 
plished historian  of  Plymouth, 
Mass.,  is  a  native  of  this  ancient 
town,  of  which  he  is  an  influential  and  honored 
citizen.  He  comes  of  long  lines  of  Colonial 
ancestry,  numbering  among  his  kinsfolk,  near 
and  remote,  many  worthy  and  distinguished 
names. 

His  great-great-grandfather  on  the  paternal 
side,  Thomas  Davis,  of  Albany,  N.Y.,  is  be- 
lieved to  have  been  a  descendant  of  Robert 
Davis,  of  Falmouth,  Mass.  He  married, 
about  1720,  Catherine  Wendell,  of  Albany,  of 
the  famous  Knickerbocker  family,  founded  by 
Evert  Jansen  Wendell,  from  whom  both  Oliver 
Wendell  Holmes  and  Wendell  Phillips 
claimed  descent.  Thomas  Davis  removed 
from  Albany  to  North  Carolina  in  or  about 
1730. 

Seven  years  later  his  son  Thomas,  who  was 
born  in  1722,  came  to  Plymouth  to  be  edu- 
cated under  the  care  of  Elkanah  Morton.  In 
1753  he  married  Mercy,  the  daughter  of  Barn- 
abas Hedge,  of  Plymouth.  He  was  a  member 
of  the  expedition  against  Louisburg.  After 
his  return  he  became  interested  in  navigation, 
and  had  a  large  trade  with  the  West  Indies, 
Spain,  France,  and  along  the  shores  of  the 
Mediterranean  Sea,  being  one  of  the  leading 
ship-owners  and  prominent  business  men  of 
the  busy  town  of  Plymouth.  In  the  year  1782 
one  of  his  vessels,  the  schooner  "Harmony," 
commanded  by  Nathaniel  Carver,  laden  with 
corn  from  North  Carolina,  was  overhauled  and 


captured  by  Horatio  Nelson,  afterward  Lord 
Nelson,  the  celebrated  English  Admiral;  and 
the  Captain  was  held  as  a  prisoner,  being 
compelled  to  pilot  the  English  ship  through 
comparatively  unknown  and  intricate  passages 
out  of  the  way  of  the  French  fleet,  which  put 
out  from  Boston  for  its  capture.  Once  safe 
from  the  French,  Nelson  put  the  Captain 
ashore.  This  incident  is  related  with  further 
particulars  in  Mr.  William  T.  Davis's  "His- 
tory of  Plymouth."  The  following  is  a  copy 
of  the  certificate  now  in  the  possession  of  Mr. 
Davis,  given  by  Nelson  to  Captain  Carver:  — 

This  is  to  certify  that  I  took  the  schooner  "  Har- 
mony," Nathaniel  Carver,  master,  belonging  to  Plym- 
outh, but  on  account  of  his  good  services  have  given 
him  up  his  vessel  again.  Horatio  Nelson. 

Dated  on  board  His  Majesty's  ship  "  Albemarle," 
17th  of  August,  1782,  in  Boston  Bay. 

This  is  the  only  autograph  of  Lord  Nelson 
in  this  country,  and  is  valued  accordingly. 

Thomas  and  Mercy  (Hedge)  Davis  became 
the  parents  of  six  sons,  all  of  whom  were  emi- 
nently successful  in  their  varied  lines  of  life- 
work.  The  eldest,  William,  the  grandfather 
of  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  was  born  in  1758 
in  Plymouth,  and  died  in  1826.  Like  his 
father,  he  was  a  large  ship-owner,  and  en- 
gaged in  trade  with  the  West  Indies,  h'rance, 
Spain,  and  Holland.  He  married  in  1781, 
Rebecca,  the  daughter  of  Nathaniel  Morton,  a 
descendant  of  George  Morton,  who  came  from 
England  in  the  "Ann"  in  1623. 

The  next  son  of  Thomas  was  John,  a  gradu- 
ate of  Harvard  College,  who  was  for  some 
time  Comptroller  of  the  Currency  in  Washing- 
ton, and  for  forty  years  a  Judge  of  the  United 
States  Court  for  the  District  of  Massachusetts. 
He  was  for  a  long  period  President  of  the 
Massachusetts  Historical  Society.  Thomas, 
another  son,  was  the  Treasurer  of  Massachu- 
setts  for  six  years,  and  was   the   President   of 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


S5t 


the  first  insurance  company  in  Boston.  He  is 
buried  in  the  old  cemetery  on  Boston  Common. 

Samuel,  the  fourth  son,  was  a  noted  anti- 
quary, and  a  member  of  the  Massachusetts 
Historical  Society,  as  was  also  the  fifth  son, 
Isaac,  who  was  an  intimate  friend  of  Daniel 
Webster.  Wendell  Davis,  the  sixth  son,  was 
a  graduate  of  Harvard,  and  a  lawyer  by  pro- 
fession. He  was  the  father  of  the  late 
George  T.  Davis,  of  Greenfield,  a  well-known 
Congressman. 

William  and  Rebecca  (Morton)  Davis  were 
the  parents  of  four  children:  William,  the 
father  of  William  T.,  born  at  Plymouth  in 
1783;  Nathaniel,  a  lawyer,  and  a  graduate  of 
Harvard  College,  who  practised  for  several 
years  in  his  native  town  of  Plymouth,  was 
elected  to  the  Massachusetts  Senate,  was  a 
member  of  the  Executive  Council,  President 
of  the  Pilgrim  Society,  and  a  member  of  the 
Massachusetts  Historical  Society;  Thomas,  a 
bachelor,  who,  although  an  invalid,  conducted 
a  successful  business  for  several  years,  living 
in  Boston,  where  he  was  a  Director  of  several 
insurance  companies  and  financial  institu- 
tions; and  Elizabeth,  who,  after  the  death  of 
her  first  husband,  Alexander  Bliss,  a  law 
partner  of  Daniel  Webster,  married  the  emi- 
nent historian,  George  Bancroft. 

William  Davis,  the  eldest  son  of  William 
and  Rebecca,  was  engaged  in  business  with 
his  father  for  many  years.  He  was  married 
in  1807  to  Joanna,  the  daughter  of  Captain 
Gideon  White,  of  Shelburne,  N.S. ,  who, 
being  a  stanch  royalist,  served  during  the 
Revolution  as  an  officer  in  the  British  army 
in  Jamaica.  He  was  a  descendant  of  Pere- 
grine White,  the  first  child  born  of  English 
parents  in  New  England.  After  the  war  Cap- 
tain White  settled  in  Shelburne,  where  he  re- 
mained for  the  rest  of  his  life. 

Mr.    William   Davis  died   in    1824,  leaving 


five  children  —  Rebecca  Morton,  who  first 
married  Ebenezer  Grosvenor  Parker,  and  sub- 
sequently George  S.  Tolman,  of  Boston ;  Han- 
nah White,  who  married  Andrew  L.  Russell, 
of  Plymouth;  Elizabeth,  who  died  in  infancy; 
Charles  Gideon  Davis,  a  Judge  of  the  District 
Court,  for  further  particulars  of  whom  see  the 
sketch  of  his  life;  and  William  T.,  of  whom 
this  is  a  slight  biography. 

William  T.  Davis  was  born  at  Plymouth, 
March  3,  1822.  He  was  fitted  for  college  at 
the  Plymouth  High  School,  and  was  graduated 
from  Harvard  in  1842.  Then  he  studied  med- 
icine for  a  time  at  the  University  of  Penn- 
sylvania, and  subsequently  spent  a  year  in 
Europe.  After  his  return  he  studied  law, 
first  in  the  office  of  his  brother  Charles,  who 
was  then  in  Boston,  and  finally  at  the  Harvard 
Law  School.  He  was  admitted  to  the  bar  in 
Boston,  November  9,  1849.  He  opened  a  law 
office  in  the  same  city,  and  remained  there 
practising  until  1853,  when  he  went  to  Plym- 
outh and  engaged  in  business. 

He  was  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Select- 
men for  seventeen  years,  and  has  been  on  the 
same  Board  at  various  times  since  then,  hav- 
ing been  the  Chairman  of  the  Board  for  many 
years.  He  was  a  member  of  the  School  Com- 
mittee for  six  years,  and  President  of  the 
Plymouth  National  Bank  for  a  period  of 
twenty.  Moreover,  he  was  President  of  the 
Plymouth  Gas  Company,  President  and  Vice- 
President  of  the  Pilgrim  Society,  and  is  still 
a  Trustee  of  the  same  organization.  Added 
to  that  he  was  State  Senafor^in  1858  and  iS^S9- 
In  1872  he  was  a  Presidential  Elector  for  the 
Republican  party,  and  in  1876  a  delegate  to 
the  Republican  National  Convention  at  Cincin- 
nati. In  1895  he  was  appointed  Chairman  of 
the  Old  Colony  Commission.  He  was  Chair- 
man of  the  First  Parish  Unitarian  Committee 
for  fifteen  years. 


SS2 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Mr.  Davis  has  been  engaged  in  literary 
work  for  a  number  of  years,  and  has  published 
several  volumes,  among  which  are:  "The  His- 
tory of  Plymouth,"  "Ancient  Landmarks  of 
Plymouth,"  "A  History  of  Newburyport, 
Mass.,"  "Historical  sketches  of  some  Massa- 
chusetts Towns  (twenty-five),"  and  "History 
of  the  Bench  and  Bar  of  Massachusetts."  Mr. 
Davis  also  edited  the  "  Plymouth  Town  Rec- 
ords "  in  two  volumes,  and  is  now  engaged  in 
editing  a  work  entitled  "A  History  of  the  New 
England  States,"  which  is  to  be  written  by 
a  corps  of  able  writers,  and  is  to  make  its  ap- 
pearance within  a  year.  Mr.  Davis  has  deliv- 
ered addresses  on  many  different  public  occa- 
sions, and  a  great  number  of  lectures  on  his- 
torical subjects,  being,  it  is  needless  to  say, 
extremely  well  qualified  for  this  sort  of  intel- 
lectual work. 

On  the  19th  of  November,  1849,  he  was 
married  to  Miss  Abby  Burr,  daughter  of 
Thomas  and  Lydia  Coffin  (Goodwin)  Hedge, 
of  Plymouth.  Mrs.  Davis  died  August  12, 
1894.  His  children  are:  Abby  Warren,  born 
in  1854,  who  married  Alexander  Jackson,  of 
Boston;  Howland,  born  in  1855,  now  a  New 
York  banker,  who  married  in  1885,  Anna, 
daughter  of  William  Shippen,  of  New  York; 
Katharine  Wendell,  born  in  1859,  who  resides 
at  home;  and  Alice  Whitworth,  born  in  1864, 
who  married  Dr.  Henry  R.  Hitchcock,  of  Hyde 
Park,  Mass. 


«^<^» 


|LIJAH  AMES  is  one  of  the  oldest  resi- 
dents of  Marshfield,  and  his  life  has 
been  such  as  to  win  and  hold  the 
respect  of  all  who  know  him.  He  was  born  in 
this  town,  July  9,  1816,  the  son  of  Elijah  and 
Abigail  (F"ord)  Ames.  His  family  is  an  old 
and  honored  one,  including  among  its  mem- 
bers, the  late  ex-Governor  Ames  of  Massa- 
chusetts. 


Elijah  Ames,  Sr. ,  was  born  in  North 
Bridgewater  (now  Brockton),  and  settled  in 
Marshfield  when  a  young  man.  Endowed  with 
marked  character  and  ability,  he  took  a  promi- 
nent part  in  public  affairs,  affiliating  with  the 
Republican  party  in  the  latter  part  of  his  life, 
and  served  as  Selectman  of  Marshfield  and  as 
Representative  to  the  State  legislature.  His 
death  occurred  in  Marshfield  in  1S66.  His 
wife,  Abigail,  was  a  native  of  this  town.  One 
of  their  children  besides  Elijah  is  living  — 
Samuel  A.,  in  Riverside,  Gal. 

Elijah  Ames  was  educated  in  public  and 
private  schools  in  his  native  town.  In  his 
seventeenth  year  he  entered  on  an  apprentice- 
ship to  a  carpenter  and  joiner  in  Boston,  and 
served  a  little  over  four  years.  Returning 
then  to  Marshfield  he  was  engaged  for  a  series 
of  years  in  contracting  and  building,  and  for  a 
short  time  in  the  manufacture  of  wooden  ware. 
The  mill  in  which  this  industry  was  carried  on 
was  destroyed  by  fire,  and  he  did  not  attempt 
to  resume  business.  About  forty  years  ago 
he  settled  on  his  present  farm  at  Rexham 
Terrace,  Marshfield,  a  generous  estate  of  some 
two  hundred  acres.  In  the  long  term  of  his 
residence  in  Marshfield  Mr.  Ames  has  wit- 
nessed many  radical  changes  here,  especially 
along  the  water  front;  and  he  still  takes  a 
deep  interest  in  the  progress  of  his  native 
place. 

Deacon  Ames,  as  he  is  familiarly  called, 
was  married  November  26,  1840,  to  Sarah  A. 
Thomas,  who  was  born  on  the  farm  at  Rexham 
Terrace,  where  she  is  now  living.  Her  par- 
ents. Waterman  and  Sarah  D.  (Thomas) 
Thomas,  were  natives  of  Marshfield.  Her 
mother  was  the  daughter  of  a  John  Thomas, 
and  was  a  descendant,  it  is  said,  of  William 
Thomas,  a  gentleman  of  Welsh  extraction  who 
was  in  Plymouth  in  1636,  and  a  few  years  later 
settled    in    Marshfield.       His   grand-daughter, 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


SS3 


Mary  Thomas,  married    Simon    Ray,   of   Block 
Island.      Briggs  Thomas,   father  of  Waterman 
Thomas    and    paternal     grandfather     of     Mrs. 
Ames,  was  a  Major   in   the   Continental   army. 
He  was  a  son  of   Colonel  Anthony  and  Abigail 
(Alden)  Thomas.      Colonel   Anthony   Thomas, 
born    in    1719,    was    son    of    John    and    Lydia 
(Waterman)  Thomas,  and  grandson   of  Samuel 
Thomas,    whose    father,    John    Thomas,    first, 
came  over  in  the  "Hopewell  "  in  1635.      Abi- 
gail Alden,  wife  of  Colonel  Anthony  Thomas, 
was  a  great-grand-daughter  of  John   Alden,  the 
successful  rival  of  Miles  Standish.      Ten  chil- 
dren   have   been   given    by   Providence  to    Mr. 
and   Mrs.    Ames:    Sarah   D.    T. ,    wife  of    Dr. 
Azel  Ames,  of  Chelsea,  Mass.  ;  Mary  A.,  wife 
of    Edward  Ames,    of   Dorchester;   Elijah,    in 
Amesville,    Mont.  ;     William,      in     the     same 
place;   Lucy  T.    and    Ray  T.,  with   their  par- 
ents; and  John  T. ,  George  W. ,  Waterman  T. , 
and     Elizabeth     F.,     all     deceased.        Deacon 
Ames  in  his  younger  days  took  an  active  inter- 
est in    local  politics,    but   is   now  content    to 
leave  these  matters  to  men  of  fewer  years.      He 
and  his  wife  are  highly  esteemed   members  of 
the  Congregational    church,    in    which    he   has 
held    the    office   of   Deacon   for  nearly  half  a 
century. 


*^*»> 


^HILANDER  COBB,  a  well-known 
merchant  of  Kingston,  was  born  in 
^  this  town,  January  23,  181 8,  son  of 
Charles  and  Polly  (Bradford)  Cobb.  Mr. 
Cobb  comes  of  a  sturdy  race.  His  grand- 
father, Seth  Cobb,  was  a  descendant  of  an 
early  settler  of  Plymouth  County;  and  one  of 
his  ancestors,  Ebenezer  Cobb,  is  said  to  have 
attained  the  age  of  one  hundred  and  eight 
years.  Charles  Cobb,  father  of  Philander,  was 
a  native  and  lifelong  resident  of  Kingston. 
He  followed  the  trade  of  a  shoemaker  in  con- 
nection  with   farming;  and  he  died   in    1830. 


His  wife,  Polly  Bradford,  who  was  a  descend- 
ant of  Governor  Bradford,  became  the  mother 
of  several  children,  of  whom  Philander,  the 
subject  of  this  sketch,  is  the  only  survivor. 

Philander  Cobb  was  educated  in  his  native 
town  of  Kingston.  At  the  age  of  sixteen  he 
began  to  follow  the  sea,  and  later  became  mas- 
ter of  a  schooner.  He  was  engaged  for  ten 
years  in  the  coasting  and  foreign  trade,  and 
transported  the  rails  used  in  the  construction 
of  the  railway  from  Plymouth  to  Kingston. 
In  1845  he  began  his  career  as  merchant  at  his 
present  location  in  Kingston,  opening  his 
store  upon  the  day  that  the  first  train  on  the 
Old  Colony  Railroad  was  run  through ;  and 
for  over  fifty  years  he  has  continued  to  con- 
duct business  without  interruption.  He 
makes  a  specialty  of  groceries,  but  handles  dry 
goods  to  some  extent,  and  also  carries  a  gen- 
eral assortment  of  miscellaneous  articles  likely 
to  be  called  for  in  a  first-class  country  store. 
In  politics  he  is  a  Democrat,  and  has  taken  a 
prominent  part  in  public  affairs.  He  served 
eighteen  years  upon  the  School  Board;  and  he 
was  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Selectmen, 
Assessor,  and  Road  Commissioner  for  several 
years.  In  1878  he  was  a  member  of  the 
House  of  Representatives,  in  which  he  served 
upon  the  Land  and  Harbor  Committee.  He 
was  nominated  by  his  party  for  the  State 
Senate,  but  was  defeated  by  his  opponent  after 
a  very  close  contest.  He  was  appointed  Col- 
lector of  Customs  at  the  Port  of  Plymouth  by 
President  Cleveland,  during  the  latter's  fijst 
administration,  and  served  in  that  capacity 
during  a  portion  of  President  Harrison's  ad- 
ministration ;  and  the  faithful  and  competent 
.  manner  in  which  he  performed  his  official 
duties  placed  him  high  in  public  esteem.  Mr. 
Cobb  wedded  Marcia  R.  Otis,  daughter  of 
Charles  T.  Otis,  of  Boston.  He  is  a  member 
of  the  Masonic  Lodge  in  Plymouth. 


SS4 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


|LISHA  W.  HALL,  late  a  retired  mer- 
chant of  Marshfield  Hills,  and  a  repre- 
sentative progressive  citizen,  de- 
parted this  life  a  few  weeks  since,  February 
15,  1897,  at  his  winter  home,  259  Beacon 
Street,  Boston.  Mr.  Hall  was  a  son  of 
Harvey  and  Charlotte  (Tilden)  Hall,  natives 
of  Marshfield,  and  was  born  in  this  town, 
February  10,  1828.  His  paternal  grandfather, 
Danforth  Hall,  was  a  son  of  I^uke  Hall,  who 
was  a  Loyalist  in  Revolutionary  times,  as  were 
many  of  the  people  of  Marshfield  in  those 
days.  He  went  to  Canada,  leaving  his  family 
here,  and  returned  after  the  war  was  over. 

Danforth  Hall  was  one  of  the  first  mer- 
chants of  Marshfield  Hills  (then  East  Marsh- 
field), and  was  a  very  successful  business  man. 
Harvey  Hall  was  a  ship  carpenter.  He  was  a 
lifelong  resident  of  this  town,  and  died  here  in 
December,  1891.  His  wife,  Charlotte  Tilden 
Hall,  was  a  member  of  an  old  Colonial  family, 
the  Tildens  having  originally  settled  on  the 
North  River  in  Marshfield  and  Scituate. 
Elder  Nathaniel  Tilden,  from  Kent,  England, 
came  to  Scituate  before  1628,  as  we  learn 
from  Deane's  History.  Elisha  Tilden,  Mrs. 
Hall's  father,  was  a  house  carpenter  by  trade, 
and  was  prominent  in  East  Marshfield  as  a 
contractor  and  builder,  erecting  a  number  of 
churches  and  public  buildings.  Of  the  six 
children  of  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Harvey  Hall,  five 
arc  living:  George  H.,  in  Plymouth  County; 
Joseph  O.,  in  the  town  of  Plymouth;  Char- 
lotte A.,  who  married  C.  J.  F.  Sherman,  of 
Boston  (deceased);  Elizabeth  C. ,  who  married 
James  O.  Hood,  of  Geneseo,  111.  (deceased) ; 
and  Sarah  B. ,  who  married  James  Burbank,  of 
Taunton  (deceased). 

Elisha  W.  Hall  was  well  educated,  having 
attended  public  and  private  schools  in  East 
Marshfield,  evening  schools  in  Boston,  and  in 
addition    taken    a    special    private    course    of 


study.  His  business  experience  was  gained 
early;  for  at  the  age  of  fifteen  he  entered  the 
employ  of  Mr.  Elijah  Stearns,  a  merchant  in 
Boston.  He  was  engaged  as  clerk  in  Boston 
seven  years,  and  then  returned  to  Marshfield 
Hills,  or  East  Marshfield,  and  entered  the 
store  that  was  formerly  his  grandfather's,  but 
which  the  latter  had  sold  a  few  years  previ- 
ously. He  there  managed  a  successful  busi- 
ness until  1895,  when  he  retired.  Mr.  Hall 
established  a  reputation  as  a  wise  and  con- 
servative business  man,  and  was  Chairman  of 
the  Railroad  Sinking  Fund  Commission  from 
the  time  of  its  establishment. 

On  October  29,  1854,  he  was  united  in  mar- 
riage with  Sarah,  daughter  of  George  H. 
Weatherbee.  Six  children  blessed  their 
union,  namely:  Henrietta;  Winthrop  T.,  who 
has  succeeded  his  father  as  manager  of  the 
mercantile  business;  Flora  A.;  Sarah  B.  ; 
and  two  who  have  passed  away. 

Mr.  Hall  was  Chairman  of  the  Republican 
Town  Committee  of  Marshfield  for  a  great 
many  years.  Prior  to  the  establishment  of  the 
Republican  party  he  voted  with  the  Whigs; 
and  he  was  Postmaster  of  East  Marshfield  for 
some  time  under  Whig  administration.  He 
was  one  of  the  prime  movers  in  establishing 
the  East  Marshfield  Public  Library,  and  at  the 
time  of  his  death  was  a  Trustee  of  that  insti- 
tution. He  was  appointed  a  Trustee  of  the 
Ventress  Library  Fund,  and  was  so  largely  in- 
strumental in  the  furnishing  of  the  building 
and  the  collection  of  books  that  the  whole 
may  be  said  to  be  a  monument  to  his  ener- 
getic, prompt,  and  wise  administration. 

As  a  Free  Mason,  he  was  afifiliated  with 
Corner  .Stone  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Dux- 
bury.  He  was  a  prominent  and  liberal  mem- 
ber of  the  Unitarian  church  of  Marshfield,  and 
was  for  years  on  the  Standing  Committee. 
The  handsome  residence  at  Marshfield   Hills, 


ELISHA    W.    HALL, 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


557 


so  long  the  home  of  Mr.  Hall  and  his  family, 
commands  an  enchanting  view  of  sea  and 
shore,  and  is  one  of  the  finest  and  most  attrac- 
tive places  in  this  beautiful  village. 


/^TeORGE  F.  welch,  proprietor  of 
V  f3 1  the  leading  department  store  in 
Scituate,  was  born  in  this  town.  May 
30,  1859.  He  is  a  son  of  E.  Parker  and  Mary 
L.  (Collier)  Welch.  His  paternal  grandpar- 
ents were  Michael  and  Sarah  (Brown)  Welch, 
the  former  a  native  of  Ireland,  the  latter  of 
Scituate,  Mass.  E.  Parker  Welch  is  a  native 
and  lifelong  resident  of  Scituate.  He  has 
been  for  years  extensively  engaged  in  general 
farming,  owning  one  of  the  largest  farms  in 
Scituate.  In  1879  he  started  in  the  mercan- 
tile business  with  his  son  George  F.,  under 
the  firm  name  of  E.  P.  Welch  &  Son.  In 
1891  he  sold  his  interest  to  his  son  and  retired. 
His  wife,  who  was  born  in  Scituate,  died  in 
this  town  in  1895.  The  following  children 
were  born  to  them:  Charles  P.,  George  F". , 
William  Henry,  Mary  Emerson,  Minnie  Lin- 
coln, and  S.  Edith. 

George  F.  Welch  was  reared  on  his  father's 
farm  and  educated  in  the  public  schools  of 
Scituate  and  Hingham.  He  has  been  engaged 
in  trade  since  1879,  when  he  was  the  junior 
partner  of  the  firm,  and  since  1891  has  been 
sole  proprietor  of  the  business.  Started  on  a 
small  scale,  the  enterprise  has  been  developed 
year  by  year  until  now  it  is  one  of  the  most 
extensive  and  prosperous  in  Plymouth  County. 
The  main  store  building  is  a  three-story  struct- 
ure fifty-five  by  eighty-five  feet  in  dimension. 
On  the  first  floor  are  all  kinds  of  hardware, 
tin,  and  wooden  ware,  agricultural  imple- 
ments, stoves  and  furnaces,  paints,  oils,  etc.  ; 
on  the  second  floor  furniture  and  fishermen's 
supplies;  and  on  the  third  floor  furniture  and 


miscellaneous  articles.  Mr.  Welch  also  deals 
in  coal,  lumber,  hay,  straw,  and  wood  and 
builders'  and  masons'  supplies  of  all  kinds. 
Energetic  and  enterprising,  he  is  still  enlarg- 
ing the  scope  of  his  business,  recognizing  no 
limit  to  his  operations.  He  gives  employment 
at  present  to  sixteen  persons. 

Mr.  Welch  was  married  in  October,  1882, 
to  Hattie  M.  Brown,  of  Scituate,  and  has  two 
daughters — Marion  C.  and  Edith  M.  Politi- 
cally, he  favors  the  Republican  party.  He 
is  a  Mason  in  good  standing,  belonging  to 
Satuit  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Scituate. 
He  is  highly  respected  in  his  native  town, 
where  his  enterprise  and  ability  are  fully  rec- 
ognized. 


ALTER  E.  DAMON,  a  civil  engi- 
neer of  Hanson,  Plymouth  County, 
Mass.,  was  born  in  Boston,  Novem- 
ber 22,  i860,  son  of  Elijah  and  Phoebe  (Besse) 
Damon.  His  great-grandfather  was  a  native 
of  the  town  of  Pembroke,  now  Hanson,  where 
he  followed  farming,  and  was  one  of  the  most 
prominent  men  of  his  locality.  He  married 
Deborah  Soper,  of  Pembroke,  Mass.,  and  they 
had  four  children.  Elijah,  the  eldest  son, 
was  born  in  Pembroke  in  April,  1797.  He 
attended  school  until  he  was  sixteen,  and  then 
engaged  in  farming.  He  subsequently  became 
prominent  in  town  affairs,  serving  as  Select- 
man, besides  representing  his  district  in 
the  legislature.  He  married  Emily  Josslyn, 
daughter  of  Isaac  Josslyn  of  Pembroke,  and  by 
her  had  five  children  —  Euiily,  Elijah,  Will- 
iam, Angel ine,,  and  George. 

lilijah  Damon,  father  of  Walter  E.,  was 
born  in  Hanson,  November  3,  1829.  He  was 
educated  in  the  public  schools,  and  became  a 
manufacturer,  carrying  on  a  successful  busi- 
ness in  Boston  and  other  large  cities  until 
1875.      Then    returning   home   he   engaged    in 


SS8 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


farming.  He  took  an  active  interest  in  town 
affairs,  and  officiated  as  Selectman  for  one 
year.  On  November  19,  1859,  lie  was  united 
in  marriage  with  Miss  Phoebe  Besse,  daughter 
of  Captain  Ansel  Besse,  of  Wareham,  by 
whom  he  had  five  children  —  Walter  E., 
Emily,  Lilla,  Annie,  and  Harry. 

Walter  E.  Damon  received  his  early  educa- 
tion in  Cleveland,  Ohio,  going  from  there  to 
the  Adams  Academy  of  Ouincy.  On  June 
27,  1883,  he  was  graduated  from  Harvard  Col- 
lege. In  politics  he  is  independent.  In  1894 
he  was  elected  Selectman,  and  has  served  for 
three  years.  He  was  also  one  of  the  principal 
promoters  of  the  Hanson  Town  Library.  The 
maiden  name  of  his  wife,  to  whom  he  was 
married  on  December  24,  1884,  was  Ada  M. 
Heal.  She  is  a  daughter  of  George  Beal,  of 
Pembroke. 

<^»^» 

jAPTAIN  FREDERICK  STANLEY, 
of  Scituate,  Keeper  of  the  United 
States  Life-saving  Station  at  Fourth 
Cliff,  is  well  known  on  the  South  Shore,  being 
one  of  the  oldest  members,  in  point  of  service, 
of  the  noble  corps  of  life-savers  in  the  employ 
of  the  government.  He  was  born  in  Boston, 
Mass.,  January  27,  1845,  and  is  of  Irish 
extraction.  He  attended  the  Boston  public 
schools  until  twelve  years  of  age,  and  then 
went  to  sea  as  a  cabin  boy,  in  course  of  time 
becoming  an  able  seaman.  He  followed  the 
sea  until  he  was  twenty-three  years  of  age, 
circumnavigating  the  globe  more  than  once, 
doubling  Cape  Horn  and  the  Cape  of  Good 
Hope,  and  visiting  the  principal  maritime 
countries  of  the  globe.  The  harbors  of  Lon- 
don, Liverpool,  Havre,  Cronstadt,  Calcutta, 
Australia,  New  Zealand,  and  the  Brazilian 
ports  became  almost  as  familiar  to  him  as  old 
Massachusetts  Bay,  and  before  he  was  twenty- 
five  years  old  he  was  an  all-round   citizen  of 


the  world.  Retiring  finally  from  the  sea,  he 
engaged  in  fishing  and  gathering  sea  moss  at 
Scituate.  In  January,  1880,  he  was  appointed 
a  surfman  at  the  Fourth  Cliff  Life-saving  Sta- 
tion, and  on  October  i  following  he  was  given 
charge  of  the  station.  Captain  Stanley  is  a 
brave  and  active  man,  well  fitted  for  his 
responsible  position.  He  resides  at  Third 
Cliff,  where  he  erected  a  home  in  1873. 

On  September  16,  1868,  he  was  united  in 
marriage  with  Miss  Julia  Flynn,  a  native  of 
Ireland,  and  five  children  have  blessed  their 
union  —  William  S. ,  Mary  A.,  Ellen  F., 
Thomas  P.,  and  Margaret.  In  politics  Cap- 
tain Stanley  is  independent.  He  is  a  public 
spirited  citizen,  actively  interested  in  the  wel- 
fare and  progress  of  Scituate. 


NOS  M.  STODDARD,  of  the  Boston 
Ice  Company,  has  a  fine  farm  of  two 
hundred  acres  in  Marshfield,  and  is 
regarded  as  one  of  the  permanent  and  valuable 
citizens  of  the  town.  He  was  born  in  Led- 
yard.  Conn.,  June  26,  1824,  a  son  of  Ebenezer 
and  Lydia  (Williams)  Stoddard.  His  grand- 
father, James  Stoddard,  was  a  native  and  life- 
long resident  of  Ledyard,  which  in  his  time 
was  known  as  Groton.  Ebenezer  Stoddard 
resided  in  Ledyard,  where  he  was  engaged  in 
general  farming  and  milling.  He  and  his  wife 
Lydia  were  the  parents  of  seven  children,  five 
girls  and  two  boys:  Fannie;  Ephraim;  Julia; 
Clarissa;  Charity;  Enos  M.,  the  subject  of 
this  sketch;  and  Su.san. 

Enos  M.  Stoddard  was  reared  on  a  farm  in 
Ledyard,  and  educated  in  the  common  schools. 
In  1847  he  went  to  Boston,  and  since  1848 
he  has  been  interested  in  the  ice  business  in 
that  city  and  vicinity.  In  1851  he  started  a 
business  of  his  own  in  Boston,  some  years 
later    forming    a    partnership     with     Phineas 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


559 


Smith  under  the  firm  name  of  E.  M.  Stod- 
dard &  Co.  Their  business  prospered,  and 
they  had  so  ]arge  a  trade  that  they  ranked 
among  the  prominent  financial  concerns  of  the 
city.  The  firm  was  eventually  merged  into 
the  Boston  Ice  Company,  whose  teams  now  are 
seen  daily  in  all  parts  of  the  "Hub"  and  in 
the  suburbs.  Mr.  Stoddard  is  a  self-made  man, 
gifted  with  the  will  power  and  the  sagacious 
judgment  necessar}'  to  success  in  life.  In 
1869  he  purchased  the  farm  in  Marshfield  on 
which  he  now  makes  his  home;  and,  though 
his  fortune  was  made  long  ago,  he  finds  pleas- 
ure and  profit  in  raising  farm  produce.  He 
was  married  in  1868  to  Carrie  Gove,  of  Haver- 
hill, Mass.,  and  has  two  sons  living — Charles 
D.  and  Enos. 


G.    DICK,   proprietor  of  the  Lincoln 
Mill  at   North   Scituate,  was  born   in 

L^  Vj -  Denmark,    March    6,    1852,    son    of 

Hans  C.  and  Louise  Dick.  Mr.  Dick  was 
reared  and  educated  in  his  native  country,  and 
at  the  age  of  nineteen  he  emigrated  to  the 
United  States.  His  first  summer  in  America 
was  spent  as  a  fisherman  at  Cohasset,  Mass. 
He  next  found  employment  as  a  sailor  on 
board  coasting  vessels,  later  entering  the  ser- 
vice of  the  United  States  government.  P'or 
several  years  he  was  employed  alternately  as 
fireman  and  seaman  in  the  revenue,  marine, 
and  light-house  service.  He  subsequently 
shipped  as  fireman  on  board  the  steamship 
"Cleopatra,"  plying  between  New  York  City, 
Mexico,  and  the  West  Indies.  The  vessel  was 
wrecked  in  the  West  Indies;  and  Mr.  Dick, 
having  escaped  with  his  life,  returned  to  the 
United  States,  and  again  entered  the  revenue 
service,  in  which  he  remained  for  eleven  years. 
In  i8go  he  settled  in  North  Scituate,  and  has 
since   been   engaged    in   his  present   business. 


The  Lincoln  grist-mill  privilege  on  Bound 
Brook  has  been  in  use  since  1691  or  1692, 
and  has  a  propelling  force  of  about  ten  horse- 
power. Mr.  Dick  is  now  the  Owner  of  the 
mill,  and  he  is  carrying  on  a  profitable  busi- 
ness. He  deals  in  all  kinds  of  grain  and 
feed,  hay  and  straw,  and  employs  several 
delivery  teams. 

Mr.  Dick  married  Abbie  A.  T.  Morris, 
daughter  of  the  late  Joseph  Morris,  of  Scitu- 
ate. In  politics  he  is  a  Republican.  In  his 
business  transactions  he  displays  ability  and 
integrity,  and  he  has  gained  the  respect  and 
esteem  of  his  fellow-townsmen.  He  is  a 
Master  Mason,  and  a  member  of  the  Masonic 
Lodge  in  Cohasset. 


HARLES    J.    SPRAGUE,    a    contract- 
ing painter  of  Brant   Rock,  is  one  of 

,i£ -   the  successful  business  men  of   this 

locality.  A  son  of  Joseph  and  Pamelia  (Keen) 
Sprague,  both  natives  of  Duxbury,  Mass.,  he 
was  born  in  that  quaint  old  town,  January  5, 
1853.  The  Spragues  are  an  old  family  of 
Duxbury.  Captain  Joseph,  who  was  a  son  of 
Jonathan  Sprague,  followed  the  sea  until  about 
thirty-five  years  of  age,  and  then  settled  on  a 
farm  in  Duxbury,  where  he  died  in  1891. 
His  wife  still  survives,  being  now  seventy-four 
years  old.  Three  of  their  children  are  living: 
Isaac  J.,  residing  in  Colorado;  Sarah  K.,  wife 
of  Elliot  Low,  of  Roxbury,  Mass.  ;  and 
Charles  J. 

Charles  J.  Sprague  was  educated  in  pul^lic 
and  private  schools  in  Duxbury.  He  left 
home  at  the  age  of  nineteen,  and  served  an 
apprenticeship  to  a  carpenter  and  joiner  in 
South  Boston,  Mass.,  working  at  the  trade 
some  seven  years  in  all.  His  health  failing, 
he  moved  to  Brant  Rock  in  1878  with  the  hope 
of  bettering  himself,   and  here  worked  at  the 


560 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


carpenter's  trade  for  some  time,  eventually 
establishing  a  good  business  as  a  contracting 
painter.  Mr.  Sprague  is  a  thoroughly  experi- 
enced builder,  and  his  manner  of  fulfilling  a 
contract  is  always  satisfactory.  He  has  charge 
of  a  number  of  summer  cottages,  and  during 
the  summer  he  keeps  a  number  of  livery  teams 
for  the  use  of  visitors  besides  letting  pleasure 
boats.  He  has  been  jirosperous  in  all  his 
business  ventures,  his  good  judgment,  probity, 
and  strict  attention  to  business  winning  the 
confidence  of  his  patrons. 

Mr.  Sprague  was  married  April  4,  1S83,  to 
Marion,  daughter  of  George  H.  Tucker,  late 
of  Norwood,  Mass.,  and  has  one  daughter  — 
Marion  P.,  born  February  6,  1884.  In  poli- 
tics he  favors  the  Republican  party.  He  is 
a  public-spirited  citizen,  always  in  favor  of  any 
project  for  the  improvement  of  the  town  of 
Marsh  field. 


(^^AMES  DAMON,  of  Scituate,  a  descend- 
ant of  one  of  the  Colonial  settlers  on 
Kent  Street,  John  Damon,  who  came 
to  Scituate  when  a  minor,  before  1633,  was 
born  in  Scituate,  August  10,  1819,  a  son  of 
John  and  Rebecca  (Litchfield)  Damon.  The 
first  John  came  to  this  country  with  an  uncle, 
William  Gillson,  who  was  one  of  the  "men  of 
Kent,"  and  settled  permanently  in  Scituate; 
and,  beginning  with  his  children,  several  gen- 
erations of  the  family  have  had  birth  and  resi- 
dence in  Scituate,  the  line  connecting  him 
with  James  Damon,  including  E.xperience, 
Ichabod,  Josiah,  and  Josiah,  James  Damon's 
grandfather.  The  last-named  gentleman  was 
a  fisherman  of  Scituate,  and  died  in  this  town. 
His  son  John,  father  of  the  special  subject  of 
this  sketch,  was  engaged  in  mackerel  fishing 
until  he  was  forty  years  old.  After  that  he 
followed  the  pursuit  of  agriculture  at  Farm 
Neck  up  to  the  time  of  his  death.     A  success- 


ful business  man  and  good  manager,  he  was 
highly  respected  by  his  townsmen.  In  poli- 
tics he  was  a  Democrat.  He  died  in  1869,  in 
his  seventy-fourth  year.  He  had  been  mar- 
ried three  times,  and  was  survived  by  his 
third  wife,  his  nephew  John's  widow,  Hannah 
Damon,  who  died  in  1889,  having  borne  him 
no  children.  His  first  wife,  Rebecca  Litch- 
field, mentioned  above,  bore  him  five  chil- 
dren, two  of  whom  are  living:  Xoa,  wife  of 
Richmond  Torrey,  of  Brockton,  Mass.;  and 
James,  of  Scituate.  By  his  second  wife,  Al- 
mira  White,  he  had  three  children,  of  whom 
one,  John  M. ,  is  living. 

James  Damon  was  reared  and  educated  in 
Scituate.  He  began  in  boyhood  to  accompany 
his  father  on  fishing  trips,  and,  after  he  was 
twenty-seven  years  old,  was  engaged  for  a 
number  of  years  in  the  mackerel  fisheries  as 
an  employee  of  others,  having  command  of  a 
fishing  schooner  for  some  time.  While  fol- 
lowing the  sea,  he  saw  much  of  the  world, 
visiting,  among  other  places,  the  Carolinas 
and  the  West  Indies;  and  he  has  many  inter- 
esting tales  to  tell  of  scenes  and  customs  in 
aiitc-belltini  times.  When  Fort  Warren  in 
Boston  Harbor  was  in  process  of  construction, 
Mr.  Damon  was  employed  by  the  government 
as  mate  of  the  "General  Warren,"  a  schooner 
used  to  convey  the  workmen  back  and  forth  be- 
tween Boston  and  the  fort,  and  to  carry  sup- 
plies and  builders'  materials.  He  was  occu- 
pied in  this  way  some  thirty-two  months,  and 
was  subsequently  first  mate  on  a  light  house 
and  buoy  tender  plying  between  Cape  Cod  and 
Portsmouth,  N.H.  About  i860  he  retired 
from  the  sea,  and  turned  his  attention  to  agri- 
cultural pursuits.  He  was  two  years  superin- 
tendent of  the  Ouincy  (Mass.)  Poor  Farm,  but 
with  that  exception  has  lived  in  his  present 
dwelling,  which  he  erected  in  1850.  During 
his  long  and  active  life  Mr.  Damon  has  wit- 


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CORNELIUS    F.    BRADFORD. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


563 


nessed  many  changes,  not  only  in  Scituate, 
but  in  and  around  IMassachusetts  Bay;  and  he 
takes  a  lively  interest  in  the  march  of  prog- 
ress. 

On  November  28,  1845,  he  was  married  to 
Abigail  W.  Green,  a  native  of  Northboro, 
Mass.,  daughter  of  John  and  Sallie  (Harring- 
ton) Green  ;  and  they  have  one  daughter,  Sarah 
R.  She  graduated  from  the  State  Normal 
School  at  Bridgewater  in  January,  1877,  and, 
after  devoting  some  time  to  primary  work  in 
the  public  schools  of  Scituate,  was  elected 
principal  of  the  grammar  school  at  North 
Scituate.  This  position  she  has  held  for  thir- 
teen years,  winning  respect  and  love  as  a 
capable  and  conscientious  teacher.  Mr. 
Damon,  who  is  a  Republican,  served  for  some 
time  on  the  School  Committee  of  Scituate. 
Mrs.  and  Miss  Damon  are  members  of  the 
Baptist  church. 


lORNELIUS  FRANCIS  BRADFORD, 
senior  partner  of  the  firm  of  Bradford, 
Kyle  &  Co.,  manufacturers  of  insu- 
lated electric  wire  at  Plymouth,  Mass.,  was  born 
in  this  town,  March  4,  1845,  son  of  Captain 
Joseph  M.  and  Anna  R.  (Raymond)  Bradford. 
Mr.  Bradford's  father's  grandparents  were 
Cornelius,  first,  and  Elizabeth  Bradford,  who 
resided  in  East  Falmouth,  Mass.  ;  and  their 
children  were:  Cornelius,  second;  Ephraim  ; 
Rebecca;  William;  Josiah  ;  Thankful;  Bet- 
sey;'and  Mary.  The  elder  Cornelius  Bradford 
had  two  brothers,  Edward  and  David  Bradford, 
the  latter  of  whom  lived  in  Kingston,  Mass. 
Cornelius  Bradford,  second,  grandfather  of  the 
subject  of  this  sketch,  was  a  resident  of  East 
Falmouth.  He  married  Mary  leaker,  daughter 
of  Barney  Baker;  and  two  children  were  born 
to  them  —  namely,  Joseph  M.  and  Celia  Nye. 
The  daughter  becairie  the  wife  of  Newell  Ray-, 


mond,  son  of  George  Raymond.  The  second 
Cornelius  Bradford  died  in  1820;  and  his 
widow,  Mrs.  Mary  Baker  Bradford,  married 
for  her  second  husband  F"rancis  Nye.  She 
lived  to  the  age  of  about  eighty  years. 

Joseph  M.  Bradford,  only  son  of  Cornelius 
and  Mary,  was  for  some  years  a  shipmaster  of 
New  Bedford  ;  but  he  finally  relinquished  sea- 
faring, and,  when  his  son  Cornelius  F.  was 
two  years  old,  removed  with  his  family  to 
Zanesville,  111.  Captain  Joseph  M.  Bradford 
married  Anna  R.,  daughter  of  George  and 
Priscilla  (Shaw)  Raymond;  and  they  were  the 
parents  of  six  children,  as  follows:  Joseph  E., 
Adreanna,  George  Russell,  Cornelius  Francis, 
Seth  Russell,  and  Anna  Robinson.  The 
father  survived  si.\  years  after  settling  in  the 
West ;  and  the  entire  family  died  in  Zanesville, 
with  the  exception  of  Cornelius  and  his  brother 
George. 

Mrs.  Anna  Raymond  Bradford  was  a  repre- 
sentative of  that  branch  of  the  Sampson  family 
of  Plymouth  County  which  was  founded  by 
Abraham  Sampson,  who  came  to  this  county  in 
1629,  and  is  said  to  have  been  a  brother  of 
Henry  Sampson,  who  came  over  on  the  "May- 
flower "  in  1620.  William  Sampson,  son  of 
George  and  grandson  of  Abraham,  was  born 
July  8,  1695.  He  married  Joanna  Vaughn, 
August  24,  1721;  and  his  daughter  Zilpha 
became  the  wife  of  Joseph  Bryant,  of  Plymp- 
ton.  Ruth,  daughter  of  Joseph  and  Zilpha 
(Sampson)  Bryant,  married  William  Shaw, 
of  Middleboro,  in  1780.  Their  children  were : 
Phebe,  who  died  November  21,  1806,  aged 
seven  years;  Eleazar,  who  died  November  9, 
1806,  aged  twenty-four;  William;  Priscilla, 
who  married  George  Raymond,  a  native  of 
Boston,  and  was  the  mother  of  Anna  (Mrs. 
Bradford)  ;  Harvey;  Ruth,  who  died  May  29, 
181 1,  aged  twenty-one  years;  Sarah;  Mary; 
and  Cyrus. 


5^4 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


Cornelius  P'rancis  Bradford,  after  a  resi- 
dence of  six  years  in  Zanesville,  came  to  live 
with  his  grandparents,  George  and  Priscilla 
Raymond,  in  Plymouth;  and  he  acquired  his 
education  in  the  schools  of  this  town.  When 
his  studies  were  completed,  he  engaged  for  a 
time  in  shoemaking,  later  working  in  a  tack 
factory  for  a  few  months,  after  which  he 
entered  the  employ  of  his  uncle  Charles,  a 
furniture  dealer,  with  whom  he  remained  for 
eleven  years.  He  then  carried  on  a  pattern 
and  repair  shop  on  Middle  Street  for  twelve 
years,  at  the  expiration  of  which  time  he  be- 
came an  employee  at  the  Plymouth  mills.  In 
i8go  he  formed  a  partnershijj  with  John  .Scott 
for  the  purpose  of  engaging  in  the  manufacture 
of  insulated  electric  wire,  inaugurating  an 
enterprise  which  has  since  developed  into 
large  proportions.  A  few  months  later  E.  L. 
Edes  bought  Mr.  Scott's  interest;  and  the 
firm  was  Bradford  and  Edes  until  Mr.  Edes 
retired,  when  Nathaniel  Morton  was  admitted 
as  a  partner,  the  firm  being  changed  to  Brad- 
ford &  Morton.  William  S.  Kyle  became 
interested  in  the  concern  a  short  time  later; 
and  the  firm  now  known  as  Bradford,  Kyle  & 
Co.  transact  a  large  and  constantly  growing 
business  in  their  special  line. 

On  October  4,  1866,  Mr.  Bradford  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Mary  E.  Fuller, 
daughter  of  George  and  Mary  (Thomas)  Fuller, 
of  Plymouth.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Bradford  have 
one  daughter  living  —  Anna  R.,  who  is  the 
wife  of  Adoniram  J.  Smith,  an  employee  at 
the  factory,  and  has  two  children:  Leslie 
Bradford,  born  March  6,  1892;  and  Ellen 
Porter,  born  March  23,   1896. 

Mr.  ]5radford  has  a  wide  circle  of  acquaint- 
ances, with  whom  he  is  a  general  favorite; 
and  he  is  highly  respected  as  an  enterprising 
citizen,  whose  efforts  in  expanding  the  indus- 
trial resources  of  Plymouth  have  greatly  bene- 


fited the  general  community.  He  is  the 
inventor  of  the  machinery  used  in  his  manu- 
factory to  cover  the  wire  for  electrical  pur- 
poses, and  he  received  a  patent  about  eight 
years  ago.  He  is  a  charter  member  of  the 
Plymouth  Yacht  Club,  which  was  organized 
six  years  ago;  and  he  has  built  and  superin- 
tended the  building  of  eight  yachts.  In  poli- 
tics Mr.  Bradford  supports  the  Republican 
party. 

^SALTL  MOTT,  a  highly  esteemed   resi- 
dent   of    Scituate,    was   born    in    the 
-  adjoining  town  of  Plingham,  Septem- 

ber 17,  1 81 3,  a  son  of  Joseph  and  Lydia 
(Churchill)  Mott.  Joseph  Mott  was  a  son  of 
Stephen  Mott,  an  early  settler  in  Scituate,  and 
was  born  in  this  town.  During  his  active  life 
he  followed  the  trade  of  a  ship-calker  in  Scitu- 
ate and  the  vicinity.  In  politics  he  was  a 
Jacksonian  Democrat.  He  was  almost  ninety- 
three  years  old  when  death  called  him  from 
earth.      His  wife  was  a  native  of  Hingham. 

Paul  Mott  was  a  young  child  when  his  par- 
ents removed  from  Hingham  to  Scituate,  and 
in  the  district  school  of  the  latter  town  he 
acquired  his  education.  He  began  to  go  to  sea 
with  the  mackerel  fishers  when  only  thirteen 
years  old,  and  every  summer  for  a  quarter  of 
a  century  found  him  in  the  fishing  fleet.  At 
the  age  of  seventeen  he  began  to  learn  calking 
with  his  father,  and  served  until  he  attained 
his  majority.  After  that  he  worked  at  the 
trade  winters  for  twenty-five  years  or  more, 
rising  to  the  position  of  master  calker.  He 
worked  in  a  number  of  places  along  the  South 
Shore,  finishing  many  important  contracts  in 
Cohasset  especially.  In  1885  he  retired  from 
active  work,  and  has  since  enjoyed  the  leisure 
to  which  he  is  so  well  entitled.  Mr.  Mott  has 
been  prudent  as  well  as  industrious,  and  is 
well  endowed  with  this  world's  goods.     The 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


565 


burden  of  years  sits  lightly  on  his  shoulders, 
and  his  boyhood  seems  but  as  yesterday.  He 
has  lived  in  the  same  house  in  Scituate  fifty- 
seven  years. 

Mr.  Mott's  first  wife,  who  before  marriage 
was  Miss  Lydia  Vinal,  bore  him  eight  chil- 
dren, five  of  whom  arc  living:  Marion  L., 
wife  of  Thomas  F.  Bailey,  of  Scituate;  Helen, 
wife  of  Wallace  Wilcot,  of  Cohasset ;  Leroy, 
residing  in  Scituate;  Lydia,  who  resides  at 
home  with  her  father;  and  Lucy,  wife  of  Wal- 
ter Damon,  formerly  of  Scituate.  The  present 
Mrs.  Mott,  whose  maiden  name  was  Eliza 
Page,  was  born  on  the  Cape.  Mr.  Mott  votes 
the  Republican  ticket.  He  takes  an  active 
interest  in  town  affairs,  and  has  served  on  the 
School  Committee  of  Scituate. 


rDWARD  H.  BONNEY,  wholesale  and 
retail  fish  dealer,  occupies  a  prominent 
place  among  the  business  men  of 
Scituate.  He  was  born  in  the  neighboring 
town  of  Marshfield,  January  28,  1841,  a  son  of 
Cephas  and  Deborah  Ann  (Soper)  Bonney. 
(A  further  account  of  the  Bonney  family  may 
be  found  in  the  sketch  of  William  F.  Bonney, 
of  Marshfield.)  Cephas  Bonney  was  born  in 
Hanson,  Mass.  A  moulder  by  trade,  he  re- 
sided in  Marshfield  for  many  years,  working 
at  his  trade  most  of  the  time.  His  wife  also 
was  born  in  Hanson. 

Edward  H.  Bonney  was  educated  in  the  pub- 
lic schools  of  Marshfield.  He  left  his  native 
town  at  the  age  of  nineteen  to  engage  in  the 
fish  business  at  Scituate  Harbor,  and  from  a 
small  and  modest  beginning  developed  a  large 
and  prosperous  trade.  For  a  number  of  years 
he  was  engaged  in  packing  fish,  principally 
herring,  mackerel,  and  cod;  and  he  was  en- 
gaged in  the  retail  coal  trade  for  over  a  quarter 
of  a  century,   selling  that  branch  of  his  busi- 


ness in  1895  to  George  F.  Welch.  He  now 
manages  an  extensive  wholesale  and  retail 
trade  in  fresh  fish  and  lobsters,  shipping  to 
Boston,  Brockton,  and  other  places,  besides 
meeting  the  demands  of  his  local  trade.  Mr. 
Bonney  is  a  self-made  man,  whose  success,  has 
been  fairly  won.  He  was  married  April  8, 
i860,  to  Louisa  F.  Bates,  of  Scituate,  daugh- 
ter of  Caleb  Bates  (now  deceased),  and  has  two 
children:  Ada  F.,  wife  of  George  V.  Ye- 
netchi,  of  this  town;  and  Ernest  L.  In  poli- 
tics he  favors  the  Republican  party.  In  busi- 
ness in  Scituate  since  i860,  he  ranks  among 
the  substantial  citizens  of  the  town,  and  is 
widely  known  and  highly  esteemed. 


(sJVLBERT  L.  ALGER,  wholesale  milk 
/=-4  dealer,  owns  a  good  farm  of  one  hun- 
^  ®  V..^  dred  and  fifty  acres  in  West  Bridge- 
water,  and  his  house,  which  was  built  in  1806, 
has  sheltered  generations  of  Algers.  He  was 
born  in  this  town,  March  27,  1839,  son  of 
Ward  and  Elizabeth  L.  (Howard)  Alger,  both 
natives  of  West  Bridgewater.  His  great- 
grandfather, Nathan  Alger,  was  an  early 
settler  in  the  Alger  neighborhood;  and  his 
grandfather,  Willis  Alger,  was  born  here. 
Ward  Alger  passed  his  life  in  his  native  town, 
dying  in  November,  1S92.  In  politics  he  was 
a  Republican;  in  religious  belief,  a  Baptist. 
His  wife  died  in  April,  1894.  They  were  the 
parents  of  three  children:  Mary  Elizabeth,  the 
eldest,  deceased;  Luther  W,  ;  and  Albert  L., 
the  subject  of  this  sketch. 

Albert  L.  Alger  acquired  his  primary  edu- 
cation in  the  schools  of  the  district.  With 
the  intention  of  qualifying  himself  as  a  civil 
engineer  he  began  a  course  of  study  at  Middle- 
boro  Academy,  but,  changing  his  mind,  did 
not  complete  it.  Giving  his  attention  to  dairy 
farming,  for  which  his  e.xtensive  estate  offers 


566 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


admirable  facilities,  he  has  developed  a  thriv- 
ing business  which  brings  him  a  generous 
annual  income.  In  social  matters  relating  to 
agriculture  he  has  long  taken  a  prominent 
part,  exercising  the  authority  born  of  experi- 
ence and  knowledge  of  this  sphere  of  industry. 
He  was  for  six  years  a  Trustee  of  the  I'lym- 
outh  County  Agricultural  Society;  was  two 
years  superintendent  of  the  agricultural 
grounds  at  Bridgewater;  and  he  is  one  of  the 
leading  members  of  West  Bridgewater  Grange, 
No.   156. 

Mr.  Alger  was  married  November  21,  1858, 
to  Miss  Flora  Williams,  of  Raynham,  Mass., 
daughter  of  George  and  Harriet  (Bassett) 
Williams;  and  three  children  have  blessed 
their  union.  The  eldest,  Hattie  F. ,  a  gradu- 
ate of  the  State  Normal  School  at  Bridge- 
water,  is  the  wife  of  Clinton  P.  Howard;  the 
second  child,  Lucia,  who  also  is  a  Normal 
School  graduate,  is  teaching  in  Somerville, 
Mass.  ;  and  the  youngest,  George,  a  graduate 
of  the  commercial  department  of  Bristol 
County  Academy,  who  attended  the  Massachu- 
setts State  Agricultural  College  at  Amherst 
for  two  years,  but  was  obliged  to  give  up  his 
studies  on  account  of  ill-health,  is  in  the  retail 
coal  business  at  Westdale,  Mass. 

Mr.  Albert  L.  Alger  was  for  three  succes- 
sive years,  1893,  1894,  and  1895,  a  delegate 
to  the  Republican  State  Convention  ;  and  he 
was  for  four  years  Treasurer  of  the  Republi- 
can Town  Committee.  In  all  local  political 
movements  he  takes  an  active  part,  and  his 
opinion  is  received  with  respect.  He  is  well 
advanced  in  Masonry,  being  a  member  of  Paul 
Revere  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  Satucket 
Chapter,  Royal  Arch  Masons,  and  Bay  State 
Commandery,  Knights  Templars,  all  of  Brock- 
ton ;  also  a  member  of  Aleppo  Temple  of  the 
Mystic  Shrine  at  Boston;  and  he  is  affiliated 
with   Howard   Lodge,    Knights  of    Pythias,   of 


West  Bridgewater.  A  member  of  the  Baptist 
church  at  West  Bridgewater,  he  has  officiated 
as  Deacon  for  some  time,  and  has  served  on 
the  Finance  Committee  of  the  church.  Of  a 
genial  and  obliging  disposition  and  public- 
spirited,  Mr.  Alger  is  widely  and  favorably 
known  throughout  the  county. 


SUTHER  KEENE  is  one  of  the  oldest 
native  residents  of  Hanson,  born  May 
^01^  23,  1805,  son  of  Ebenezer  and  Me- 
hitable  (Phillips)  Keene.  The  family  are  of 
English  origin.  Martha  Keene,  a  widow, 
came  to  America  with  her  five  children  in 
1638,  in  the  ship  "Fortune. "  She  settled  in 
Marshfield ;  and  from  her  was  descended  in 
direct  line  Isaiah  Keene,  the  great-grand- 
father of  our  subject,  who  was  born  in  Pem- 
broke, now  South  Hanson,  and  took  part  as  a 
drummer-boy  in  the  battle  of  Bunker  Hill. 
He  was  engaged  the  greater  part  of  his  life  in 
farming.  His  wife,  a  Miss  Bisby  before  mar- 
riage, became  the  mother  of  a  large  family  of 
children.  Their  son,  Isaiah  Keene,  Jr.,  was 
born  in  Duxbury,  and  on  reaching  maturity 
took  up  his  father's  occupation  of  farming, 
which  he  followed  with  good  success.  He 
married  Lydia,  daughter  of  James  and  Lydia 
Vaughn,  of  Hanson ;  and  they  had'  several 
children.  Fibenezer  Keene,  the  eldest  son, 
and  father  of  Luther,  was  born  in  Hanson, 
February  1 1,  17S2,  and  was  a  lifelong  resident 
of  this  town.  He  was  a  successful  farmer  and 
a  prominent  citizen,  being  called  upon  at 
different  times  to  serve  in  various  town  offices. 
He  married  Mehitable  Phillips,  daughter  of 
Lock  Phillips;  and  they  had  ten  children. 

Luther  Keene,  direct  subject  of  this  sketch, 
was  the  eldest  child  of  his  parents.  He  was 
educated  in  the  public  schools,  and  subse- 
quently engaged   in   farming  with   his  father. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


567 


He  also  went  into  the  business  of  manufact- 
uring charcoal,  for  which  he  found  a  ready 
market  in  Boston,  transporting  it  to  that  city 
with  an  ox-team  twice  a  week.  Mr.  Keene 
has  always  been  prompt  to  perform  his  duties 
as  a  citizen.  He  takes  an  intelligent  interest 
in  public  affairs,  and  has  held  several  town 
offices,  having  served  two  years  as  Overseer  of 
the  Poor.  He  was  at  one  time  Cajitain  of  the 
Hanson  militia,  and  was  very  popular  in  mil- 
itary circles.  Mr.  Keene  married  Almira, 
daughter  of  Jonathan  Reed,  of  Kast  Bridge- 
water.  He  and  his  wife  had  three  children 
—  Leonard,  David,  and  Sophronia.  Leonard, 
the  only  survivor,  is  employed  in  Boston  as  a 
machinist,  .but  resides  in  North  Weymouth. 


(^" 


APTAIN     CHARLES     \\\     SOULE, 


of  Scituate,  is  an  able  and  wide- 
\J?  ^  awake  citizen  who  has  travelled  ex- 
tensively and  taken  an  active  part  in  military, 
mercantile,  and  political  affairs.  He  was  born 
in  Rockland,  Mass.,  February  23,  1833,  son  of 
Josiah  and  Sophronia  (Jenkins)  Soule,  and  is 
descended  from  George  Soule,  one  of  the 
"Mayflower"    Pilgrims. 

Josiah  Soule  was  a  native  of  Duxbury, 
Mass.,  and  a  son  of  Josiah  Soule,  Sr. ,  of  that 
town.  He  learned  the  hatter's  trade  in  his 
youth,  and  worked  at  it  for  a  number  of  years 
in  Scituate;  then  engaged  in  shoemaking, 
eventually  establishing  a  manufacturing  busi- 
ness. Until  1856  he  was  a  Jacksonian  Dem- 
ocrat. He  then  joined  the  new-born  Republi- 
can party,  around  whose  standards  all  opposed 
to  slavery  were  rallying,  and  was  faithful  to 
its  principles  the  rest  of  his  life.  Mr.  Josiah 
Soule  was  a  lifelong  resident  of  Plymouth 
County.  He  died  in  Rockland  in  June,  1886, 
aged  eighty-six  years.  His  wife,  Mrs.  So- 
phronia   J.    Soule,    was  a  native   of    Scituate- 


Charles  W.  Soule  entered  the  world  of  trade 
at  the  age  of  fifteen,  obtaining  a  clerkship  in 
a  store  in  Rockland,  Mass.  He  remained  in 
this  establishment  a  number  of  years,  eventu- 
ally purchasing  the  business  and  conducting  it 
successfully  for  an  extended  period.  In  1858 
he  went  West,  and  in  that  then  wild  country 
he  had  many  thrilling  experiences.  He  was 
one  of  a  company  who  travelled  from  Leaven- 
worth, Kan.,  to  Denver,  Col.,  with  mules 
and  wagons,  camping  on  the  plains  at  night. 
The  journey,  which  is  now  made  so  quickly  by 
rail,  consumed  twenty-six  days,  and  was  at- 
tended with  many  dangers  from  Indians  and 
wild  beasts.  Arriving  in  Denver,  which  bore 
little  resemblance  at  that  time  to  the  beautiful 
city  of  to-day,  Mr.  Soule  engaged  in  mercan- 
tile business.  In  the  latter  part  of  1861  he 
returned  to  Scituate;  and  on  August  24,  1862, 
he  enlisted  as  a  private  in  the  Forty-third 
Massachusetts  Regiment  of  Volunteer  Infan- 
try. On  the  organization  of  Company  F  he 
was  chosen  Captain.  Mustered  in  September 
12,  1862,  his  regiment  was  incorporated  with 
the  Eighteenth  Army  Corps,  and  was  sent  to 
North  Carolina  to  join  General  Foster's  com- 
mand. Here  Captain  Soule  participated  in 
the  battles  of  Goklsboro,  Kingston,  and  White- 
hall, serving  eleven  months,  though  he  had 
enlisted  but  for  nine.  After  receiving  his 
discharge,  he  returned  to  Plymouth  County. 
He  subsequently  went  to  Tennessee,  and 
opened  a  store;  but  the  South  did  not  suit 
him,  and  he  finally  returned  to  the  old  Ba5' 
State,  and  was  engaged  until  1872  in  mercan- 
tile business  in  Rockland.  In  that  year  he 
obtained  a  position  in  the  paving  department 
of  the  City  Corporation  of  Boston,  which  oc- 
cupied him  some  two  years  and  a  half;  and  he 
was  afterward  engaged  in  other  business  in 
Boston  until  1886,  the  year  of  his  permanent 
settlement  in  Scituate. 


S68 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


Independent  in  politics,  reserving  the  priv- 
ilege of  voting  for  the  best  candidate  irrespec- 
tive of  party,  Captain  Soule  has  long  been 
actively  interested  in  public  matters.  He 
served  as  Selectman  of  Rockland  and  as  a 
member  of  the  School  Committee,  and  was 
elected  from  that  town  to  the  Lower  House  of 
the  State  legislature  in  1869.  An  active  Grand 
Army  man,  he  was  Commander  of  George  W. 
Perry  Post,  No.  31,  of  Scituate,  for  two  years, 
and  is  still  a  member  of  that  body. 

Captain  Soule  was  married  May  29,  1855, 
to  Annie  E.,  daughter  of  Captain  John  and 
Abigail  T.  (Ford)  Manson,  all  natives  of 
Scituate.  Mrs.  Soule's  grandparents  were 
Captain  Nehemiah  and  Hannah  (Lincoln) 
Manson.  Captain  Nehemiah  Manson,  who 
was  a  master  mariner,  served  in  the  Revolu- 
tionary War.  His  wife  was  a  member  of  the 
family  to  which  President  Lincoln  belonged. 
John  Manson,  Mrs.  Soule's  father,  followed 
the  sea  from  early  youth.  He  was  a  great 
many  years  in  the  employ  of  William  F. 
Weld  &  Co.,  having  charge  as  Captain  of 
different  vessels  of  their  line,  mainly  in  the 
New  Orleans  and  Liverpool  trade.  This  was 
before  the  time  of  transatlantic  steamers,  and 
Captain  John  Man.son  transported  many  emi- 
grants from  Liverpool  to  American  ports.  He 
commanded  the  "Meridian,"  in  her  day  the 
largest  merchantman  afloat ;  and  the  last  ves- 
sel under  his  charge  was  the  "Golden 
Fleece,"  in  which  he  made  three  trips  from 
New  York  and  Boston  to  California,  doubling 
Cape  Horn.  Two  of  his  sons  and  a  grandson 
succeeded  him  in  the  same  occupation.  The 
Captain  was  at  first  a  Whig  and  later  a  Repub- 
lican, and  represented  his  party  in  the  Massa- 
chusetts legislature  in  1868.  An  upright  and 
conscientious  man,  who  always  respected  his 
neighbors'  rights  and  privileges,  he  was  held 
in  the  highest  regard  by  all  who  knew  him. 


He  was  a  constant  attendant  of  the  Unitarian 
church.  He  died  in  Scituate,  July  14,  1SS9, 
aged  eighty-four.  Five  of  his  children  are 
living,  namely:  Annie  E.  (Mrs.  Soule),  Cap- 
tain John  L.  Manson,  George  W. ,  and  Captain 
Edmund  S.  Manson,  all  of  Dorchester,  Mass.  ; 
and  Helen  M.,  wife  of  Dr.  George  O.  Jenkins, 
of  510  Broadway,  South  Boston. 

Mrs.  Soule  was  educated  in  public  and  pri- 
vate schools  in  Scituate  and  at  Wheaton  Semi- 
nary, Norton,  Mass.  She  is  prominent  and 
popular  in  society,  and  has  served  efficiently 
for  some  length  of  time  as  President  and 
Treasurer  of  the  Woman's  Relief  Corps,  at- 
tached to  George  W.  Perry  Post,  No.  31, 
Grand  Army  of  the  Republic.  She  is  also 
a  Daughter  of  the  American  Revolution. 
Three  children  have  blessed  the  union  of  Cap- 
tain and  Mrs.  Soule:  John  M.,  a  citizen  of 
East  Weymouth,  Mass.,  and  Charles  S.,  in 
Somerville,  Mass.,  both  being  in  business  with 
wholesale  houses  in  Boston;  and  Captain 
Arthur  L.  Soule,  a  resident  of  San  Francisco, 
master  of  the  bark  "Martha  Davis,"  en- 
gaged in  the  sugar  trade  between  San  Fran- 
cisco and  Honolulu. 


AMUEL  H.  HOWARD,  a  highly 
respected  citizen  of  West  Bridge- 
water,  where  he  is  now  living  in 
retirement,  is  a  native  of  this  town.  He  was 
born  December  i,  181 5,  a  son  of  Alfred  and 
Hannah  (Hartwell)  Howard,  both  of  whom 
were  born  in  West  Bridgewater,  Mass.  Na- 
than Howard,  the  father  of  Alfred,  was  a  lin- 
eal descendant  of  John  Howard,  the  first  of 
the  name  to  settle  in  Old  Bridgewater. 

Alfred  Howard,  who  lived  in  West  Bridge- 
water  all  his  life,  died  here  in  May,  1856,  in 
his  eighty-second  year.  He  was  a  Whig  in 
politics,  and  had  a  large  accjuainfance  through- 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


569 


out  this  locality.  Mrs.  Howard's  father  was 
a  Lieutenant  in  the  Revolutionary  struggle. 
She  and  her  husband  are  survived  by  three 
children,  namely :  Jane,  widow  of  the  late 
Lloyd  Howard,  of  West  Bridgewater;  Julia, 
widow  of  the  late  Ephraim  Howard,  of  West 
Bridgewater;  and  Samuel  H. 

Samuel  H.  Howard,  the  only  son,  grew  to 
man's  estate  on  the  farm  where  he  resides  and 
has  been  a  lifelong  farmer.  He  received  in 
his  boyhood  a  good  common-school  education. 
For  four  years  he  was  superintendent  of  the 
town  farm  in  North  Bridgewater,  now  Brock- 
ton, and  for  two  years  of  the  town  farm  of 
West  Bridgewater;  but  aside  from  that  the 
rest  of  his  active  life  he  has  spent  on  his 
farm,  where  he  has  been  successfully  engaged 
in  general  husbandry. 

On  October  15,  1840,  Mr.  Howard  married 
Miss  Lavina  Wilbur,  daughter  of  Marshall  and 
Phoebe  (Leonard)  Wilbur,  of  Bridgewater, 
Mass.  She  was  born  in  Warren,  Me.,  July 
18,  1817.  Her  father,  who  died  in  1835,  was 
a  native  of  Bristol  County,  Massachusetts,  and 
her  mother  of  Middleboro,  Mass.  They  lived 
in  Maine  eleven  years,  coming  from  there  to 
Bridgewater.  Mr.  Marshall  Wilbur,  who  was 
Captain  of  a  military  company  while  residing 
in  Warren,  lost  his  life  by  falling  from  a  mill 
that  he  was  building  in  Orono,  Me.  His 
father  was  George  Wilbur,  and  the  family  is 
one  of  the  oldest  in  Bridgewater.  Of  the  chil- 
dren born  to  Mr.  and  Mrs,  Wilbur,  four  are 
living,  namely:  Horatio  N.  ;  Lavina,  Mrs. 
Howard ;  George ;  and  Keziah,  the  widow  of 
Elam  Howard.  A  son  named  Marshall  died 
in  California,  and  his  brother  Edwin  died  in 
Bridgewater.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Howard  have  had 
four  children,  of  whom  three  are  living:  Lu- 
cinda  K.,  widow  of  Frank  Cooper;  George; 
and  Irvin.  For  a  number  of  years  Mr.  How- 
ard has  served  acceptably  as  Selectman  of  West 


Bridgewater.      He  is  a  Republican   in  political 
affiliation. 


fi^l  ENRY  CARVER,  dealer  in  coal, 
flour,  grain,  and  baled  hay,  with 
place  of  business  at  Marshfield  Sta- 
tion, is  a  representative  citizen  of  Plymouth 
County,  a  member  of  one  of  the  old  Puritan 
families.  A  native  of  Marshfield,  son  of 
David  and  Rachel  ¥.  (Stetson)  Carver,  he  was 
born  February  20,  1848.  His  lineage  in- 
cludes John  Carver,  the  first  governor  chosen 
by  the  Pilgrims  after  they  landed  from  the 
"Mayflower"  at  Provincetown  ;  and  he  has  in 
his  home  a  chair  that  is  said  to  have  come 
over  in  the  historic  ship.  His  father,  David, 
who  was  a  son  of  David  Carver,  was  a  farmer 
by  occupation,  a  native  and  lifelong  resident 
of  Marshfield,  and  in  politics  a  Democrat. 
He  died  April  15,  1870.  His  wife,  Rachel, 
who  was  a  native  of  Pembroke,  Mass.,  died 
September  15,  1873.  They  were  the  parents 
of  six  children  ^ — John,  William,  Henry,  and 
David,  all  living  at  present;  and  two  daugh- 
ters, who  have  passed  away. 

Henry  Carver  was  educated  in  the  common 
schools  of  Marshfield.  He  was  reared  on  the 
home  farm  in  this  town,  and  during  early 
manhood  was  engaged  in  agriculture,  also 
trading  in  cattle.  Endowed  with  much  nat- 
ural business  ability,  he  has  been  very  suc- 
cessful in  his  ventures,  especially  the  latest 
one  —  his  establishment  in  trade.  In  July, 
1895,  he  purchased  the  cqalj^  grain,  and  ha^ 
business  of  R.  H.  Moorehead,  who  at  that 
time  retired  from  trade  after  a  long  term  of 
mercantile  life.  Mr.  Carver  has  shown  him- 
self to  be  well  adapted  to  the  business,  and 
has  a  large  and  increasing  custom.  He  has 
also  done  quite  a  probate  business  in  the 
settlement  of  estates.  Politically,  he  is  a 
Democrat,  with  independent  proclivities.      He 


57° 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


is  active   and    prominent    in   town   affairs,  and 
has  capably  served  as  Road  Commissioner. 


KEANDER  WINSLOW,  a  retired  sea- 
man, is  now  a  farmer  and  merchant 
^^  in  his  native  place,  Lakeville, 
Mass.,  formerly  a  part  of  Middleboro.  He 
was  born  September  26,  1S34,  son  of  Asa 
Tyler  and  Ann  (Pickens)  Winslow.  He 
traces  his  descent  on  the  paternal  side  from 
Kenelm  Winslow,  a  brother  of  Governor  Ed- 
ward Winslow,  and  third  son  of  Edward  Wins- 
low, of  Droitvvich,  England.  Kenelm  joined 
the  Plymouth  Colony  about  nine  years  after 
the  landing  of  the  "Mayflower"  Pilgrims, 
probably  accompanying  his  brother  Josiah. 
Kenelm  Winslow  married  Eleanor,  daughter 
of  John  Adams,  of  Plymouth.  From  their  son 
Kenelm-  the  line  continues  thus,  the  figures 
denoting  the  generation :  Josiah^,  Josiah*, 
Ezra-^  Asa'',  Asa  Tyler',  Leander'*. 

Asa  Tyler  Winslow,  born  in  Middleboro 
(now  Lakeville),  July  6,  179S,  died  September 
15,  1878.  His  first  wife,  Hannah,  daughter 
of  William  and  Mary  Canedy,  was  born  Feb- 
ruary 22,  1798,  and  died  June  28,  1824,  leav- 
ing an  infant,  Hannah  C.  His  second  wife, 
Ann  Pickens,  daughter  of  Zattu  and  Rachel 
(Mead)  Pickens,  was  born  June  3,  1800,  and 
died  March  17,  1S95.  From  the  last  union 
there  were  four  children  :  Asa,  born  November 
28,  1832;  Leander,  born  September  26,  1834, 
as  mentioned  above;  Eliza  Ann,  February  17, 
1837;  and  Rachel  P.,  October  5,  1842,  all 
now  living.  Asa  T.  Winslow,  the  father,  was 
repeatedly  elected  to  serve  the  town  as  Select- 
man, Assessor,  and  Overseer  of  the  Poor.  He 
was  a  Justice  of  the  Peace,  and  he  served  as  a 
representative  to  the  General  Court.  His  two 
wives  belonged  to  old  and  influential  families 
of  this  vicinity. 


The  farm  which  Mr.  Leander  Winslow  now 
owns  and  occupies  is  the  Lakeville  homestead, 
where  the  greater  part  of  his  boyhood  was 
spent,  he  having  been  three  years  of  age  when 
his  parents  removed  hither  with  their  family. 
When  he  reached  his  sixteenth  year,  he  left 
home  to  try  the  fortunes  of  a  seafaring  life, 
engaging  as  one  of  the  ship's  crew  on  board 
the  "Orozimbo, "  a  whaling  vessel.  The  boy 
sailor's  first  cruise  lasted  for  thirty-three 
months,  during  which  period  the  whaler 
ploughed  the  waters  of  the  Arctic  and  Pacific 
Oceans.  The  homeward  voyage  was  made  by 
the  way  of  Cape  Horn,  so  that  within  a  little 
short  of  three  years  he  had  indeed  travelled  far 
and  seen  much.  On  his  return  home  he  en- 
tered the  Myricksville  Academy,  where  he  was 
a  student  for  a  period  of  seven  months,  this 
interval  lasting  between  the  dates  of  his  first 
and  second  voyages.  At  the  expiration  of  the 
seven  months  he  again  took  passage  on  the 
whaling  vessel,  the  ship  "Hunter,"  this  time 
as  third  mate  and  bound  now  for  a  cruise  in 
the  Lidian  Ocean. 

The  voyage  was  a  long  one;  and  Leander 
Winslow  did  not  touch  his  native  shores  again 
until  four  years,  lacking  one  month,  had  rolled 
over  his  head.  At  the  earnest  desire  of  his 
parents  he  then  gave  up  his  nautical  calling, 
and  for  about  four  years  remained  tranquilly 
at  home.  But  this  was  not  to  last,  for  in  1862 
he  enlisted  as  a  private  in  Company  I,  Third 
Massachusetts  Volunteer  Infantry.  A  few 
months  later  he  went  to  Boston,  from  which 
point  he  was  ordered  aboard  a  transporting 
vessel,  bound  for  New  Berne,  N.C.,  where  he 
remained  until  his  discharge  from  service, 
June  26,  1863.  Returning  home,  he  assumed 
charge  of  the  farm  where  he  has  since  lived. 
He  has  also  been  engaged  in  mercantile  busi- 
ness since  1870. 

Mr.     Winslow    was    first    married    July    13, 


LEANDER    WINSLOW. 


BIOGRAPHICAL  REVIEW 


573 


iS6i,  to  Isabella  V.  Canedy,  daughter  of  John 
W.  and  Lucy  (McCully)  Canedy.  She  was 
born  January  23,  1842,  and  died  May  30, 
1865,  a  devoted  wife  and  mother.  She  had 
given  birth  to  two  children,  namely:  a  son, 
Leander  H.  ;  and  a  daughter,  Alice  V.,  who  is 
now  a  teacher  in  the  State  Normal  School  at 
Bridgewater.  On  March  20,  1867,  Mr.  Wins- 
low  was  united  in  marriage  with  Sally  D. 
Sampson,  his  second  wife,  who  has  proved  a 
true  helpmate.  She  was  born  March  22,  1835, 
a  daughter  of  Ebenezer  D.  and  Eliza  Cook 
(Dean)  Sampson,  of  Lakeville.  One  child 
was  born  of  this  union  —  a  daughter  Isabella 
Frances,  now  a  teacher  in  the  public  schools 
of  New  Bedford. 

Mrs.  Winslow,  like  her  husband,  comes  of 
an  old  Plymouth  County  family.  She  num- 
bers among  her  ancestors  at  least  two  distin- 
guished "Mayflower"  Pilgrims,  Miles  Stan- 
dish  and  John  Alden.  Her  father,  Ebenezer 
D.  Sampson,  son  of  Elias,  was  a  grandson  of 
Uriah  Sampson,  who  was  born  in  171 7  at 
Plympton,  Mass.  His  father,  Isaac  Sampson, 
Jr.,  was  a  son  of  Isaac  and  grandson  of  Abra- 
ham Sampson,  who  came  to  New  England  in 
1629  or  1630,  and  settled  in  Du.xbury.  He 
is  said  to  have  been  a  brother  of  Henry 
of  the  "Mayflower"  company.  Isaac  Samp- 
son, Sr. ,  son  of  Abraham,  married  Lydia 
Standish,  daughter  of  Alexander  and  Sarah 
(Alden)  Standish,  and  grand-daughter  of  Cap- 
tain Miles  Standish  and  of  John  and  Pris- 
cilla  Alden. 

Mr.  Winslow  is  a  Democrat  in  his  political 
affiliations,  and  has  held  the  offices  of  Select- 
man and  Assessor  of  the  town  for  several  years, 
and  has  likewise  served  on  the  School  Commit- 
tee. His  extensive  travel  has  had  the  effect  of 
enlarging  his  views  of  life  and  making  him 
thereby  a  citizen  of  broad  aims  and  liberal 
thought. 


UGENE  H.  CLAPP,  founder  of  the 
E.  H.  Clapp  Rubber  Works  at  Hanover, 
Mass.,  was  one  of  the  representative 
business  men  of  New  England.  He  was  born 
in  South  Scituate,  now  Norwell,  Plymouth 
County,  Mass.,  October  11,  1843,  son  of 
Allen  and  Deborah  (Clapp)  Clapp,  and  was 
the  eldest  of  five  children,  the  others  being: 
Erstine  (deceased)  ;  George  A.,  now  president 
of  the  E.  H.  Clapp  Rubber  Company;  Arthur 
W. ,  treasurer  of  the  same;  and  Antoinette, 
who  resides  in  Boston,  Mass.  The  father  was 
a  respectable  farmer,  and  both  he  and  his  wife 
traced  their  ancestry  back  to  early  members  of 
the  Plymouth  colony. 

Eugene  H.  Clapp  was  educated  in  the 
schools  of  his  native  town  and  at  Hanover 
Academy,  being  graduated  from  the  latter 
institution  in  his  sixteenth  year.  He  made 
a  study  of  civil  engineering,  but  never  fol- 
lowed it  as  a  profession.  His  first  money  was 
earned  as  clerk  in  the  wholesale  and  retail 
varnish  house  of  Stimson,  Valentine  &  Co.,  in 
Boston.  He  was  subsequently  employed  for 
a  number  of  years  as  book-keeper  for  Henry 
Campbell,  a  dealer  in  old  and  new  metals, 
who  at  his  death  in  May,  1865,  was  succeeded 
by  A.  E.  Morey,  with  whom  Mr.  Clapp  re- 
mained two  years.  On  leaving  Mr.  Morey's 
employ,  Mr.  Clapp  started  in  business  for  him- 
self on  Broad  Street,  Boston,  dealing  in  old 
and  new  metals. 

Gradually  becoming  interested  in  the  rubber 
business,  he  became  identified  with  the  Boston 
Belting  Company  and  other  rubber  concerns. 
In  1 87 1  he  invented  a  method  for  removing 
the  fibre  from  old  rubber  and  preparing  it  so 
that  it  could  be  used  again  in  the  manufacture 
of  new  goods;  and  shortly  after  he  started  in 
the  manufacture  of  reclaimed  rubber,  leasing 
a  building  in  Roxbury,  Mass.  From  a  very 
small  beginning,  employing  two  machines  and 


574 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


two  men,  he  evolved  the  large  and  prosperous 
enterprise  which  bears  his  name  to-day.  Two 
years  after  he  established  his  plant  in  Roxbury 
he  moved  to  Hanover,  where  there  were  better 
facilities  for  water-power,  and  bought  the  right 
on  the  Indian  Head  Stream  and  the  George 
Curtis  Anchor  Works.  The  anchor  works 
buildings  he  remodelled  to  suit  his  purposes, 
and  soon  had  a  modest  factory  in  operation, 
run  by  water-power.  His  partner  at  this  time 
was  his  cousin,  Frederick  W.  Clapp. 

For  a  number  of  years  the  water-power  an- 
swered all  requirements;  but,  finally,  by  the 
addition  of  one  boiler  and  an  engine  of  sev- 
enty-five horse-power,  steam  was  introduced. 
Business  increased  so  rapidly  that  it  soon  be- 
came necessary  to  operate  the  works  day  and 
night.  The  force  of  twenty-five  men  now 
employed  was  found  inadequate,  and  Mr.  Clapp 
increased  the  equipment  of  the  plant  to  two 
boilers  and  a  Corliss  engine  of  two  hundred 
and  fifty  horse-power.  As  the  enterprise  pros- 
pered, he  erected  another  mill  at  Pembroke, 
eighty  by  forty  feet,  and  two  stories  in  height, 
with  a  commodious  basement;  and  this  he  sub- 
sequently enlarged  to  twice  its  original  size, 
besides  adding  a  one-story  addition,  s-ixty  by 
forty  feet  in  dimension.  The  original  Han- 
over works  were  one  hundred  and  eight  by 
sixty  feet.  On  September  9,  1881,  they  were 
destroyed  by  fire ;  but  they  were  shortly  re- 
built on  a  much  larger  scale,  and  equipped 
with  the  most  improved  modern  machinery, 
including  a  one  hundred  and  seventy -five 
horse-power  Brown  engine,  four  boilers  being 
required  to  run  the  Corliss  and  Brown  en- 
gines. Two  large  storehouses  have  since 
been  added. 

Mr.  Clapp  was  a  Director  of  the  Mechanics' 
Bank  of  Boston ;  treasurer,  director,  and 
largest  stockholder  of  the  Penobscot  Chemical 
Fibre  Company  at   Great  Works,   Me.  ;  treas- 


urer and  director  of  the  Piscataquis  Falls  Pulp 
and  Paper  Company  of  Enfield,  Me.  ;  origi- 
nator, manager,  and  member  of  the  Board  of 
Directors  of  the  Boston  Rubber  Mutual  I'ire 
Insurance  Company ;  a  large  stockholder  and 
director  in  the  Whittier  Machine  Company 
of  Boston  ;  treasurer  of  the  Gaunt  Evaporator 
Company;  director  of  the  Boston  Suburban 
Light  and  Power  Company;  and  president  of 
the  Roxbury  Central  Wharf  Company. 

Mr.  Clapp  was  twice  married.  His  first 
wife,  whose  maiden  name  was  Sarah  R. 
Graves,  bore  him  three  children  —  Eugene  H., 
William  (deceased),  and  Sarah  L.  His  sec- 
ond wife,  who  was  Mary  W.  Caffrey,  of  Rox- 
bury, before  marriage,  was  the  mother  of  two 
children:  Mary,  who  is  still  living;  and  Rob- 
ert, deceased.  Mr.  Clapp  was  a  member  in 
high  standing  of  various  fraternal  organiza- 
tions. He  was  a  thirty-second  degree 
Mason,  Treasurer  of  the  Massachusetts  Ma- 
sonic Lodge  until  his  decease;  belonged  to  the 
Independent  Order  of  Odd  Fellows;  was  Grand 
Worthy  Chief  Templar  of  the  Independent 
Order  of  Good  Templars ;  Grand  Worthy 
Patriarch  in  the  Sons  of  Temperance;  and  a 
member  of  the  Ancient  and  Honorable  Artil- 
lery Company  of  Boston.  His  home  for  some 
time  previous  to  his  death,  which  occurred 
March  12,   1892,  was  at  Boston  Highlands. 

After  Mr.  Clapp's  decease  a  stock  company 
was  organized  to  continue  the  manufacture  of 
rubber  goods  at  the  Hanover  and  Pembroke 
plants,  under  the  name  of  the  E.  H.  Clapp 
Rubber  Company,  his  brother,  George  A. 
Clapp,  being  chosen  treasurer.  This  gentle- 
man was  born  in  South  Scituate,  now  Norwell, 
January  11,  1849.  He  acquired  his  education 
in  the  common  schools  of  Norwell,  and  at  the 
age  of  eighteen  began  to  learn  in  Charlestown, 
Mass.,  the  machinist's  trade,  to  which  he  gave 
three  years'  apprenticeship.      He  then  went  to 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


S7S 


work  with  his  brother  in  the  metal  store  in 
Boston,  and  was  afterward  associated  with  him 
in  the  management  of  the  Roxbury  and  Han- 
over factories.  He  was  superintendent  of  the 
rubber  business  until  the  stock  company  was 
formed,  when  he  was  chosen  president.  He 
is  an  able  business  man,  thoroughly  qualified 
for  his  responsible  position,  and  possesses  a 
wide  mechanical  knowledge.  In  politics  he  is 
a  Republican.  Like  his  brother,  he  is  a  Mason 
and  an  Odd  Fellow.  He  was  married  in  1880 
to  Miss  Abbie  A.  Stetson,  a  native  of  Pem- 
broke, this  county,  and  they  have  three  chil- 
dren—  George  Allen,  John  S.,  and  Antoi- 
nette W. 


KLOYD  FRANKLIN  HAMMOND,  an 
enterprising  young  farmer  and  highly 
^^0^  respected  citizen  of  Norvvell,  is  a 
native  of  this  town.  He  was  born  March  i, 
i860,  son  of  Joseph  T.  and  Ellen  C.  (Barrell) 
Hammond.  There  were  ten  children  in  the 
family,  seven  sons  and  three  daughters; 
namely,  Lloyd  Franklin,  Oscar  S. ,  Charles, 
George,  Lottie,  Lizzie,  Herbert,  Benjamin, 
Nellie,  and  William. 

When  twelve  years  old,  L.  Franklin  Ham- 
mond came  to  live  with  Sylvanus  Clapp,  from 
whom  at  first  he  received  in  return  for  such 
work  as  he  was  able  to  perform  his  board  and 
clothes.  The  past  few  years  he  has  had  full 
charge  of  the  farm,  which  contains  about  one 
hundred  and  fifty  acres,  and  has  devoted  his 
attention  to  general  husbandry.  Besides  this 
he  is  engaged  in  getting  out  bo.\-  boards,  and 
deals  to  some  extent  in  wood.  On  November 
29,  1882,  Mr.  Hammond  was  united  in  mar- 
riage with  Miss  Lettie  W.  Sylvester,  daughter. 
of  Nathaniel  B.  and  Adeline  Sylvester,  of  South 
Scituate.  Three  children  have  been  born  to 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Hammond;  namely,  Sylvanus 
(deceased),  Marion  T.,  and  Arthur  Northway. 


Ever  since  he  attained  his  legal  majority 
Mr.  Hammond  has  taken  a  very  active  interest 
in  political  affairs,  becoming  at  that  time  a 
member  of  the  town  Republican  Club,  with 
which  he  is  still  connected.  In  1S95  he  was 
elected  to  the  Lower  House  of  the  State  leeis- 
lature,  and  has  served  as  Road  Commissioner 
three  years.  He  is  an  attendant  of  the  Unita- 
rian church,  and  is  a  member  of  North  River 
Lodge,  No.  167,  Independent  Order  of  Odd 
Fellows,  of  Hanover,  in  which  he  is  a  Past 
Grand;  also  the  Phoenix  Masonic  Lodge  of 
Hanover. 

-JgTERBERT  I.  MITCHELL,  junior 
\^\  member  of  the  large  lumber  house  of 
Ji®  V^,  Isam   Mitchell  &  Co.,  of  Brockton, 

was  born  in  Middleboro,  Plymouth  County, 
January  29,  i86i.  He  is  a  son  of  Isam 
and  Clarinda  (Beals)  Mitchell;  and  on  the 
paternal  side  he  is  descended  from  Ex- 
perience Mitchell,  an  English  separatist, 
who  came  over  in  the  "Ann"  from  Holland 
in   1623. 

The  immigrant  ancestor  had  a  sister  Con- 
stant, who  married  John  Fobes,  and  a  brother 
Thomas,  who  lived  and  died  in  Holland. 
Jacob  Mitchell,  son  of  Experience  Mitchell, 
married  in  1666  Susanna  Pope,  daughter  of 
Thomas  Pope,  of  Plymouth,  Mass.,  and  settled 
in  Dartmouth,  now  Fairhaven.  Both  were 
killed  by  Indians  in  1675,  at  the  beginning  of 
King  Philip's  War.  Thomas  Mitchell,  son  of 
Jacob  and  Susanna,  had  ason  Seth,  born  in 
1715,  who  married  Ann  Latham;  and  their 
son  Seth,  Jr.,  was  the  father  of  Simeon  Wood 
Mitchell,  the  grandfather  of  the  subject  of 
this  sketch.  The  Mitchell  descendants  have 
included  many  valuable  citizens,  strong  in 
mind  and  body,  who  figured  in  the  early  wars 
of  this  country  and  were  noted  for  their  lon- 
gevity.     In  the  old  Bridgewater  town  records 


576 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


mention     is    made    of    certain    Mitchells    who 
fought  in  the  Revolution. 

Simeon  Wood  Mitchell,  who  was  a  kinsman 
of  the  late  Judge  Mitchell,  of  Bridgewater, 
was  born  in  1795,  and  lived  to  be  eighty-four 
years  of  age.  In  his  youth  he  served  in  the 
War  of  1 812.  He  was  a  farmer  of  Bridge- 
water,  and  reputed  to  be  one  of  the  wealthiest 
men  of  the  town.  His  wife  was  formerly  a 
Miss  Leonard,  of  Bridgewater.  They  were 
married  in  1819;  and  they  reared  a  family  of 
four  daughters  and  three  sons,  Isam,  the  father 
of  Herbert  I.,  being  the  youngest  son. 

Isam  Mitchell  has  had  a  remarkably  fortu- 
nate business  career.  He  started  in  life  as 
a  journeyman  carpenter,  and  gradually  worked 
into  the  lumber  business,  eventually  develop- 
ing an  extensive  and  well-established  trade, 
amounting  to  a  quarter  of  a  million  dollars 
annually.  At  the  large  yard  of  Lsam  Mitchell 
&  Co.,  in  Brockton,  about  a  thousand  cars  of 
lumber  are  received  in  a  year;  and  they  keep 
in  their  yard  and  extensive  store  sheds  a  mill- 
ion feet.  He  owns  three  large  orange  planta- 
tions in  California,  to  which  he  now  devotes 
his  time  and  attention,  making  his  home  in 
that  State  and  coming  East  only  occasionally. 
Although  his  trees  are  young,  he  already  ships 
some  ten  carloads  of  oranges  a  year.  Mr. 
Isam  Mitchell,  now  sixty-one  years  of  age,  is 
a  very  active  man.  He  gives  his  attention 
entirely  to  business,  and  has  refused  nomina- 
tion to  public  office.  His  wife  is  a  daughter 
of  Solomon  Beals,  of  Middleboro,  and  a  con- 
nection of  the  noted  painter,  Cephas  Thomp- 
son. Three  children  were  born  to  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Isam  Mitchell,  and  all  of  them  are 
living. 

Herbert  I.  Mitchell  acquired  his  primary 
education  in  West  Bridgewater,  his  parents 
removing  to  that  town  when  he  was  six  months 
old,  and  remaining  some  ten  years.      He  pur- 


sued his  later  studies  in  North  ISridgewatcr 
(now  Brockton),  graduating  from  the  high 
school  in  1879,  and  then  went  to  work  for  his 
father  as  clerk.  He  was  afterward  made 
superintendent  of  the  lumber  yard;  and  he 
became  his  father's  partner  in  1888.  Since 
that  time  he  has  had  entire  charge  of  the  lum- 
ber business,  which  has  noticeably  prospered 
under  his  management.  He  is  also  somewhat 
interested  in  real  estate. 

Mr.  Mitchell  was  married  in  1890  to  a 
daughter  of  Charles  Churchill,  of  Brockton, 
and  has  three  children.  In  politics  he  takes 
no  active  interest,  though  he  favors  the  Re- 
publican party.  He  is  a  prominent  member  of 
important  social  organizations,  including  Paul 
Revere  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Brockton, 
of  which  he  has  been  Master;  Satucket  Chap- 
ter, Royal  Arch  Masons,  of  which  he  has  been 
High  Priest;  and  Bay  State  Commandery, 
Knights  Templars.  He  was  two  years  Deputy 
Grand  Master  of  the  Grand  Lodge;  and  he  is 
likewise  a  member  of  Damocles  Lodge,  No.  16, 
Knights  of  Pythias,  and  of  the  Brockton  Com- 
mercial Club. 


"ir^AVID  CLARK,  an  enterprising  and 
I  J  successful  farmer  and  a  prominent 
f^-J^i^  citizen  of  Plymouth,  Mass.,  was 
born  October  16,  1820,  on  the  farm  on  which 
he  now  resides,  his  parents  being  Ezra  and 
Sally  (Blackmer)  Clark. 

Ezra  Clark,  as  we  learn  from  Mr.  W.  T. 
Davis's  "Ancient  Landmarks,"  was  of  tiie 
seventh  generation  in  descent  from  Thomas 
Clark,  one  of  the  Plymouth  forefathers,  who 
came  in  the  "Ann"  in  1623.  The  succeed- 
ing generations  in  this  line  were  represented 
by  James,  second,  born  in  1636;  John,  third; 
James,  fourth,  born  in  1696;  James,  fifth, 
born  1727,  married  Hannah  Swift;  and  James, 
sixth,    born   in    1762,    in   Plymouth,  where  he 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


577 


was  engaged  in  general  agricultural  pursuits. 
Ezra,  his  son,  and  the  father  of  the  subject  of 
this  sketch,  was  born  in  the  same  house  as 
the  latter;  and  he  also  followed  the  honored 
calling  of  husbandry  throughout  his  mature 
years.  He  married  Miss  Sally  Blackmer, 
daughter  of  Richard  and  Nancy  (Ellis)  Black- 
mer, of  Plymouth.  They  became  the  parents 
of  four  children,  namely :  David ;  Lucy,  now 
deceased;  Sarah,  who  is  now  the  widow  of  a 
Mrs.  Spencer,  and  resides  in  Lynn;  and 
Lewis,  who  was  killed  at  the  battle  of  Chan- 
cellorsville.  Mr.  Ezra  Clark  deceased  at  the 
age  of  eighty -two  in  1880,  his  wife  having 
died  in  1857,  at  about  fifty -five  years  of  age. 
Their  remains  are  interred  in  the  cemetery  of 
the  Congregational  church  of  Manomet. 

David  Clark  attained  to  manhood  on  the 
old  homestead,  residing  there  always  with  the 
exception  of  two  years,  and  receiving  his  edu- 
cation in  the  district  schools  of  his  native 
town.  He  began  life  for  himself  when 
twenty-one  years  of  age,  working  in  partner- 
ship with  his  father.  He  has  continued  to 
conduct  general  farming  on  the  ancestral  es- 
tate; and  he  has  made  one,  and  only  one, 
coasting  trip.  Energetic  and  progressive,  he 
has  made  almost  all  of  the  improvements  on 
the  estate.  Mr.  Clark  has  been  married  four 
times,  and  has  had  three  children,  as  follows: 
Gideon  H.,  who  is  now  married,  and  works 
with  his  father;  Ella  S.,  now  Mrs.  L.  Briggs, 
of  Plymouth;  and  David  Herbert,  now  de- 
ceased. 

Mr.  Clark  has  served  his  fellow-townsmen 
in  several  important  public  capacities.  For 
eighteen  years  he  has  been  a  member  of  the 
Board  of  Selectmen  of  Plymouth ;  for  one  year 
he  has  officiated  as  Assistant  Assessor;  and 
he  has  for  very  many  years  held  the  office  of 
Road  Surveyor.  His  political  opinions  bring 
him  into  affiliation  with  the  Republican  party. 


ON.  JOHN  DAVIS  LONG,  Secre- 
tary of  the  Navy,  under  the  incoming 
administration  of  President  McKin- 
ley,  his  appointment  having  just  been  con- 
firmed by  the  Senate  on  March  5,  1897,  has 
been  a  resident  of  Hinghani,  Mass.,  since 
1869.  Although  a  native  of  Maine,  born  in 
Buckfield,  October  27,  1838,  this  distin- 
guished citizen  of  Massachusetts,  the  widely 
known,  popular,  and  universally  respected  ex- 
Governor,  is  descended  from  long  lines  of 
Colonial  ancestry,  and,  as  we  gather  from  a 
brief  biography  in  the  History  of  Hingham, 
numbers  among  his  progenitors  not  a  few  who 
had  their  homes  in  Plymouth  County. 

His  father,  Zadoc  Long,  born  in  Middle- 
boro  in  1800,  was  a  son  of  Thomas  and 
Bathsheba  (Churchill)  Long  and  grandson  of 
Miles  Long,  who  came  to  Plymouth  from 
North  Carolina,  and  in  1770  married  Thank- 
ful Clark.  She  was  a  descendant  of  Thomas 
Clark,  who  was  one  of  the  passengers  in  the 
"Ann,"  the  third  Pilgrim  ship,  in  1623. 
Another  of  her  ancestors  was  the  Rev.  John 
Lothrop,  the  first  minister  of  Barnstable. 
Zadoc  Long  married  Julia  Temple  Davis, 
daughter  of  Simeon  Davis,  a  lineal  descendant 
of  Dolor  Davis,  who  came  to  Boston  in  1634. 
The  maiden  name  of  Mrs.  Long's  mother  was 
Persis  Temple. 

Well  born  of  honest,  intelligent  New  Eng- 
land parents,  well  bred  in  a  comfortable  New 
England  home,  active-brained,  aspiring,  and 
resolute,  John  D.  Long  fitted  for  college^at 
Hebron  Academy,  pursued  his  college  course 
at  Harvard,  where  he  was  graduated  in  1857, 
second  in  his  class,  and  author  of  the  class 
ode.  After  serving  two  years  as  principal  of 
Westford  Academy,  he  went  into  the  office  of 
Sidney  Bartlett,  Esq.,  in  Boston,  where  he 
studied  law  for  a  time,  and  in  the  autumn  of 
i860  entered  the  Harvard   Law  School.     Ad- 


578 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


mitted  to  the  bar,  he  began  practice  in  his 
native  town  in  the  spring  of  1862;  and  a  few 
months  later,  his  energies  and  ability  being 
equal  to  a  wider  field  of  effort,  he  removed  to 
Boston.  In  this  city,  in  1863,  he  became  the 
law  partner  of  S.  B.  Allen,  Esq.,  the  firm 
being  Allen  &  Long. 

A  stanch  Republican  from  the  first,  occa- 
sionally at  an  early  period  in  his  career  taking 
part  in  political  campaigns  as  a  stump  speaker, 
in  1874,  five  years  after  his  removal  to  Hing- 
ham,  he  was  elected  Representative  to  the 
State  legislature;  and,  being  subsequently 
three  times  re-elected,  he  served  as  a  member 
of  the  Lower  House  from  1875  to  1878  inclu- 
sive, and  during  the  last  three  sessions  as 
speaker.  He  was  Lieutenant  Governor  of 
Massachusetts  in  1879,  Governor  in  1880, 
1881,  and  1882,  and  in  the  six  years  follow- 
ing, as  Representative  from  the  Second  Mas- 
sachusetts Congressional  District,  was  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Forty-eighth,  the  Forty-ninth,  and 
the  Fiftieth  Congress. 

In  18S9  Mr.  Long  resumed  his  law  prac- 
tice in  Boston,  to  which  he  has  since  devoted 
his  ripened  energies  with  his  old-time  per- 
sistence and  success.  Office-seeking  as  a 
pastime  or  pursuit  he  has  never  indulged  in. 
Official  honors  if  they  come  to  him,  come  un- 
sought. As  a  private  citizen,  he  has  not, 
however,  been  one  absorbed  in  his  own  affairs 
and  unmindful  of  his  civic  and  social  obliga- 
tions. Since  taking  up  his  residence  in 
Hingham,  he  has  served  on  the  local  School 
Board,  as  one  of  the  Trustees  of  Derby  Acad- 
emy, and  of  the  Hingham  Public  Library,  of 
Westford  Academy,  as  President  of  the  Amer- 
ican Unitarian  Association,  also  of  the  Massa- 
chusetts Total  Abstinence  Society,  not  to 
mention  numerous  other  organizations  with 
which  he  has  been  and  is  connected.  He 
has  a  happy  gift  as  a  presiding  officer,  and  as 


a  speaker  on  public  occasions.  A  translation 
of  the  "/Eneid  "'  in  blank  verse,  which  he 
published  in  1879,  is  an  evidence  of  his 
scholarly  tastes  and  literary  abilities.  In 
18S9,  as  President  of  the  Pilgrim  Society, 
he  presided  with  grace  and  spirit  at  the  dedi- 
cation of  the  national  monument  to  the  Pil- 
grim Fathers  in  Plymouth.  In  1880  he  re- 
ceived from  Harvard  the  degree  of  Doctor  of 
Laws. 

He  was  first  married  in  1870  to  Mary 
Woodward  Glover,  daughter  of  George  S.  and 
Helen  M.  (Paul)  Glover,  of  Roxbury.  She 
died  on  February  16,  1882,  leaving  two  chil- 
dren—  Margaret  and  Helen.  Mr.  Long  was 
married,  second.  May  22,  1886,  to  Agnes 
Pierce,  daughter  of  the  late  Rev.  Joseph  D. 
and  Martha  S.  (Price)  Pierce,  of  North  Attle- 
boro,  Mass.,  and  by  this  union  has  one  son, 
Pierce,  born  December  29^  1887.  Ancestors 
of  Mrs.  Long  also,  according  to  the  genealo- 
gists and  historians,  were  early  settlers  of  the 
Plymouth  Colony,  among  them  being  John 
Adams,  who  came  in  the  "Fortune"  in  1621, 
and  Captain  Michael  Pierce  (whose  son  Ben- 
jamin married  John  Adams's  grand-daughter 
Martha),  who  settled  in  Scituate  in  1647,  ren- 
dered great  service  to  the  colonists  as  a  mili- 
tary leader  in  King  Philip's  War,  and  was 
killed  by  the  Indians  in  March,  1676.  He  is 
said  to  have  been  a  brother  of  Captain  Will- 
iam Pierce,  who  commanded  the  "Ann"  in 
1623,  and  later  the  "Lion"  and  other  vessels 
that  came  over,  and  was  the  author  of  Pierce's 
"Almanac,"  1639,  the  first  book  printed  in 
the  colony.  The  Rev.  Joseph  D.  Pierce,  Mrs. 
Long's  father,  who  was  born  in  North  Scituate 
in  181 5,  and  died  November  16,  1880  —  a 
minister  of  the  gospel,  truly  consecrated  to 
his  work,  for  more  than  twenty-five  years  the 
faithful  and  beloved  pastor  of  the  Universal ist 
Church    at    North   Attlebord  —  was    a    son    of 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


579 


John  Pierce,  and  was  of  the  sixth  generation 
in  descent  from  Captain  Michael  Pierce,  being 
of  the  line  of  his  son  Benjamin  aforesaid. 
(See  "Pierce  Genealogy,"  by  F.    C.    Pierce.) 

How  well  the  public  utterances  of  Mr.  Long 
bear  the  test  of  print  is  evidenced  by  the  vol- 
ume of  "After-dinner  and  Other  Speeches," 
published  by  Houghton,  Mifflin  &  Co.  in 
1895,  modestly  held  by  the  author  as  possibly 
of  some  value  as  a  "partial  reflection  of  the 
public  sentiment,  and  of  the  topics  and  occa- 
sions, of  a  generation  in  Massachusetts  which 
is  now  more  past  than  present,"  and  to  which 
he  inscribes  them.  The  titles  are  various: 
"Forefathers'  Day  at  Plymouth,"  "Webster 
Centennial  at  Marshfield,"  "Governor  An- 
drew," "Unitarian  Missionary  Work."  These 
are  a  sample.  We  quote  a  few  sentences 
taken  almost  at  random,  the  first  paragraph 
from  the  "Fourth  of  July  Oration,"  the  sec- 
ond from  the  "Address  on  Libraries":  — 

"Faith  in  the  common  people  is  not  a  fine 
phrase  or  a  dream.  It  is  the  teaching  of  ex- 
perience and  test.  .  .  .  The  people  may  be 
trusted  with  their  own  interests.  If  it  shall 
appear  that  any  one  form  of  government  or  so- 
ciety fails,  there  will  always  be  intelligence 
and  wit  enough  to  fashion  a  better  ...  As 
the  dead  past  buries  its  dead,  so  the  unborn 
future  will  solve  its  own  needs.  Ours  is  to 
do  the  duty  of  the  present  hour." 

"In  the  engrossments  of  every-day  life, 
few  of  us  apprehend  what  a  universal  blessing 
a  library  is.  I  have  been  surprised  and  de- 
lighted, in  my  observation  of  our  towns,  to 
find  how  generally  people  of  all  conditions  of 
life  and  degrees  of  means  depend  upon  the 
public  library,  of  how  many  a  sick  room  it  is 
the  light,  of  how  many  a  poor  man's  home  it 
is  the  cheer,  of  how  much  leisure  and  ennui  it 
is  the  relief,  and  how  thoroughly  well-informed 
and  well-read   the  community  is  made  by  its 


resources.  Little  does  he  know  of  our  New 
England  culture  who  thinks  it  confined  to  the 
select,  or  who,  from  a  thorough  acquaintance 
with  New  England  homes,  has  not  almost  in- 
variably found  in  them  a  wealth  and  variety  of 
book  study,  an  acquaintance  with  the  field  of 
authors  and  their  works,  a  literary  gleaning 
and  harvest,  which  a  characteristic  reticence 
often  hides,  but  which  are  as  surely  there  as 
the  waters,  whose  flow  is  in  winter  time  un- 
heard, are  under  their  mantle  of  ice  and  snow.  " 
Valuable  suggestions  and  cautions  follow  in 
regard  to  stocking  libraries,  furnishing  the 
best  mental  food  and  stimulus  to  young  and 
growing  minds.  But  we  forbear  to  quote 
further.  The  book,  with  its  ever  timely  words 
of  wit  and  wisdom,  its  tributes  to  homely  and 
to  lofty  virtues,  its  incitements  to  noble  pa- 
triotism, deserves  a  wide  reading.  It  is  such 
a  book  as  the  guardians  of  libraries,  who  have 
not  already  placed  a  copy  of  it  on  their 
shelves,  delight  to  put  on  their  purchasing 
lists,  marked  "specially  approved,"  to  be  as 
soon  as  practicable  obtained. 


Ji 


ANIEL  E.  BROWN,  M.D.,  is  one 
of  the  bright-minded  and  progres- 
sive physicians  of  Brockton,  Mass. 
A  graduate  of  Hahnemann  College,  and  an 
experienced  physician  and  surgeon,  he  is 
still  studying,  intending  to  qualify  himself 
thoroughly  in  special  branches  of  his  profes- 
sion. He  was  born  in  Jillsworth,  Hancock 
County,  Me.,  February  8,  1S65,  son  of  Ivory 
L.  and  Emma  (Eppes)  Brown.  On  the  pa- 
ternal side  he  is  descended  in  the  seventh 
generation  from  Peter  Brown,  one  of  the 
"Mayflower"  passengers  in  1620,  and  is 
connected  with  the  family  of  the  famous  John 
Brown,  of  Ossawatomie,  who  was  of  the  fifth 
generation  in  descent  from  the  immigrant. 


S8o 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Peter  Brown  died  in  Plymouth  in  1633. 
Some  of  his  descendants  settled  on  Cape  Cod. 
The  line  of  descent  connecting  him  with  Dr. 
Brown  includes  William;  David,  who  settled 
in  Truro,  Mass.;  Cyrenius;  and  F'phraim,  the 
Doctor's  grandfather.  Ephraim  Brown  re- 
moved to  the  State  of  Maine,  and  kept  a 
tavern  in  the  vicinity  of  Ellsworth  for  a  num- 
ber of  years.  In  his  day  he  was  the  only 
Universalist  in  that  locality.  He  died  at  the 
age  of  seventy-eight.  He  married  a  Miss 
Lord,  who  was  related  to  Chief  Justice  John 
A.  Peters.  They  had  but  one  child.  Ivory  L., 
Dr.  Brown's  father. 

Ivory  L.  Brown  was  a  man  of  some  standing 
in  Ellsworth.  He  was  honest  and  outspoken, 
and  while  serving  on  the  city  Committee  of 
Finance  was  nicknamed  "the  watchdog  of  the 
treasury."  He  died  about  three  years  ago, 
and  was  buried  with  Masonic  honors.  Judge 
John  Redman  delivering  the  funeral  oration. 
His  wife,  who  was  formerly  Miss  Emma 
Eppes,  of  Ellsworth,  was  a  descendant  of  Colo- 
nel David  Green,  who  is  thought  to  have 
been  a  relation  of  General  Nathaniel  Greene. 
There  is  a  family  tradition  that  an  ancestor 
travelled,  disguised  as  a  woman,  through  the 
woods  from  Boston  to  Providence,  to  join 
Roger  Williams,  after  that  bold  preacher  had 
been  banished  from  Salem.  Mrs.  Emma  E. 
Brown  died  in  1888,  aged  fifty-four  years. 
She  had  reared  two  chiklren  — Daniel  E.  and 
George  L. 

Daniel  E.  Brown  acquired  the  rudiments  of 
his  education  in  Plllsworth,  entering  the 
grammar  school  at  the  early  age  of  eight 
years,  the  youngest  pupil  in  that  grade.  He 
took  the  four  years'  course  preparatory  for  col- 
lege in  the  Ellsworth  High  School,  under 
Principal  Dr.  D.  O.  S.  Lowell,  and  then  took 
up  the  study  of  medicine  with  Dr.  Walter  M. 
Haine.s,  of   Ellsworth.      He  studied  with  Dr. 


Haines  one  summer,  leaving  him  in  Septem- 
ber, 1883,  to  enter  Hahnemann  College  in 
Philadelphia,  where  he  took  the  three  years' 
course,  graduating  in  the  class  of  1886.  Dr. 
Brown  was  the  first  P211sworth  Falls  boy  to 
enter  a  profession,  and  the  receiving  of  his 
degree  was  the  consummation  of  hopes  cher- 
ished from  youth. 

Thirty  days  after  his  graduation  from 
Hahnemann  he  opened  an  office  in  Brockton, 
where  he  has  now  been  established  some  ten 
years.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Medical  Board 
and  staff  of  the  Brockton  Hospital,  with  which 
he  has  been  actively  connected  since  its  in- 
ception. When  the  question  of  a  hospital  in 
this  city  was  mooted,  he  was  elected  to  the 
Board  of  Trustees  and  the  Building  Commit- 
tee; and  he  subsequently  gave  much  time  and 
attention  to  the  completion  of  the  institution. 
He  is  now  on  the  Board  of  Trustees  and  the 
E^xecutive  Committee,  besides  being  one  of  the 
consulting  physicians,  and  takes  a  personal 
pride  in  the  hospital.  The  institution  was 
dedicated  March  14,  1896,  six  years  to  a  day 
after  the  project  was  first  broached.  The  de- 
velopment of  the  scheme  was  largely  assisted 
by  the  press,  that  potent  agent  in  human 
affairs,  and  the  institution  is  now  wholly  out 
of  debt.  Dr.  Brown  has  taken  instruction  at 
the  post-graduate  school  in  New  York,  and 
otherwise  fitting  for  the  specialty  of  surgery 
and  diseases  of  women.  He  has  devoted  much 
time  to  study  of  these  branches,  but  is  not  yet 
satisfied  with  his  attainments.  He  is  not  an 
aspirant  for  political  office,  his  chief  ambition 
being  in  the  lines  of  his  profession. 

Dr.  Brown  was  married  in  1883  to  a  daugh- 
ter of  A.  F.  Burnham,  Esq.,  a  well-known 
lawyer  of  Ellsworth,  Me.  The  Doctor  is  a 
member  of  the  Massachusetts  Homteopathic 
Society,  of  the  Knights  of  Pythias,  the  Odd 
Fellows,  Masons,   and  the  Brockton  Commer- 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


S8> 


cial  Club.      Liberal  in  religious  opinions   and 
beliefs,  he  attends  the  Unitarian  church. 


T^HARLES  JONES  SMITH,  an  es- 
I  Vp  teemed  citizen  of  Pembroke,  has  now 
Vsi^  ^  almost  completed  his  seventy-first 
year,  and  yet  is  as  hale  and  active  as  a  much 
younger  man.  He  was  born  in  Bowdoinham, 
Me.,  April  7,  1826,  a  son  of  Allen  and  Deb- 
orah (Jones)  Smith. 

His  father,  Allen  Smith,  was  born  and  edu- 
cated in  the  town  of  Westminster,  Mass.  As 
a  means  of  earning  his  livelihood  he  engaged 
in  the  pursuit  of  agriculture.  During  the 
War  of  1812  he  was  connected  with  the  mili- 
tary forces,  but  was  in  no  action  against  the 
enemy,  being  kept  busy  drilling  soldiers. 
Not  very  long  after  his  term  of  service  was 
ended  he  returned  to  Bowdoinham,  where  he 
remained  a  short  time,  and  then  went  to 
Wilton,  Me.  A  number  of  years  later  he  re- 
moved from  Wilton,  Me.,  to  South  New- 
market, N.H.,  and  there  he  passed  the  rest  of 
his  earthly  life,  which  ended  in  his  ninetieth 
year.  His  wife,  a  daughter  of  Charles  Jones, 
of  Pembroke,  Mass.,  died  in  her  ninetieth 
year.  Their  children  were:  Judith,  Rachel 
H.,  Charles  J.,  Eliza  M.,  Jonathan  B., 
Martha  A.,  Harvey  A.,  Joel,  Caroline,  Deb- 
orah J.,  Mehitabel. 

Charles  Jones  Smith  was  educated  in  the 
public  schools  of  Wilton.  When  quite  young 
he  began  to  learn  the  nail -maker's  trade  in 
East  Taunton,  Mass. ;  and  the  trade  once  ac- 
quired, he  followed  it  for  twenty  years,  work- 
ing in  Taunton  and  Bridgewater.  His  physi- 
cal vigor  failing  from  continuous  indoor  labor, 
he  purchased  the  farm  in  Pembroke,  on  which 
he  now  makes  his  home,  and  here  he  has 
found  health,  recreation,  and  profit.  Breath- 
ing the  sweet  air  of  the  open  fields,  and  exer- 


cising every  muscle  in  the  varied  round  of  his 
farm  duties,  he  has  renewed  his  youth  and 
strength,  and  carries  lightly  his  seventy  years. 
Last  season  he  cut  fifteen  tons  of  hay,  and 
put  it  in  the  barn  with  the  help  of  one  man 
only,  whom  he  hired  for  six  days. 

Mr.  Smith  was  united  in  marriage  in  1852 
with  Sarah  V.  Hicks,  of  Raynham,  Mass., 
and  by  this  union  had  the  following  children: 
Sarah  M.,  Charles  \l.,  Sumner  A.,  Lillian  E. , 
and  Mary  L.  Mrs.  Sarah  V.  H.  Smith  died 
in  1865. 

Mr.  Smith  was  again  married  in  1867,  and 
by  his  second  wife  has  three  children  —  Fred 
S.,  Deborah  J.,  and  Jessie  A. 


lOSES  B.  COLMAN,  a  retired 
•esident  of  Scituate,  Plymouth 
County,  Mass.,  was  born  in  this 
town,  January  31,  1839,  son  of  Captain  Moses 
R.  and  Polly  (Cole)  Colman.  His  parents 
also  were  natives  of  Scituate,  where  the  Col- 
man family  has  long  been  established. 

The  first  of  the  name  to  settle  here  was  the 
great-great-grandfather  of  the  subject  of  this 
sketch,  Joseph  Colman,  who  was  in  Scituate 
as  early  as  1638,  and  lived  with  his  family  on 
the  west  side  of  Colman's  Hills,  but  removed, 
it  is  said,  to  Rhode  Island  about  1690,  some 
of  his  daughters  settling  in  Newport.  His 
son  Joseph,  the  next  in  this  line,  was  the 
father  of  Joseph,  third,  known  as  Captain  Jo- 
seph Colman,  a  master  mariner,  who  made  his 
home  near  Colman's  Hills.  He  died  about 
fifty  years  ago  aged  eighty-four. 

Moses  R.  Colman,  son  of  Captain  Josejjh, 
was  born  in  Scituate,  Mass.,  December  22, 
1807.  He  was  practically  reared  on  ship- 
board, as  he  began  going  to  sea  with  his 
father  at  the  age  of  ten  years.  Becoming  a 
ship-master,  he  followed  the  sea  for  fifty-five 


S82 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


years,  and  was  in  his  sixty-sixtli  year  at  the 
time  of  his  death,  which  took  place  in  Scitu- 
ate  on  March  5,  1872.  He  was  the  first  Rep- 
resentative to  the  Massachusetts  legislature 
from  Scituate  elected  by  the  Republican 
party,  and  died  during  his  term  of  service. 
He  was  a  highly  respected  citizen,  and  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  church.  His 
wife,  Polly  Cole,  was  the  mother  of  several 
children,  of  whom  the  survivors  are:  Moses 
B. ,  the  subject  of  this  sketch;  Mary  M.,  wife 
of  Edwin  Bowditch,  of  Scituate;  and  Frank 
N.,  who  resides  in  this  town. 

Moses  B.  Colman  was  educated  in  the  pub- 
lic and  private  schools  of  his  native  town,  and 
when  he  had  completed  his  course  of  study  he 
went  to  sea  with  his  father.  He  did  not  take 
kindly  to  sea  life,  however,  and  at  the  age  of 
seventeen  he  began  to  learn  the  carpenter's 
trade.  After  serving  as  an  apprentice  three 
years  in  Scituate  and  one  year  in  Boston,  he 
was  employed  as  a  journeyman  in  the  last- 
named  city  until  1866.  He  then  returned  to 
Scituate,  and,  forming  a  copartnership  with 
Thomas  O.  Cole,  under  the  firm  name  of 
Cole  &  Colman,  was  engaged  as  a  contractor 
and  builder  for  eleven  years.  Withdrawing 
from  that  firm,  he  was  for  some  time  em- 
ployed at  his  trade,  and  later  entered  into 
partnership  with  J.  E.  O.  Prouty,  under  the 
firm  name  of  Colman  &  Prouty,  and  was  en- 
gaged in  the  grain  business  for  four  years,  or 
until  his  retirement  from  active  business  pur- 
suits. 

On  April  5,  1866,  Mr.  Colman  was  united 
in  marriage  with  Lucy  Vinal.  She  is  a 
daughter  of  Captain  Henry  F.  Vinal,  a  native 
of  Scituate,  and  a  well-known  mariner  of  his 
day.  The  Vinal  family,  which  is  of  English 
descent,  was  first  represented  in  Scituate  by 
Mrs.  Anna  Vinal,  a  widow,  and  her  three 
children  —  Martha,  Stephen,  and  John  —  who 


came  here  in  1636.  Captain  William  Vinal, 
the  grandfather  of  Mrs.  Colman,  died  in  New 
Orleans  while  his  ship  was  in  that  port.  Mrs. 
Colman  has  one  surviving  sister,  Sarah  E., 
whose  husband,  Benjamin  T.  Turner,  of  this 
town,  is  a  descendant  of  Humphrey  Turner,  an 
early  settler  of  Scituate,  who  came  to  Massa- 
chusetts in  1628  from  the  County  of  Kent, 
England.  Of  three  children  born  to  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Colman,  the  only  one  living  is  William 
T. ,  a  resident  of  Maiden,  Mass. 

In  politics  Mr.  Colman  is  a  stanch  Repub- 
lican, and  for  sixteen  years  he  was  Fire 
Warden  of  Scituate.  For  several  years  he  has 
acted  as  local  agent  for  the  Quincy  Mutual 
Fire  Insurance  Company  of  Quincy  and  the 
Dorchester  Mutual  Insurance  Company  of 
Dorchester.  He  is  connected  with  the  Ma- 
sonic fraternity,  and  he  and  Mrs.  Colman  take 
an  active  interest  in  social  matters  in  the 
town. 


WILLARD    TO 
of    Plymoutl 


TORREY,  Deputy  Sheriff 
h  County  through  the 
length  and  breadth  of  which  his 
ofificial  duties  have  caused  him  to  be  well 
known,  resides  on  River  Street,  Norvvell.  He 
was  born  in  South  Scituate,  now  Norwcll, 
Mass.,  September  25,  1833,  a  son  of  David 
and  Vesta  (Howard)  Torrey.  The  immigrant 
progenitor  of  the  family  was  Lieutenant  James 
Torrey,  who  is  said  to  have  been  in  Scituate 
before  1640. 

George  Torrey,  father  of  David,  was  born 
on  the  old  Torrey  farm  in  Norwcll,  then  South 
Scituate.  It  was  he  who  erected  the  house 
that  is  still  standing  and  in  good  repair,  build- 
ing it  from  material  that  was  brought  from 
Providence,  R.I.,  on  wagons  drawn  by  oxen. 
He  was  a  ship-builder  by  trade.  David,  born 
in  1786,  died  in  1877,  at  over  ninety  years  of 
age.      He  carried  on  the  ship-building  busi- 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


583 


ness  for  forty  years  in  his  yards  at  Tilden's 
Landing,  liight  children,  six  sons  and  two 
daughters,  were  the  fruit  of  his  union  with 
Vesta  Howard. 

When  seventeen  years  of  age  Willard  Torrey 
began  to  work  at  the  ship-joiner's  trade  here 
in  Norwell,  following  it  for  about  five  years, 
and  next  went  into  a  trunk-wood  factory,  where 
he  was  engaged  for  several  years.  He  was  ap- 
pointed a  Deputy  Sheriff  in  1861,  under  James 
Bates,  and  still  holds  the  position,  having  per- 
formed his  duties  in  a  way  that  has  elicited 
the  praise,  not  only  of  the  different  sheriffs 
under  whom  he  has  served,  but  also  of  those 
having  business  with  the  courts.  After  the 
passage  of  the  law  regarding  special  sheriffs 
in  1880,  Sheriff  Harmon  appointed  Mr.  Torrey 
to  the  office,  which  is  next  to  that  of  High 
Sheriff,  and,  in  the  event  of  the  latter's  death 
or  inability  to  serve,  his  duties  would  devolve 
upon  Mr.  Torrey  until  a  new  High  Sheriff 
should  be  appointed.  Mr.  Torrey  owns  a 
good-sized  farm  in  Norwell.  Mr.  Torrey's 
standing  in  the  community  is  perhaps  best 
shown  in  a  portion  of  the  following  quotation 
from  an  article  that  appeared  in  the  Brockton 
Daily  Enterprise :  — 

"Mr.  Torrey's  official  position  has  been  so 
prominent  that  he  has  been  frequently  called 
upon  to  handle  many  large  estates,  and  he  is 
now  caring  for  some  large  property  interests 
all  over  the  county.  While  he  has  never 
passed  an  examination  for  admittance  to  the 
bar,  his  advice  is  frequently  sought  by  the 
residents  in  this  vicinity,  who  have  come  to 
regard  his  business  sagacity  as  unquestioned; 
and  his  personal  popularity  is  due  in  a  meas- 
ure to  the  courteous  manner  in  which  he  gives 
advice.  No  poor  person  can  pay  him  a  copper 
for  his  services.  Mr.  Torrey's  work  in  court 
brings  him  in  contact  with  all  classes  of  the 
community,  and  no  one  can  claim  that    they 


have  ever  failed  to  receive  courteous  treatment 
at  his  hands;  and  many  have  been  the  favors 
which  he  has  extended,  where  others  would 
turn  a  deaf  ear  to  the  appeals  of  the  unfortu- 
nates who  are  frequently  called  before  the  bar 
of  justice.  Deputy  Sheriff  Torrey  has  seen 
judges  come  and  go.  There  is  now  no  judge 
living  who  occupied  the  judicial  bench  at  the 
time  of  his  appointment.  He  has  also  seen 
the  passing  of  some  of  the  bright  members  of 
the  Plymouth  bar.  There  are  now  living  but 
four  members  of  the  Plymouth  bar  who  were 
practising  when  he  was  first  appointed  to 
office." 

In  1855  Mr.  Torrey  married  Martha  R. 
Merritt,  of  South  Scituate,  a  daughter  of  the 
late  Francis  and  Clarissa  Merritt,  and  has 
three  children :  Frank  H.,  living  in  Melrose, 
Mass.  ;  Walter  R.,  who  studied  law  with 
Hosea  Kingman,  of  Bridgewater,  and  is  now 
a  student  at  the  law  school  of  Boston  Univer- 
sity; and  Miss  Mattie  W.  Torrey,  residing  at 
home,  who  is  quite  an  elocutionist.  There  are 
two  grandchildren:  Miss  Marion,  daughter  of 
Frank  H.  Torrey;  and  Master  Wendell  Torrey, 
son  of  Walter  R.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Torrey  have 
resided  at  their  present  home  since  i860.  On 
the  fortieth  anniversary  of  their  wedding,  De- 
cember 23,  1895,  they  received  numerous 
handsome  gifts  from  near  and  from  far,  and 
the  heartfelt  congratulations  of  many  as- 
sembled friends,  including  numbers  from  the 
neighboring  towns. 

In  politics  Mr".  Torrey  jias  always  been  ^a 
Republican.  For  six  years  Vice-president  of 
the  South  Scituate  Savings  Bank,  he  has  been 
a  member  of  its  Board  of  Trustees  since  its 
incorporation,  and  of  its  Board  of  Investment 
since  1877.  As  receiver  for  the  Scituate 
Savings  Bank,  he  performed  his  duties  in  a 
very  commendable  manner.  Mr.  Torrey  is  a 
member  of  the  Cohasset  Masonic  Lodge.      He 


S84 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


attends  the  Unitarian   church,   and   is  one  of 
the  Parish  Committee. 


YPT^UFUS  T.  ESTES,  in  former  years  a 
I  S^  well-known  merchant  in  Plymouth 
Jl^  V^^  County,  since  1S89  living  in  retire- 
ment in  the  town  of  Hanover,  was  born  in 
West  Hanover,  Mass.,  April  20,  1826,  son  of 
Robert  and  E.xperience  (Stud  ley)  Estes. 
Robert  Estes  was  a  blacksmith  by  trade,  and 
his  life  was  spent  for  the  most  part  in  Han- 
over, where  he  died  in  the  eightieth  year  of 
his  age,  his  wife  living  to  be  about  seventy- 
eight.  They  were  the  parents  of  eight  chil- 
dren, namely:  Ellizabeth,  Robert,  and  Clarissa, 
all  deceased;  Nancy;  Beulah,  deceased; 
Rufus  T. ;  Warren;  and  George,  deceased. 

Rufus  T. ,  the  second  son,  was  educated  in 
the  Hanover  public  schools  and  at  the  acad- 
emy at  Sandwich,  Mass.  At  the  age  of 
twelve  he  began  working  at  the  shoemaker's 
trade,  which  he  followed  for  a  year.  He  was 
next  employed  in  the  store  of  Z.  F.  Brett,  of 
Duxbury,  after  which  he  went  to  East  Abing- 
ton  to  work  for  his  brother  Robert,  and  drove 
a  pedler's  cart  through  the  country  for  about 
two  years,  and  then  entered  his  brother's  dry- 
goods  store  as  a  clerk.  Although  but  seven- 
teen years  old  at  the  time  of  his  brother's 
death,  he  took  full  charge  of  the  business  for 
six  months,  at  the  end  of  which  the  store  was 
sold  to  Samuel  ¥A\is,  with  whom  he  continued 
as  a  clerk  for  four  years,  being  then  received 
into  partnership.  A  year  later  Mr.  Estes  pur- 
chased the  entire  store,  and  took  a  partner,  to 
whom,  at  the  end  of  another  year,  he  sold  the 
business,  which  consisted  of  dry  goods  and 
furniture.  The  following  year  he  did  a  thriv- 
ing business  at  merchant  tailoring,  but  sold 
out,  and  went  to  Jacksonville,  Fla.,  where 
he  held  the  position  of  clerk  in  the  dry-goods 


store  of  his  former  employer  and  partner, 
Samuel  Ellis.  Returning  to  Massachusetts  at 
the  end  of  a  year,  he  was  employed  as  a  dry- 
goods  clerk  for  a  like  period  in  the  town  of 
Rockland,  after  which  he  embarked  in  that 
line  of  business  on  his  own  account,  having 
as  a  partner  E.  W.  Whiting,  with  whom, 
under  the  style  of  Estes  &  Whiting,  he  con- 
ducted a  successful  business  for  a  quarter 
century,  or  up  to  1887.  When  Mr.  Estes 
finally  retired  he  had  been  engaged  in  the  dry- 
goods  business  for  forty-five  years,  and  during 
all  that  time  had  met  with  no  reverses  of  any 
consequence. 

In  1847  Mr.  Estes  was  united  in  marriage 
with  Sarah  J.  Tribou,  by  whom  he  had  a  son, 
Alonzo  C,  but  both  the  child  and  his  mother 
are  now  deceased.  For  his  second  wife  Mr. 
Estes  married  Margaret  R.  Binney,  who  bore 
him  two  children  —  one  that  died  in  infancy, 
and  Emma  J.  His  present  wife  was  before 
marriage  Laurencia  C.  Dwelley.  Mr.  Estes 
is  a  member  of  the  John  Cutter  Masonic 
Lodge  of  Abington,  also  of  the  Baptist  church 
of  Rockland,  which  he  served  as  Deacon  and 
Treasurer  many  years. 


i)TENRY  LYMAN  BRYANT,  a  trusted 
^1  and  highly  successful  real  estate 
V  _  dealer  of  Brockton,  Mass.,  was  born 
here  in  1836,  a  son  of  George  VV.  and  Lucy 
(Washburn)  Bryant,  and  on  his  father's  side 
is  a  connection  of  the  late  William  Cullen 
Bryant. 

Stephen  l^rj'ant,  an  English  immigrant  who 
was  in  Plymouth,  Mass.,  it  is  said,  as  early 
as  1632,  was  the  ancestor  of  the  Bryants  in 
Bridgewater.  His  wife,  Abigail  Shaw, 
daughter  of  John  Shaw,  who  came  from  Eng- 
land, bore  him  six  children.  Stephen,  Jr., 
their  second  son,    was  also  the  father  of  six 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


585 


children,  the  fifth  of  whom,  named  Ichabod, 
born  July  5,  1699,  in  Middleboro,  Mass., 
removed  to  North  Bridgewater,  then  the  North 
Parish  of  Bridgewater.  He  married  Ruth 
Staples,  and  had  ten  children.  He  died  No- 
vember 22,  1759,  and  his  widow  died  on 
March  27,  1777.  Philip  Bryant,  their  eldest- 
born,  was  the  ancestor  of  the  distinguished 
poet.  Job,  their  fourth  child,  married  Mary 
Turner,  May  3,  1764,  and  had  ten  children, 
Oliver  being  the  sixth.  He  was  married  on 
May  6,  1804,  to  Nabby,  daughter  of  Timothy 
Ames,  and  their  union  was  blessed  by  the 
birth  of  nine  chiUlren.  George  Washington, 
the  father  of  Henry  L. ,  was  the  fourth  child. 
He  was  born  August  4,  18 10,  and  became  one 
of  the  founders  of  the  town  of  Brockton,  where 
he  engaged  in  the  marble  business.  He  was 
a  trial  justice  of  the  police  court  and  Plym- 
outh County.  His  wife,  Lucy,  is  a  daughter 
of  Bildad  Washburn,  of  Kingston,  Mass.  She 
is  the  mother  of  two  sons  and  a  daughter, 
namely:  George  Edward;  Henry  Lyman;  and 
Abby  Lane,  who  married  Frederick  Hanson, 
March  i,  1857,  and  is  now  deceased.  Mrs. 
Bryant  is  now  living  at  the  advanced  age  of 
ninety-one  years. 

Henry  Lyman,  the  second  son,  received  a 
common-school  education.  He  began  his 
business  career  at  eighteen  years  of  age,  in 
company  with  his  brother,  George  Edward, 
under  the  style  of  G.  E.  &  H.  L.  Bryant,  and 
started  the  first  clothing  house  in  the  town, 
conducting  it  for  sixteen  years.  Since  then 
Henry  L.  Bryant  has  engaged  in  the  real  es- 
tate and  mortgage  business.  He  is  the  corre- 
spondent of  sixty-one  banks,  and  his  business 
transactions  for  the  year  1895  amounted  to 
one  million,  two  hundred  thousand  dollars. 
Mr.  Bryant  erected  the  second  brick  block  in 
Brockton,  and  has  built  five  business  blocks. 
He  owns    twenty   stores,    and    is    the   second 


largest  tax-payer  in  Brockton,  having  risen  to 
this  position  by  his  own  unaided  efforts. 
Sagacious  and  prudent,  he  has  handled  mill- 
ions of  other  people's  money,  and  has  always 
been  successful  in  his-  transactions.  Mr. 
Bryant  was  for  a  time  a  member  of  the  Com- 
mercial Club.  He  is  an  attendant  of  the 
Unity  (Unitarian)  Church. 


fff^YOHN  B.  DAMON,  a  successful  farmer 
and  owner  of  the  Centennial  Hotel  at 
North  Scituate  Beach,  was  born  in 
Scituate,  July  11,  1835,  son  of  John  and  Al- 
mira  (White)  Damon.  His  education,  which 
was  begun  in  the  common  schools  of  his  native 
town,  was  completed  in  Brockton,  Mass.  In 
his  youth  he  was  occupied  in  farming,  but  at 
the  age  of  twenty  he  engaged  in  lobster  fish- 
ing, which  he  continued  successfully  for  seven 
years,  when  he  again  turned  his  attention  to 
agricultural  pursuits.  For  a  number  of  years 
he  was  engaged  exclusively  in  tilling  the  soil 
of  a  good  farm  in  this  town,  during  which 
time  he  demonstrated  his  practical  knowl- 
edge of  agriculture,  and  he  derived  good  finan- 
cial returns  for  his  labor.  Early  in  the 
seventies  he  erected  the  Centennial  Hotel  at 
North  Scituate  Beach,  and  for  fifteen  years  he 
gave  his  personal  attention  to  its  manage- 
ment. He  is  still  the  owner  of  the  property, 
which  he  has  improved,  and  he  has  done  much 
to  increase  the  attractiveness  of  the  locality. 
On  May  5,  1867,  Mr.  Dajiimi  was  united  in 
marriage  to  Ella  A.  Grover,  a  native  of  South 
Hingham,  Mass.,  and  a  daughter  of  A.  H.  and 
Eunice  K.  (Stoddard)  Grover.  Her  father 
was  a  native  of  Maine,  and  her  mother  of 
South  Hingham,  Mass.  Of  the  children  born 
to  Mrs.  Damon's  parents,  six  are  living, 
namely:  Eunice  A.,  now  Mrs.  Charles  H. 
Poole,      of     Rockland,      Mass.  ;     George     A. 


586 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


Grover,  of  Somerville,  Mass.  ;  Ella  A.,  who 
is  now  Mrs.  Damon;  Edward  E.,  a  resident  of 
Holbrook,  Mass.;  Mary,  who  lives  in  Rock- 
land; and  Arthur  R.  Grover,  of  Somerville. 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Damon  have  two  children, 
namely:  Almira  W.,  wife  of  George  S.  Bailey, 
of  North  Scituate,  Mass.  ;  and  John,  who  re- 
sides at  Scituate  Beach. 

In  politics  Mr.  Damon  votes  independently, 
supporting  those  candidates  whom  he  considers 
the  best  qualified  to  hold  office,  and  he  sup- 
ports all  practical  measures  calculated  to  ben- 
efit the  community.  He  is  widely  known  in 
this  locality  as  a  prosperous  farmer,  a  success- 
ful hotel  proprietor,  and  a  sterling  citizen. 
He  is  connected  by  membership  with  Satuit 
Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M. 


JDWARD  HOGAN,  while  at  no  time  a 
resident  of  Plymouth  County,  may  be 
considered  as  entitled,  through  his 
children,  to  representation  in  this  work.  He 
was  born  in  Fishmoyne  County,  Tipperary, 
Ireland,  in  1792.  Despite  almost  insur- 
mountable difficulties,  he  obtained  a  good  edu- 
cation, and  was  conversant  with  the  Greek 
and  Latin  languages.  He  owned  a  good  farm, 
which  he  took  pleasure  in  cultivating.  In  the 
politics  of  his  day  he  was  an  ardent  supporter 
of  Daniel  O'Connell.  Of  a  religious  disposi- 
tion he  took  pleasure  in  teaching  Sunday- 
school.  He  married  Bridget,  daughter  of 
Lawrence  O'Brien,  of  Borisvleigh,  Tipperary 
County.  By  this  marriage  there  were  ten 
children,  eight  of  whom  grew  to  maturity. 
These  were:  Sarah,  Lawrence,  Edward, 
Thomas,  Mrs.  Burke,  Mrs.  Littleton,  Mrs. 
Condon,  and  Mrs.  Leyden. 

Sarah  Hogan,  the  sixth  child,  who  was  born 
in  Tipperary,  came  with  her  widowed  mother 
to  this  country  in    1852.     While  the  substan- 


tial part  of  her  education  was  acquired  in  her 
native  country,  she  had  the  further  advantage 
of  pursuing  a  course  of  study  with  Squire 
Bird  in  Foxboro,  Mass.,  and  in  1859  she  was 
united  in  marriage  with  James  Hayes.  Her 
brother  Lawrence,  when  but  seventeen  years 
old,  enlisted  in  the  Fourth  Massachusetts  Cav- 
alry, and  served  in  the  Civil  War.  On  one 
occasion,  while  carrying  a  dispatch  to  General 
Butler  on  the  battlefield,  he  received  a  wound 
that  was  the  probable  cause  of  his  death  in 
1 88 1.  He  was  an  Alderman  of  Elmira,  N.  Y., 
where  he  resided  in  the  latter  part  of  his  life. 
Edward  Hogan,  who  served  three  years  under 
General  Burnside,  died  in  1892.  Thomas, 
who  has  occupied  several  positions  of  trust  in 
New  York  State,  is  now  living  in  Brockton. 
The  four  sisters  of  Mrs.  Hayes  are  also  liv- 
ing. The  father  died  in  1849,  ^^  ^'^^  ^g^  of 
fifty-seven.  The  mother  passed  away  in 
March,  1891,  nearly  one  hundred  years  old. 
Her  father  and  mother  lived  to  the  ages  of 
ninety-nine  and  one  hundred  and  three  years 
respectively.  Three  of  her  cousins  on  the 
maternal  side,  two  lawyers  and  a  teacher, 
fought  under  Napoleon. 


RCHIBALD  DAKIN,  druggi.st  of 
Brockton,  is  a  worthy  representative 
of  two  old  and  respected  families, 
the  Dakyns  and  Warwicks.  He  was  born  in 
Digby,  Nova  Scotia,  in  1861,  and  is  a  son  of 
Edward  Dakin.  He  traces  his  lineage  on  the 
paternal  side  to  the  days  of  Queen  Elizabeth, 
when  the  name  was  spelled  Dakyns. 

The  family  coat-of-arms  perpetuates  the 
exploit  of  a  Dakyn,  governor  of  a  castle  in 
Cheshire,  who,  while  at  sea,  was  attacked  by 
pirates,  and  cut  the  grappling  ropes  with  an 
axe.  This  valorous  gentleman  had  a  family 
of  nine  children.     Daniel  Dakin,  grandfather 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


587 


of  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  was  probably  a 
native  of  Nova  Scotia;  and  he  was  engaged  in 
farming  there  during  his  mature  manhood. 
He  married  a  daughter  of  Mr.  Warwiclc,  a 
gentleman  of  character  and  ability,  who  was 
for  some  time  in  business  in  New  York  City, 
and  was  later  a  Judge  in  Digby.  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Daniel  Dakin  had  a  family  of  eight  boys 
and  two  girls. 

Their  son  Edward  was  for  some  time  en- 
gaged in  ship-building  with  his  brothers  at 
Digby.  He  followed  the  sea  also,  and  was 
master  of  a  vessel.  He  married  a  daughter 
of  Dr.  W.  L.  Bent,  of  Digby.  Four  children 
were  born  to  this  couple,  three  of  whom  are 
living,  Archibald  being  the  youngest.  While 
in  Venezuela  Edward  Dakin  was  attacked  by 
yellow  fever,  and  died  at  the  age  of  forty-four. 

Archibald  Dakin,  having  acquired  his  edu- 
cation in  the  common  schools  and  the  academy 
of  Digby,  was  employed  as  clerk  in  A.  J. 
McCallum's  drug  store  in  his  native  town  for 
a  year;  was  ne.xt  with  his  brother,  a  druggist, 
in  Wareham ;  and  was  then  in  East  Boston  in 
the  same  business  for  a  while.  In  1879  he 
formed  a  partnership  with  Dr.  Robinson, 
under  the  firm  name  of  A.  Dakin  &  Co.,  and 
opened  a  drug  store  in  Wareham.  Dr.  Robin- 
son retired  at  the  end  of  a  year,  and  Mr. 
Dakin  managed  a  successful  business  alone  for 
seven  or  eight  years,  selling  his  establishment 
at  the  end  of  that  time  on  account  of  ill 
health.  In  the  mean  time,  in  1882,  he  started 
a  branch  store  at  Onset;  and  the  next  year  he 
began  to  publish  TIic  Seaside  Ripple,  a  semi- 
monthly paper,  the  circulation  of  which 
rapidly  increased,  until  it  amounted  to  twelve 
hundred.  At  the  end  of  a  year  he  sold  this 
paper  to  H.  H.  Sylvester,  who  is  now  on  the 
editorial  staff  of  the  New  York  World.  After 
disposing  of  his  Wareham  business,  Mr.  Dakin 
spent    two   years    in    recuperating,    his    chief 


trouble  being  low  nervous  tone;  and  in  Septem- 
ber, 1891,  he  opened  his  present  establishment 
in  Brockton.  He  has  a  neat  and  completely 
furnished  store,  and  a  good  line  of  trade. 

Mr.  Dakin  takes  an  active  interest  in  the 
politics  of  the  day  as  a  member  of  the  People's 
party.  In  1895  he  was  the  Populist  candidate 
for  Representative  to  the  State  legislature, 
and  made  a  gain  of  thirty-three  votes.  He  is 
a  vestryman  of  St.  Paul's  Episcopal  Church  of 
Brockton. 


fHOMAS  BARSTOW.'a  prominent  con- 
tractor and  builder  of  Norwcll,  is  a  na- 
tive of  this  town,  born  April  26,  1850, 
son  of  Thomas  Barstow  and  Amelia  B. 
(Hathaway)  Greene.  He  was  named  Thomas 
Barstow  after  his  father;  and  in  1857,  at  the 
request  of  his  grandmother,  his  surname 
Greene  was  dropped,  and  his  name  legally 
changed  to  Thomas  Barstow.  His  parents 
had  two  other  children:  Albert  S.  Greene, 
who  is  now  employed  in  the  Charlestown 
Navy  Yard,  and  resides  in  Somerville,  Mass. ; 
and  Lydia  B. ,  who  resides  with  her  brother  on 
the  old  homestead. 

Thomas  Barstow,  the  direct  subject  of  this 
sketch,  grew  to  manhood  on  the  farm  that  was 
settled  by  his  great-grandfather,  who  also  bore 
the  Christian  name  of  Thomas,  and  who  was 
prominently  connected  with  the  ship-building 
industry  on  North  River  during  the  time  of 
its  greatest  prosperity.  After  attending  the 
district  school,  he  took  a  supplementary  course 
of  study  at  Hanover  Academy.  When  nine- 
teen years  old,  he  began  to  learn  the  carpen- 
ter's trade  with  James  Ford,  of  Pembroke, 
with  whom  he  remained  three  years.  Since 
then  he  has  been  in  business  for  himself  as  a 
contractor  and  builder,  and  has  been  very  suc- 
cessful. He  owns  about  forty  acres  of  the 
homestead  farm,  which  he  carries  on. 


S88 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


In  1892  Mr.  Barstow  was  elected  on  the 
Republican  ticket  to  the  State  legislature. 
He  has  served  the  town  as  Selectman  since 
1889,  having  been  Chairman  of  the  Board 
during  the  past  seven  years.  He  has  also  held 
the  offices  of  Assessor  and  Overseer  of  the 
Poor,  each  for  several  years.  He  is  a  member 
of  North  River  Lodge,  No.  167,  Independent 
Order  of  Odd  Fellows,  of  Hanover,  in  which 
he  is  a  Past  Grand;  and  of  Phttnix  Lodge, 
A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Hanover,  in  which  he  is 
a  Past  Master.  He  is  also  a  member  of  Pil- 
grim Chapter,  Royal  Arch  Masons;  and  of 
Old  Colony  Commandery,  Knights  Templars, 
of  Abington,  Mass. 


IDVVIN  L.  MAGLATHLIN,  of  King- 
ston, who  owns  and  operates  a  tack 
manufactory  at  Indian  Pond,  was 
born  in  Kingston,  March  28,  1849,  son  of 
Peter  W.  and  Marcia  (Bradford)  Maglathlin. 
His  father  was  a  native  of  Kingston,  and  his 
mother  of  Maine.  The  family,  which  is  of 
Scotch  origin  descends  in  a  direct  line  from 
its  founder  in  America,  John  Maglathlin,  and  a 
more  extended  account  of  its  ancestry  may  be 
found  in  the  sketch  of  Philemon  W.  Maglath- 
lin, which  appears  elsewhere  in  this  work. 

Edwin  L.  Maglathlin  was  reared  and  edu- 
cated in  Kingston,  and  resided  upon  his 
father's  farm  until  he  was  sixteen  years  old. 
He  then  went  to  sea  as  a  fisherman,  making 
one  or  more  voyages  to  the  Grand  Banks.  At 
the  age  of  twenty  he  gave  up  the  sea,  and  be- 
came a  locomotive  fireman  on  the  Old  Colony 
Railway.  After  serving  in  that  capacity  for 
some  years,  he  was  appointed  an  engineer, 
and  continued  in  the  company's  employ  for 
twelve  years,  during  which  time  he  was  in 
charge  of  locomotives  upon  all  branches  of  the 
road.     In  1885  he  resigned  his  position,  and 


entered  into  partnership  with  his  brother, 
Horace  B. ,  the  tack  manufacturer  of  Silver 
Lake.  The  firm  of  Maglathlin  Brothers  con- 
tinued in  business  for  nine  years,  when  it  was 
dissolved,  and  our  subject  was  for  a  time  en- 
gaged in  agricultural  pursuits.  Re-embarking 
in  business,  he  was  engaged  in  manufacturing 
tacks  in  Kingston  village,  where  he  continued 
for  a  few  months,  or  until  May  i,  1894,  when 
he  purchased  his  present  plant  at  Indian  Pond. 
He  has  water  power  sufficient  to  run  his  fac- 
tory at  all  seasons  of  the  year,  and,  having  a 
first-class  equipment,  he  produces  a  large  out- 
put annually,  including  shoe  tacks  of  every 
variety.  Mr.  Maglathlin  wedded  Palmira 
Simmons,  daughter  of  Nahum  Simmons,,  late 
of  Kingston.  He  is  a  self-made  man,  as  he 
was  forced  to  make  his  way  in  life  solely  by 
his  own  exertions;  and  his  present  business 
standing  is  a  sufficient  guarantee  of  his  future 
prosperity.  Politically,  he  supports  the  Re- 
publican party. 


ENRY  T.  SMITH,  a  representative 
citizen   of  Rockland,  where   he   holds 

-     V -  the  office  of  Selectman,  was  born  in 

Candia,  N.H.,  April  6,  1856,  son  of  French 
and  Laura  A.  (Ouimby)  Smith.  His  father, 
who  was  born  in  Canada,  was  engaged  during 
a  great  part  of  his  life  in  farming  in  New 
Hampshire.  His  mother  died  at  the  age  of 
fifty.  She  gave  birth  to  five  children — ■ 
Augustus  F.,  Henry  T.,  Nettie,  Clara  A.,  and 
Alice  I. 

Henry  T.  Smith  is  a  high-school  graduate. 
He  remained  in  his  native  State  until  twenty 
years  old,  spending  a  part  of  the  time  in  farm 
work,  which  developed  his  muscles  and 
strengthened  his  body  generally.  Then,  feel- 
ing no  inclination  to  continue  a  farmer's  life, 
he  went  to  work  in  a  shoe  shop  in  Belfast,  Me. 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


589 


He  was  employed  in  Belfast  for  about  five 
years,  and  then  came  to  Rockland,  Mass., 
where  he  made  shoes  for  a  period  of  fifteen 
years.  He  has  been  engaged  in  the  baking 
business  under  the  firm  name  of  H.  T.  Smith 
&  Co.  since  1896.  During  his  residence  in 
Rockland  he  has  established  a  reputation  for 
honesty  and  integrity,  and  won  the  sincere 
respect  of  his  townsmen. 

On  August  10,  1878,  Mr.  Smith  was  united 
in  marriage  with  Miss  Emma  Howard,  of  Bel- 
fast. Two  children  have  blessed  the  union  — 
Orminda  and  Bertha.  In  politics  Mr.  Smith 
favors  the  Democratic  side,  but  believes  that 
it  is  best  sometimes  to  disregard  party  lines. 
Me  has  served  the  town  in  the  capacity  of 
Overseer  of  the  Poor,  Assessor,  and  Select- 
man, and  he  is  a  member  of  Standish  Lodge, 
No.  177,  Independent  Order  of  Odd  Fellows, 
and  of  the  New  England  Order  of  Protection. 
He  is  also    a  member  of  the   Rockland   Fire 

Department. 

<  •  ■ » > 

/^TeORGE  HERBERT  THOMAS,  of 
\  p  I  Brant  Rock,  who  is  successfully  en- 
gaged in  the  varied  occupations  of  a 
farmer,  general  teamster,  and  dealer  in  ice, 
wood,  milk,  hay,  and  grain,  is  a  worthy  rep- 
resentative of  one  of  the  oldest  families  of 
Marshfield,  Mass.,  his  native  town.  He  was 
born  March  10,  1852,  son  of  Luther  and  Abi- 
gail (Sampson)  Thomas. 

There  were  three  early  settlers  in  Marsh- 
field  bearing  the  surname  Thomas.  The  first 
of  these  was  John,  an  orphan  lad,  who  came 
in  the  "Hopewell"  in  1635.  He  was  under 
the  care  of  Governor  Edward  Winslow  for  a 
time,  and  eventually  became  his  steward  at 
Careswell.  The  others  were  William  and  his 
son  Nathaniel,  who  came  with  the  son's  wife 
and  child  in  1637.  John  Thomas  married  in 
1648,    Sarah    Pitney;    and    both    he    and    Na- 


thaniel Thomas  have  been  succeeded  by  a 
numerous  posterity,  including  many  useful 
and  esteemed  citizens,  not  a  few  of  whom,  at- 
taining distinction  in  various  fields  of  effort, 
have  filled  positions  of  influence  and  honor. 

Samuel  Thomas,  son  of  John  and  Sarah, 
born  in  1655,  married  Mercy  Ford,  and  was 
the  father  of  John,  second,  born  in  1684,  Na- 
than, and  others.  Nathan  Thomas  married 
successively  Alice  Baker,  Abiah  Snow,  and 
Sarah  Bartlett.  These  and  other  early  de- 
scendants of  John  Thomas,  first,  are  men- 
tioned in  Mr.  William  T.  Davis's  "Ancient 
Landmarks  of  Plymouth,"  a  book  of  reference 
invaluable  to  the  student  of  Pilgrim  family 
history. 

Nathan  Thomas  was  a  tanner,  and  lived  in 
Marshfield.  His  son  William,  who  suc- 
ceeded to  the  ownership  of  his  homestead,  was 
probably  the  William  Thomas  prominent  in 
Marshfield  in  pre-Revolutionary  times,  hold- 
ing a  Captain's  commission  from  Governor 
Hutchinson.  Captain  William  Thomas  was 
the  great-grandfather  of  George  H.,  the  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch.  His  children  were: 
Luther,  Sr. ,  Jesse,  Mary,  and  Sarah.  Luther 
Thomas,  Sr.,  who  was  born  January  25,  1757, 
and  died  October  24,  1831,  was  twice  mar- 
ried. By  his  first  wife,  Rebecca  Dingley,  he 
had  three  children,  namely:  Marcia  Abiah, 
author  of  "Memorials  of  Marshfield,"  who 
was  born  July  30,  1800,  and  died  September 
14,  1879;  William  Foster,  born  January  25, 
1802,  died  July  26,  1883;  Sarah,  born  Febru- 
ary 20,  1807,  died  October  14,  1896.  By-his 
second  wife,  Abigail  Hewitt,  he  had  one  son, 
Luther,  who  was  born  November  30,  181 1. 

The  younger  Luther  Thomas  married  Abi- 
gail, daughter  of  Andrew  and  Lydia  (Soule) 
Sampson.  Her  father  was  of  the  fifth  genera- 
tion in  direct  line  from  Henry  Sampson,  one 
of  the  "Mayflower"  Pilgrims.      Mr.  and  Mrs. 


59° 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Luther  Thomas  had  six  children:  Anne,  who 
was  born  June  ig,  1837,  and  died  February 
23,  1883;  Henry,  born  February  7,  1839, 
now  living  in  California;  Alice  Jane,  born 
December  25,  1844,  who  died  in  October, 
1889;  Abbie  F"rances,  born  May  25,  1848, 
who  died  October  27,  1896;  George  Herbert, 
whose  birth -date  is  mentioned  above;  Emily 
Augusta,  who  was  born  January  i,  1857,  and 
died  March  5,  i860.  Luther  Thomas  during 
his  active  life  was  engaged  in  farming  in 
Marshlield.  He  died  October  19,  1896,  aged 
nearly  eighty-five  years.  His  wife,  Mrs. 
Abigail  Sampson  Thomas,  died  June  21, 
1885,  at  the  age  of  seventy-three. 

Miss  Marcia  A.  Thomas,  half-sister  of  Mr. 
Luther  Thomas,  will  long  be  held  in  honored, 
grateful  remembrance  as  the  local  antiquary 
and  writer,  and  a  public  benefactor.  It  would 
be  utterly  impossible  now  to  copy  from  some  of 
the  oldest  stones  in  the  ancient  burial-ground 
the  inscriptions  reverently  and  happily  pre- 
served in  her  little  volume  of  "Memorials,"' 
published  in  1854,  which  she  modestly  de- 
clined to  dignify  with  the  title  of  history. 
The  proceeds  of  the  book,  with  two  or  three 
individual  subscriptions,  were  placed  at  inter- 
est till  a  sufficient  fund  had  accumulated  to 
erect  in  that  quiet  resting-place  a  monument 
to  the  memory  of  the  early  settlers  of  Green 
Harbor. 

George  H.,  the  younger  of  the  two  sons  of 
Luther  Thomas,  was  an  attendant  of  the  com- 
mon schools  until  he  was  about  sixteen  years 
old.  He  remained  with  his  parents  six  years 
after  he  became  of  age,  then  started  out  for 
himself,  settling  at  Brant  Rock,  where  he 
began  in  a  small  way,  but  now  has  a  thriving 
business  as  a  result  of  sagacious  and  persever- 
ing energy.  He  is  well  known  in  the  village 
of  Brant  Rock  and  vicinity  as  a  man  of  sterl- 
ing integrity.     In  politics  he  is  a  Republican. 


On  March  27,  1879,  ^I''-  Thomas  married 
Ellen  M.  Peterson,  a  native  of  Duxbury, 
Mass.,  and  daughter  of  the  late  Jabez  Peter- 
son, of  that  place.  Her  mother's  maiden 
name  was  Phcebe  Shurtleff.  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Thomas  have  two  daughters — lulith  F.  and 
May. 

»-^»^p 

OSHUA  DEAN,  dealer  in  lumber, 
grain,  and  coal,  and  proprietor  of  the 
Dean  Foundry  at  East  Bridgewater, 
ranks  among  the  foremost  business  men  of  this 
locality,  as  well  as  the  oldest,  having  been  in 
business  since  1868.  He  was  born  in  Easton, 
Mass.,  March  25,  1830,  a  son  of  William  and 
Keziah  (Britton)  Dean.  The  Deans,  who  are 
of  English  origin,  settled  first  in  Raynham, 
Bristol  County,  Mass.  William  Dean,  a  na- 
tive of  the  old  Bay  State  and  a  successful 
farmer,  died  in  1844.  His  wife,  also  a  native 
of  Massachusetts,  survived  him  nearly  forty 
years,  passing  away  in  1883. 

Joshua  Dean,  direct  subject  of  this  sketch, 
was  reared  and  educated  in  Easton,  Mass. 
His  father  dying  when  he  was  fourteen  years 
old,  he  was  early  thrown  upon  his  own  re- 
sources, and  received  but  a  limited  education. 
At  the  age  of  seventeen  he  began  to  learn  the 
moulder's  trade  at  North  Chelmsford,  Mass., 
and  worked  there  ten  years  in  the  employ  of 
two  firms.  He  was  subsequently  for  six  years 
foreman  for  William  E.  Bird,  proprietor  of  a 
foundry  in  West  Bridgewater;  and  in  1868, 
forming  a  partnership  with  Cephas  Perry,  he 
purchased  a  foundry  at  East  Bridgewater. 
This  was  successfully  managed  for  several 
years  by  the  firm  of  Dean  &  Perry,  and  was 
finally  destroyed  by  fire.  Some  time  after 
that  Mr.  Dean  became  sole  proprietor,  and 
under  his  supervision  new  shops  were  built, 
to  which  he  subsequently  made  important  addi- 
tions.    His  business  prospered  and  increased 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


S9I 


from  year  to  year,  and  in  1895  he  purchased 
what  is  now  known  as  the  Brockton  Brass  and 
Iron  Foundry,  of  which  he  is  sole  proprietor. 
His  success  in  business  has  been  achieved  by 
his  own  unaided  efforts. 

Mr.  Dean  married  Evaline  Cragin,  a  native 
of  Peterboro,  N.H.,  and  of  the  children  born 
to  them  two  are  living:  Jennie,  wife  of 
Thomas  H.  Perkins;  and  Carrie  E.,  wife  of 
E.  Samuel  Ryder. 

Mr.  Dean  is  a  Republican  politically.  He 
represented  the  district  in  the  State  legislat- 
ure in  1880,  and  served  for  a  number  of  terms 
as  Selectman  of  East  Bridgewater.  He  is 
prominent  in  Masonry,  being  a  charter  mem- 
ber of  Satucket  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  at 
East  Bridgewater,  and  is  identified  with  the 
lodge  of  Knights  Templars  at  Abington.  His 
home  is  one  of  the  most  beautiful  in  this  sec- 
tion of  the  county.  Mr.  Dean,  though  not  a 
church  member,  is  generous  in  his  support  of 
religious  enterprises.  He  and  his  wife  take 
part  in  all  the  prominent  social  events  of  the 
vicinity. 


(^■", 


EPHAS     WASHBURN,    a    prosperous 


farmer  of   Halifax,    Mass.,  is  a  native 

\^    of    Plymouth   County,    born    in    the 

town  of  Bridgewater,  January  18,  1832,  a  son 
of  Cephas  and  Mercy  (Paris)  Washburn.  His 
father,  Cephas  Washburn,  Sr.,  was  twice  mar- 
ried. By  his  first  wife,  formerly  a  Miss  Paris, 
he  had  three  children:  Martin  L. ,  living  in 
Bridgewater;  Albion  K  ,  an  inventor,  resid- 
ing in  Bridgewater;  and  Cephas.  His  second 
marriage  was  with  Sallie  Paris,  and  a  son  and 
daughter  were  born  of  this  union,  namely: 
Frank,  who  died  in  i860;  and  Harriet  M.,  the 
wife  of  Simeon  F.  Jordan,  of  Bridgewater. 

When  five  years  old,  Cephas,  the  youngest 
son  by  the  first  wife,  came  to  Halifa.x,  where 
he  lived  until  twenty-five  years  of  age,  when 


he  went  on  a  fishing  expedition  one  season. 
Following  that  he  was  engaged  in  shoemaking 
until  1861,  when  he  enlisted  at  the  first  call 
for  troops  from  President  Lincoln.  After 
three  months'  service  he  returned  home,  and 
was  chosen  Captain  in  the  militia.  He  then 
joined  Company  A,  of  the  Third  Massachu- 
setts Infantry,  as  First  Lieutenant,  this  being 
one  of  the  oldest  military  organizations  in  the 
United  States,  and  was  mustered  into  service 
at  Fortress  Monroe,  Va.  He  was  stationed 
for  some  time  at  Fortress  Monroe  and  at 
Hampton,  and  is  credited  with  bringing  in  the 
first  "contraband  of  war,"  as  slaves  captured 
by  the  Union  forces  were  then  termed.  On 
March  4,  1863,  Mr.  Washburn  was  discharged 
at  Carrollton,  La.,  on  account  of  disability. 
Returning  to  Massachusetts,  he  took  up  his 
residence  in  Plympton,  where  he  remained  six 
years,  holding  the  position  of  station  agent 
and  postmaster.  He  then  went  to  Kingston, 
and  a  year  later  to  Stoughton,  where  he  was  sta- 
tion agent.  From  Stoughton  he  came  to  Hali- 
fax, and  settled  on  the  old  homestead,  where  he 
has  since  resided.  He  owns  about  two  hun- 
dred and  twenty-five  acres  of  land,  and  is  profit- 
ably engaged  in  general  farming  and  lumber- 
ing, also  in  the  cultivation  of  cranberries. 

In  1856  Mr.  Washburn  married  Miss 
Amanda  McLaughlin,  who  died  leaving  him 
with  one  daughter,  Abbie  W.,  who  lived  to  be 
twenty-two  years  of  age.  He  married  for  his 
second  wife,  Mrs.  Olive  French,  the  widow  of 
Timothy  French,  and  a  sLster^of  his  first  wife. 
The  only  child  by  this  union  died  in  infancy; 
and  Mrs.  Washburn  has  also  passed  away.  In 
1865  Mr.  Washburn,  who  has  always  been  a 
stanch  Republican,  was  elected  to  the  State 
legislature.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Masonic 
order;  also  of  Justin  Dimmick  Post,  No.  124, 
Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  of  East  Bridge- 
water. 


S92 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


§OHN  H.  EAMES,  of  Marshfield,  is  a 
veteran  of  the  late  war,  one  of  the  few 
Union  men  alive  to-day  who  have 
suffered  in  Rebel  prisons.  He  was  born  in 
Medford,  Mass.,  December  i6,  1834,  a  son  of 
John  and  Louisa  (Norwood)  Eames. 

The  Eames  family  is  of  English  origin. 
Among  the  early  settlers  of  this  name  men- 
tioned by  genealogists  are:  Robert,  of  Charles- 
town,  1651,  who  removed  to  Woburn  ;  Thomas, 
of  Dedham,  who  had  a  son  John,  born  in 
1642;  Anthony,  of  Hingham,  in  1636,  who 
removed  to  Marshfield,  and  served  as  a  Deputy 
to  the  General  Court  in  1654,  and  later  for  a 
number  of  years;  Mark,  thought  to  have  been 
his  son,  Deputy  in  1662  and  later,  and  Se- 
lectman 1667-73.  A  Jonathan  Eames,  of 
Marshfield,  is  spoken  of  as  probably  son  of 
Mark  and  grandson  of  Anthony  Eames.  John 
Eames,  said  to  have  been  one  of  the  descend- 
ants of  Jonathan,  settled  in  Medford,  Mass., 
and  in  that  town  a  later  John  Eames,  grand- 
father of  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  and  John 
Eames,  Jr.,  his  father,  were  born.  The  John 
last  named,  who  was  a  contractor  and  builder, 
was  a  lifelong  resident  of  Medford.  He 
died  in  1849.  His  wife,  a  native  of  Lynn- 
ficld,  Mass.,  died  in  1875.  They  were  the 
parents  of  eight  children,  John  H.  being  the 
oldest. 

John  H.  Eames  acquired  his  education  in 
Medford,  finishing  his  studies  in  the  high 
school.  He  was  nearly  fifteen  years  of  age 
when  his  father  died, "and  was  obliged  at  that 
time  to  leave  school  and  go  to  work.  Obtain- 
ing employment  in  a  ship  yard  in  Medford,  he 
worked  there  some  three  years,  and  then  began 
to  learn  the  carpenter's  trade,  serving  as  an 
apprentice  until  he  was  twenty-one.  He  sub- 
sequently worked  as  a  journeyman,  making  a 
specialty  of  stair-building,  one  of  the  best 
paying   branches   of    the  trade,    and    was  em- 


ployed by  some  of  the    leading  contractors   of 
Boston. 

At  the  time  of  President  Lincoln's  first  call 
for  seventy-five  thousand  three  months'  men, 
Mr.  Eames  responded,  enlisting  in  April, 
1 86 1,  in  Company  E,  Fifth  Massachusetts 
Volunteer  Infantry.  He  was  in  the  disastrous 
battle  of  the  first  Bull  Run,  and  after  that  was 
on  duty  in  Washington  until  his  term  expired. 
He  re-enlisted  August  14,  1862,  and  was 
mustered  as  a  Sergeant  into  Company  C, 
Thirty-ninth  Massachusetts  Volunteer  Infan- 
try, which  later  became  a  part  of  the  Fifth 
Corps,  Army  of  the  Potomac,  General  G.  K. 
Warren  commanding.  During  his  second 
term  of  service  Mr.  Eames  took  part  in  many 
engagements,  in  which  the  Union  soldiers 
demonstrated  their  ability  to  fight,  including 
the  battle  of  the  Wilderness,  and  for  forty-two 
days  thereafter  was  more  or  less  under  fire. 
At  the  battle  of  the  Weldon  Railroad,  August 
19,  1864,  he  was  captured  with  his  entire  com- 
pany by  the  Confederates;  and  he  was  incar- 
cerated successively  in  Libby  Prison,  Belle 
Isle,  and  Salisbury  Prison,  North  Carolina, 
spending  seven  months  in  all  in  durance. 
The  horrors  of  these  charnel  houses  have  been 
painted  so  often  that  it  is  superfluous  to  speak 
of  them.  Suffice  it  to  say  that,  while  he  was 
in  Salisbury,  over  twelve  thousand  Union 
prisoners  died.  He  was  finally  exchanged, 
and  was  honorably  discharged  as  a  First  Lieu- 
tenant in  June,   1865. 

Returning  to  Medford  broken  in  mind  and 
body,  he  was  a  confirmed  invalid  for  four 
years.  In  1869  he  was  engaged  as  clerk  in 
the  navy  yard  at  Charlestown,  and  in  1870  he 
was  appointed,  under  President  Grant,  Post- 
master of  Medford.  He  filled  the  office  fifteen 
consecutive  years,  resigning  on  account  of 
failing  health  in  1885.  In  18S6  he  moved  to 
the  pretty  village  of  Marshfield   Hills,  where 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


593 


he  has  since  resided,  and  he  is  now  one  of  the 
well-known  and  popular  citizens  of  this  place. 
Mr.  Eames  was  married  in  1866  to  S.  Au- 
gusta George,  a  native  of  Marshfield,  who 
died  in  1890.  She  bore  him  four  children, 
two  of  whom  are  living  —  Harry  C.  and  John. 
In  politics  Mr.  Eames  is  a  Republican.  He 
was  one  year  Commander  of  S.  C.  Lawrence 
Post,  No.  66,  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  of 
Medford,  and  six  years,  from  January,  1887, 
until  January,  1893,  Commander  of  David 
Church  Post,  No.  189,  of  Marshfield.  He  is  a 
member  of  Mount  Hermon  Lodge  of  Masons, 
of  Mystic  Royal  Arch  Chapter;  also  of  the 
Knights  of  Honor,  the  Legion  of  Honor,  and 
other  organizations  in  Medford.  Mr.  Eames 
has  never  aspired  to  public  office. 


iHARLES  THOMAS  LEAVITT,  an 
ice  dealer  and  successful  farmer  of 
Hingham,  Mass.,  was  born  in  this 
town,  July  21,  1857,  his  parents  being  Thomas 
J.  and  Mary  V.   (Stoddard)  Leavitt. 

The  progenitor  of  this  branch  of  the  Leavitt 
family  in  America  was  John,  who  settled  in 
Hingham  about  the  year  1634,  and  who  is  sup- 
posed to  have  been  a  Scotchman  and  runaway 
apprentice.  His  son  Israel  was  the  father  of 
John,  second,  and  grandfather  of  John,  third, 
whose  son  Jacob  was  the  great-great-grand- 
father of  Charles  Thomas,  the  special  subject 
of  this  sketch.  Jacob  Leavitt  was  born  in 
Hingham,  and  became  an  energetic  and  pros- 
perous farmer.  After  he  was  eighty  years  old 
he  shingled  his  house,  doing  all  the  work  him- 
self. John  Leavitt,  son  of  Jacob,  born  in 
Hingham,  was  a  pump  and  block  maker  by 
trade.  He  built  what  is  known  as  the  Leavitt 
shingle-mill,  which  was  originally  designed 
as  a  grist-mill,  but  proved  a  failure  for  this 
purpose,    the  water  power  being   insufficient. 


He  married  Sally  Gushing,  and  had  four  chil- 
dren—  John,  Thomas,  Sally,  and  Mary. 

John,  the  eldest,  mentioned  above  as  the 
thirti  John  Leavitt,  whose  birth  occurred  in 
Hingham  on  July  3,  1799,  was  a  man  of  more 
than  ordinary  natural  ability.  After  receiving 
his  mental  training  in  the  public  schools,  he 
learned  the  trade  of  a  pump  and  block  maker, 
and  soon  after  started  in  business  for  himself 
in  the  mill  which  his  father  had  built  for  a 
grist-mill.  After  a  time  he  added  the  manu- 
facture of  box  lumber  and  bucket  heading, 
continuing  in  the  business  until  his  death  in 
August,  1877.  He  was  for  many  years  an 
Overseer  of  the  Poor,  but,  though  urged  to  ac- 
cept the  nomination  for  other  town  offices, 
always  refused  to  be  a  candidate.  In  politics 
he  was  a  Whig.  He  married  Miss  Evalina, 
daughter  of  Benjamin  Jones,  of  Hingham. 
They  had  si.x  children,  namely:  Thomas  J.; 
Sarah,  deceased;  Benjamin,  who  died  when 
two  years  old;  Evalina;  Mary;  and  John,  de- 
ceased. John  and  Evalina  (Jones)  Leavitt 
were  attendants  of  the  old  Unitarian  church. 

Thomas  J.  Leavitt  was  born  in  Hingham  on 
May  25,  1829.  After  acquiring  a  common- 
school  education,  he  started  to  learn  the  trade 
of  a  harness-maker,  but  gave  up  that  occupa- 
tion at  the  end  of  two  years,  and  went  to  work 
in  his  father's  shingle-mill,  of  which  he  be- 
came the  owner  at  his  father's  death.  He  also 
manufactured  ship  chandlery  ware,  such  as 
pumps  and  log  reels.  Up  to  1892,  when  he 
retired  from  active  pursaitSj^  he  conducted^a 
successful  business.  His  marriage  with  Miss 
Mary  V.  Stoddard,  daughter  of  Captain 
Charles  Stoddard,  of  Hingham,  was  solem- 
nized March  21,  1852.  A  son,  and  a  daughter, 
Lilla  M.,  were  the  fruit  of  their  union:  but 
only  the  son,  Charles  Thomas,  now  survives. 

Charles  Thomas  Leavitt  was  educated  in 
the  public  schools  of  Hingham.      His  first  em- 


594 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


ployment  was  with  his  father  in  the  mill, 
where  he  worked  three  years,  and  after  that  he 
worked  about  three  years  in  the  rope  walk. 
In  the  summer  of  1883  he  embarked  in  the  ice 
business,  beginning  with  one  horse  and  a 
single  wagon,  doing  all  the  work  himself. 
He  now  runs  three  double  teams  and  one 
single  team,  employs  from  three  to  four  men, 
and  cuts  about  three  thousand  tons  of  ice 
yearly.  He  owns  a  farm  which  yields  about 
twenty  tons  of  hay  annually,  grass  being  the 
principal  crop.  He  is  a  member  of  the  Dem- 
ocratic Town  Committee,  and  has  been  on 
the  Board  of  Engineers  of  the  fire  department 
since  May  i,   1896. 

On  February  12,  18S0,  Mr.  Leavitt  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Miss  Julia  L.,  daugh- 
ter of  Edward  S.  Gushing,  of  Hingham. 
They  have  two  children —  Lilla  C.  and  Ethel 
May.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Leavitt  are  attendants  of 
the  Unitarian  church. 


of    Han- 


Tt^OBERT    SYLVESTER,    one 
I  ^~V^      over's  most  aged   and   esteemed   citi- 


zens,  was  born  on  October  19,  1805, 
in  the  house  which  is  still  his  home.  His 
parents,  Robert  and  Lucy  (Bailey)  Sylvester, 
had  si.\  children  —  Lucy,  Rebecca,  Michael 
(deceased),  Robert  (who  died  in  infancy), 
Robert,  and  Sarah.  The  father  was  a  farmer 
throughout  his  active  life,  and  died  when  but 
thirty-seven  years  old. 

Robert  Sylvester,  the  youngest  son,  the 
special  subject  of  this  brief  biography,  re- 
ceived a  district  and  private  school  education. 
Up  to  seventeen  years  of  age  he  lived  with  his 
parents  on  the  homestead  farm,  then  went  to 
Boston,  and  served  a  four  years'  apprentice- 
ship at  carpentry,  which  he  subsequently  fol- 
lowed in  that  city  for  about  three  years,  going 
from    there    to     Plymouth,    where    he    spent 


another  year  engaged  at  his  trade.  He  then 
returned  to  his  parental  home,  and  for  many 
years  was  employed  in  both  farming  and  car- 
pentering. He  owns  about  two  hundred  acres 
here,  a  portion  of  which  is  comprised  in  the 
old  homestead  farm,  where  his  great-grand- 
father, Michael  Sylvester,  first  located. 

On  November  28,  1828,  when  twenty-three 
years  of  age,  Mr.  Sylvester  married  Miss 
Sarah  Burgess,  of  Boston,  who  was  a  daughter 
of  Josiah  and  Sarah  (Whitney)  Burgess,  of 
Harvard.  By  this  union  he  had  the  following 
children:  Loammi  B.,  died  September  6, 
1862;  Susanna  F".,  died  October  16,  1893; 
Belcher,  who  died  when  very  young;  Eliza- 
beth B. ;  Sarah  E.  ;  Julietta;  and  Robert. 
Susanna  Sylvester  married  William  T.  Lap- 
ham,  of  Scituate.  Elizabeth  B.  married 
Israel  H.  Macomber,  a  farmer,  living  at 
Marshfield  Hills.  Sarah  E.  is  the  wife  of 
George  H.  Allen,  who  lives  in  Boston,  where 
he  is  now  employed  in  a  bank,  and  was  for- 
merly for  many  years  Superintendent  of 
Lamps.  Juliet  married  Frank  A.  Glapp,  and 
their  home  is  in  Wakefield.  Robert  Sylves- 
ter, Jr.,  married  Mary  B.  Turner,  and  lives  in 
Hanover,  where  he  has  taken  his  father's 
place,  and  carries  on  the  farm.  I^oammi  B. 
Sylvester  married  Emmeline  A.  Bartlett,  and 
was  engaged  in  the  shoe  business  until  he  went 
to  the  war  as  a  member  of  Gompany  G,  Eigh- 
teenth Regiment,  Massachusetts  Volunteers. 
His  death  in  September  6,  1862,  was  the  re- 
sult of  wounds  received  in  battle.  Mrs.  Sarah 
Burgess  Sylvester  died  November  9,  1855; 
and  Mr.  Sylvester's  second  wife,  formerly 
Miss  Sarah  W.  Packard,  of  Marshfield,  whom 
he  married  in  1859,  died  August  12,   1885. 

Mr.  Sylvester  has  been  a  supporter  of  the 
Republican  party  ever  since  its  formation. 
To  show  one's  loyalty  at  the  polls  a  half  cen- 
tury ago  and  more  was  not  the  easy  task  of  to- 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


595 


day.  When  William  Henry  Harrison  was  up 
for  President,  Mr.  Sylvester  journeyed  forty 
miles  to  cast  his  vote.  He  is  of  the  orthodox 
faith  in  religion,  and  is  a  member  of  the  Con- 
gfreijational  church. 


^-fT^ELEG  R.  HADLEY,  who  has  been 
1^^^  identified  with  the  mercantile  and 
J->-^  industrial  interests  of  the  town  of 
Marion,  Plymouth  County,  for  many  years, 
was  born  August  8,  1848,  at  Rochester,  now 
Marion.  His  father,  Andrew  J.  Hadley,  was 
formerly  a  well-known  merchant  of  this  town. 
He  was  twice  married,  his  first  wife  (mother 
of  our  subject)  being  Sarah  E.  Cobb,  daughter 
of  the  Rev.  Oliver  Cobb,  a  Congregationalist 
minister,  who  preached  for  years  in  Marion, 
in  which  place  he  died.  By  her  he  had  two 
children.  His  second  wife,  Louisa  Brett, 
who  was  a  daughter  of  the  Rev.  Pliny  Brett,  a 
Methodist  minister,  bore  him  five  children. 
He  and  his  second  wife  are  still  living. 

Peleg  B.  Hadley  acquired  the  rudiments  of 
his  education  in  the  Marion  schools,  after 
which  ho  attended  Dartmouth  Academy  and 
Phillips  Academy  of  Andover,  Mass.  When 
seventeen  years  old  he  entered  his  father's 
store  as  clerk,  and  while  in  that  position 
proved  himself  so  well  adapted  for  a  mercantile 
career  that  he  was  admitted  into  partnership 
with  his  father.  A  few  years  later  Mr.  Had- 
ley formed  a  copartnership  with  Mr.  T.  A. 
Handy,  with  whom  he  was  in  business  ten 
years.  In  1890  Mr.  Handy  died,  and  the  bus- 
iness was  carried  on  by  Mr.  Hadley,  who  had 
an  extensive  trade  in  general  merchandise, 
carrying  a  good  assortment  of  dry  goods,  gro- 
ceries, hay,  feed,  flour,  etc.  At  the  end  of 
two  years  he  sold  out  to  his  brother,  Stephen 
D.  Hadley.  In  politics  Mr.  Hadley  is  a 
stanch  adherent  of  the  Republican  party,  and 


gives  his  aid  and  encouragement  to  the  various 
enterprises  inaugurated  for  the  general  welfare 
of  the  people  of  his  town  and  county.  For 
three  years  he  served  as  Selectman,  in  1892 
was  Town  Auditor,  and  is  now  Assessor,  Over- 
seer of  the  Poor,  and  a  member  of  the  Board 
of  Health. 

Mr.  Hadley  has  been  twice  married.  In 
July,  1872,  he  was  united  in  matrimony  with 
Abbie  W.  Dean,  who  bore  him  two  children, 
one  of  whom  died  in  infancy.  The  other, 
Susie  D.,  was  graduated  from  Tabor  Acad- 
emy, and  is  now  a  student  at  the  Boston  Con- 
servatory of  Music.  After  the  death  of  his 
first  wife,  which  occurred  September  25,  1875, 
Mr.  Hadley  married  Miss  Priscilla  H.  Handy, 
daughter  of  Augustus  H.  and  Susan  N.  Handy. 
By  her  he  has  two  children  —  Augustus  A. 
and  Elizabeth  B.  Mr.  Hadley  is  a  Knight 
of  Honor,  belonging  to  Wareham  Lodge, 
No.  1,003,  of  Marion. 


JOSEPH  OLIVER  BURDETT,  an  able 
Boston  attorney,  residing  in  Hingham, 
Plymouth  County,  was  born  in  South 
Reading  (now  Wakefield),  Mass.,  October  30, 
1848.  His  parents  were  Joseph  and  Sally  J. 
(Mansfield)  Burdett.  His  paternal  great- 
grandfather, Joseph  Burdett,  was  a  native  of 
Maiden,  Mass.,  where  he  carried  on  farming, 
and  lived  to  a  good  old  age.  His  son 
Michael,  a  farmer  and  shoemaker  by  occupa- 
tion, was  a  native  and  lifelong  resident  of 
Wakefield.  He  was  prominent  in  local  affairs, 
and  was  a  W'hig  in  politics.  He  married 
Dolly  Di.x,  of  Wakefield,  and  they  had  seven 
children.  Both  parents  were  members  of  the 
orthodox  Congregational  church.  Mrs.  Mi- 
chael Burdett  died  in  early  womanhood,  while 
her  husband  lived  to  be  seventy-six  years  old. 
Their  children  were:  Michael,  Mary,  Oliver, 


596 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


Joseph  and  Sarah  D.  (twins),  George,  and 
Samuel  D.  Michael  died  at  the  age  of 
ninety-five.  Mary  married  Samuel  Nichols, 
an  orthodox  minister,  and  they  had  five  chil- 
dren —  Samuel,  James,  Daniel,  Martha,  and 
John  H.  Samuel  and  Daniel  both  served  in 
the  Civil  War,  enlisting  as  privates;  and 
Daniel  was  promoted  to  the  rank  of  Major  for 
bravery.  Martha  (now  deceased),  was  an 
army  nurse  during  the  war.  John  H.  Nichols 
is  now  a  member  of  the  firm  of  Russ  Cobb  & 
Co.,  and  resides  in  Dorchester,  Mass.  Oliver 
Burdett  died  at  the  age  of  forty-five.  Joseph 
and  Sarah  D.  Burdett  died  at  the  age  of  eighty, 
Sarah  dying  a  few  months  previous  to  her 
brother.  George  was  twice  married,  and  by 
his  first  wife  had  four  children  —  George  A., 
Mervin,  Melville  W. ,  and  Francelia.  Sam- 
uel D.  Burdett  was  a  medical  practitioner  in 
Philadelphia  for  many  years.  He  died  at  the 
age  of  fifty. 

Joseph  Burdett,  son  of  Michael  and  Dolly 
Di.\  Burdett,  was  born  May  15,  181 1.  He 
first  worked  at  shoemaking,  and  later  went  to 
Providence,  R.I.,  where  he  was  employed  as 
clerk  in  a  furniture  store.  He  subsequently 
engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  shoes,  but 
finally  gave  up  that  business,  and  turned  his 
attention  to  farming.  In  politics  he  was  first 
a  Jacksonian  Democrat,  then  a  Free  Soiler; 
but  in  his  later  days  he  affiliated  with  the  Re- 
publican party.  He  was  a  member  of  the 
School  Committee,  and  held  other  ofifices. 
He  was  actively  interested  in  church  work, 
and  belonged  to  the  orthodox  Congregational 
church  of  Wakefield.  He  married  Sally  J. 
Mansfield,  and  they  had  seven  children,  four 
of  whom  are  now  living:  Michael  B. ;  Dolly 
M. ;  Josephine;  and  Joseph  Oliver,  the  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch.  Michael  B.,  born  in 
1837,  married  Alljina  Long,  of  Portland,  Me. 
They  have  four  children   living — Frederick, 


Cyril  H.,  Alice,  and  Owen.  Dolly  M.,  born 
in  1842,  is  the  widow  of  Charles  Avery,  of 
Wakefield,  and  has  no  children.  Josephine 
has  been  twice  married.  Her  first  husband 
was  Delano  Robinson,  by  whom  she  had  two 
children  —  Alvernus  and  Charles.  She  re- 
sides with  her  present  husband,  a  Mr.  Gush- 
ing, in  San  Francisco.  The  father,  Joseph 
Burdett,  died  in  1891,  at  the  age  of  eighty 
years. 

Joseph  O.  Burdett  attended  the  Wakefield 
schools,  and  was  subsequently  graduated  from 
Tufts  College  in  the  .class  of  1871,  having  al- 
ternated study  with  teaching  in  order  to  defray 
his  expenses.  In  1868-69  he  taught  in  Hing- 
ham,  and  for  a  few  months  he  taught  private 
school  in  Harvard,  Mass.  After  his  gradua- 
tion from  Tufts  College  he  entered  the  Har- 
vard Law  School;  and,  while  a  student  there, 
studied  law  simultaneously  in  the  ofifice  of 
Judge  Hammond.  On  April  19,  1873,  he  was 
admitted  to  the  Middlesex  bar,  and  took  up 
his  residence  in  Hingham.  He  subsequently 
opened  an  ofifice  in  Boston,  at  53  State  Street, 
in  which  he  still  practises  his  profession.  In 
politics  he  afifiliates  with  the  Republican 
party,  and  has  been  a  member  jof  the  State 
Republican  Committee  for  six  years,  during 
three  of  which  he  has  officiated  as  Chairman. 
Mr.  Burdett  has  served  on  the  School  Com- 
mittee continuously  since  1876,  having  been 
its  Chairman  for  the  past  seventeen  years. 
Since  his  admission  to  the  bar  he  has  been  a 
Justice  of  the  Peace,  and  for  twenty-one  years 
he  has  been  Master  in  Chancery.  Since  1876 
he  has  been  Town  Counsel,  and  in  1884  and 
1885  he  was  Representative  to  the  legislature. 
He  was  the  only  Hingham  resident  who  took 
an  active  interest  in  the  establishment  of  an 
electric  light  plant,  and  he  served  as  Director 
of  the  company  until  the  plant  was  purchased 
by    the    town.      He    belongs    to    Old    Colony 


NATHANIEL    CHURCH. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


599 


Lodge,    No.    1 08,    Independent   Order  of   Odd 
Fellows,  of  Hingham. 

On  June  30,  1S74,  Mr.  Burdett  was  united 
in  marriage  with  Miss  Ella  J.  Carthell,  daugh- 
ter of  John  and  Joan  J.  (Ripley)  Carthell,  of 
Hingham.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Burdett  have  three 
children:  Harold  C,  born  May  5,  1877; 
Edith  M,  born  December  26,  1880;  and  Helen 
R.,  born  October  27,  1882.  In  religious  be- 
lief they  are  Unitarians. 


lAPTAIN  NATHANIEL  CHURCH. 
Among  the  hale  and  vigorous  old  citi- 
zens of  Marshfield  —  a  town  boast- 
ing many  remarkable  examples  of  longevity  — 
no  one  is  better  known  or  more  esteemed  than 
Captain  Nathaniel  Church.  He  was  born  in 
Marshfield,  Mass.,  March  19,  181 2,  a  son  of 
Captain  David  and  Betty  (Keen)  Church,  and 
comes  of  English  stock  long  planted  in  the 
soil  of  the  Old  Colony. 

Richard  Church,  the  immigrant  ancestor  of 
the  family,  was  in  Boston,  Mass.,  as  early  as 
1630,  and  in  Plymouth  in  1633.  He  married 
Elizabeth  Warren,  who  came  over  with  her 
mother  and  sisters  in  the  "Ann  "  nearly  three 
years  after  her  father.  Richard  came  in  the 
"Mayflower."  So  far  as  we  are  aware  a  com- 
plete genealogy  of  the  Church  family  in 
America,  or  even  of  the  first  five  or  si.x  genera- 
tions, has  not  been  published.  Historical 
writers  mention  among  other  children  of  the 
first  Richard,  Nathaniel  of  Scituate,  Mass., 
and  Benjamin,  born  in  1639,  the  noted  leader 
in  the  Indian  wars,  who  married  Alice  South- 
worth,  daughter  of  Constant  Southworth,  and 
lived  for  a  time  in  Duxbury,  Mass.,  but  settled 
lateral  Little  Compton,  R.I.  Colonel  Benja- 
min Church  had  a  son  Thomas  born  in  1674; 
Constant,  born  in  1676;  Edward;  Charles; 
Benjamin,  who  never  married;  a  son  that  died 


in  infancy;  and  a  daughter  Elizabeth.  Na- 
thaniel Church,  first,  of  Scituate,  was  the 
father  of  Richard  second,  Nathaniel  second, 
Joseph,  Charles,  and  three  daughters. 

The  paternal  grandfather  of  Captain  Nathan- 
iel Church  of  this  sketch  was  Constant  Church, 
a  native  of  that  part  of  the  old  town  of  Scitu- 
ate that  is  now  Norwell,  who  is  thought  to 
have  been  of  the  line  of  Colonel  Benjamin 
Church,  several  of  whose  posterity  in  the  early 
generations  bore  that  name  in  honor  of  his 
wife's  father. 

Captain  David  Church,  son  of  Constant 
Church,  of  Scituate,  followed  the  sea  for  a 
number  of  years,  commanding  vessels  in  the 
coasting  and  packet  marine  service,  and  was 
widely  known  and  very  popular.  He  died  in 
Marshfield  in  1839.  His  wife,  who  was  born 
in  Duxbury,  Mass.,  died  in  Marshfield  in 
February,   1840. 

Nathaniel  Church  grew  to  manhood  on  a 
farm  in  Marshfield,  acquiring  a  knowledge  of 
reading,  writing,  and  arithmetic  in  a  little  old- 
fashioned  school-house  very  different  from  the 
finely-equipped  halls  of  learning  of  to-day. 
His  attendance  was  limited  to  the  winter  ses- 
sions, and  when  he  was  sixteen  years  old  his 
education  was  supposed  to  be  finished;  but,  as 
a  matter  of  fact,  he  has  kejit  his  eyes  open,  his 
mind  active,  and  through  reading  and  observa- 
tion has  been  a  learner  from  his  youth  up. 
During  the  years  of  his  active  manhood  he  was 
engaged  in  farming  and  teaming,  the  latter  in 
the  winter  season.  When  ship-building  was 
flourishing  in  this  localityy-he  was  kept  very 
busy  in  winter  hauling  lumber  to  the  docks. 
He  is  now  practically  retired  from  business 
pursuits.  He  has  witnessed  many  changes  in 
industrial  conditions  in  Marshfield,  and  is  well 
acquainted  with  the  history  of  the  place  for  the 
past  three-quarters  of  a  century.  Joining  the 
militia  when   he   was   eighteen   years   old,    he 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


eventual  1\-   became   the   commander   of  a   com- 


pany ; 


and   since   that   time  he  has  been  gen- 


erally known  as  Captain  Church. 

He  has  been  three  times  married.  His 
first  wife,  Eveline  Sherman,  bore  him  three 
children:  lietsey  K.,  wife  of  William  J. 
Walsh,  of  Marshfield  ;  David,  who  was  killed 
in  the  battle  of  the  Wilderness;  and  Edwin, 
deceased.  His  second  wife,  Lucy  Carver,  of 
Marshfield,  was  the  mother  of  one  child  — 
Sarah  C.  (deceased).  Captain  Church  mar- 
ried for  his  third  wife  Mrs.  Janet  Logan 
Sproul  Reed,  daughter  of  Matthew  and  Janet 
(Logan)  Sproul,  and  widow  of  Marcus  Reed, 
Jr.,  of  Whitman,  Mass.  By  her  first  marriage 
she  had  four  children :  Janet  A.,  wife  of 
W.  D.  Taylor,  of  Cleveland,  Ohio;  Susan  M. , 
deceased;  Marcus  W. ,  of  Cincinnati,  Ohio; 
and  Amelia  F. ,  deceased.  Mrs.  Church  was 
born  in  Paisley,  Scotland,  where  the  famous 
Paisley  shawls  are  manufactured  and  the 
Coats  thread.  This  city  is  the  home  of  all 
her  people.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Church  are  mem- 
bers of  the  First  Baptist  Society  of  Marshfield. 
They  are  well  known  and  esteemed,  and  the 
Captain  is  always  ready  to  favor  any  reasonable 
project  for  the  improvement  of  the  town. 


§OSEPH  WHTFE,  a  leading  business 
man  of  Hanson,  Mass.,  was  born  in 
this  town,  June  14,  1832,  son  of  Joseph 
and  Eliza  D.  (Bonney)  White.  He  is  de- 
scended from  a  long  line  of  New  England  an- 
cestry. His  progenitor,  si.\  generations  re- 
moved, was  one  Gowin  White,  of  whom  it  is 
recorded  that  he  was  one  of  the  Connihasset 
partners  in  1646.  In  1650  Gowin  White  pur- 
chased a  large  farm  of  William  Richards, 
which  remained  in  the  family  until  about 
1850.  His  son  Timothy,  born  1679,  married 
Rebecca  Simons   in    1707.     Their  son,  Timo- 


thy White,  second,  born  in  1708,  married 
Sarah  Clapp  in  1732.  Their  son  Timothy, 
third,  who  was  born  in  Scituate,  was  twice 
married,  his  second  wife  being  Temperance 
Bryant,  to  whom  he  was  united  in  1794.  He 
died  in  1825. 

Joseph  White,  son  of  Timothy,  third,  and 
father  of  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  was  born 
in  Scituate,  May  15,  1808.  He  was  educated 
in  the  common  schools,  and  engaged  in  the 
manufacture  of  boxes,  also  dealing  to  some  ex- 
tent in  horses.  He  married  Eliza  Delano 
Bonney,  daughter  of  Nathaniel  Bonney,  of 
Hanson,  and  they  had  si.\  children,  four  of 
whom  attained  maturity:  Joseph;  Eliza  Bart- 
lett;  Clayton,  now  deceased;  and  Sarah  J., 
wife  of  Bradley  S.  Bryant.  The  parents  at- 
tended and  helped  support  the  Congregational 
church,  and  the  mother,  who  was  musically 
gifted,  sang  in  the  choir  for  five  years,  dur- 
ing which  time  she  did  not  miss  a  service. 

Joseph  White,  second,  direct  subject  of  this 
sketch,  was  educated  in  the  common  schools, 
though  perhaps  the  most  valuable  part  of  his 
education  has  been  acquired  in  the  great  and 
practical  school  of  life.  He  began  to  be 
self-supporting  at  a  comparatively  early  age, 
working  in  the  tannery  and  box  factory  of  his 
father,  with  whom  he  remained  until  he  was 
twenty-one.  He  then  began  to  deal  in  horses 
and  carriages  on  his  own  account,  in  which 
pursuit  he  showed  good  judgment,  and  laid  the 
foundations  of  his  present  prosperity.  In  the 
early  seventies  Mr.  White  built  his  present 
factories,  and  began  the  manufacture  of  heavy 
wagons,  an  enterprise  the  success  of  which 
has  been  marked,  and  which  is  still  growing. 
The  factory  furnishes  employment  most  of  the 
time  to  eight  or  ten  men,  and  the  business  is 
one  of  the  most  firmly  established  in  the  town 
of  Hanson. 

Mr.  White  was  married  November  24,  1859, 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


6oi 


to  Sarah  E.  Perry,  daughter  of  Josiah  F. 
Perry,  of  Hanover,  Mass.  They  have  five 
children,  namely:  Josephine,  who  married 
Edward  Churchill,  of  East  Bridgewater;  Jo- 
seph Bartlett,  who  married  Mrs.  Anna  Bates, 
of  South  Hanover;  Catherine  A.,  wife  of 
Walter  Calder,  of  South  Hanson;  Howard  H., 
who  married  Annie  A.  Howland,  of  Duxbury; 
and  Bern  ice  E. 

Josiah  F.  Perry,  father  of  Mrs.  White,  was 
born  in  Dorchester,  Mass.,  September  17, 
1809.  His  grandfather  was  Adam  Perry,  a 
native  of  Hanover,  who  fought  in  the  Revolu- 
tionary War,  and  a  farmer  by  occupation.  Jo- 
siah Perry  obtained  such  education  as  was 
then  afforded  by  the  district  schools.  He 
learned  the  trade  of  an  iron  moulder,  which 
he  followed  until  he  removed  to  Hanover  in 
the  early  fifties.  There  he  located  on  a  farm 
which  had  belonged  to  his  grandfather,  and 
which  he  carried  on  as  long  as  he  lived.  He 
took  an  intelligent  interest  in  public  affairs, 
and  was  a  firm  Democrat  politically.  On 
February  9,  1836,  he  married  Sarah  C.  Hil- 
dreth,  daughter  of  James  Varnum  Hildreth, 
of  Dracut,  Mass.  By  her  he  became  the  father 
of  eight  children,  five  of  whom  grew  to  matur- 
ity, namely:  Sarah  E.  (Mrs.  Joseph  White); 
Josiah  Field,  now  a  resident  of  Haverhill, 
Mass. ;  James  Henry,  who  served  in  the  war 
in  the  Eighteenth  Massachusetts  Volunteers, 
and  died  in  1890,  unmarried ;  Anna  A.  Mer- 
rill; and  Clara  F.,  now  residing  in  Provi- 
dence, R. I.,  where  she  is  employed  as  a 
teacher. 

Mrs.  Perry  can  trace  her  ancestry  back  on 
her  mother's  side  for  many  generations,  the 
first  ancestor  of  whom  there  is  record  being 
Sergeant  Richard  Hildreth,  who  was  born  in 
England  in  1605.  He  was  a  magistrate  and  a 
man  of  some  importance  in  his  native  country. 
Later  in  life  he  came  to   America,  settling  in 


Chelmsford,  Mass.,  where  he  died  in  1688. 
His  son.  Lieutenant  James  Hildreth,  was  born 
in  England  in  1631.  He  married  Margaret 
Ward.  The  next  ancestor  was  Major  Ephraim 
Hildreth.  His  second  son,  Josiah,  born  in 
1 7 10,  in  1740  married  Rebecca  Wright,  and 
they  had  five  children.  Their  fourth  child. 
Captain  Josiah  Hildreth,  Jr.,  was  born  in 
1746.  He  fought  for  American  independence 
in  the  Revolutionary  War,  being  one  of  Cap- 
tain Peter  Coburn's  company  in  1775;  and  in 
1777  he  fought  under  General  Gates,  in  Cap- 
tain Joseph  Varnum's  company.  After  the 
surrender  of  General  Burgoyne,  he  was  one  of 
those  appointed  to  escort  the  British  prisoners 
and  captured  military  stores  to  Boston.  He 
married  Hannah  Varnum.  Their  son,  James 
Varnum  Hildreth,  was  the  maternal  grand- 
father of  Mrs.  White.  He  was  born  Decem- 
ber 12,  1774,  in  IDracut,  Mass.,  and  was  a 
farmer  by  occupation.  He  married  Susannah 
Richardson,  daughter  of  Obadiah  Richardson, 
and  they  had  eight  children,  of  whom  Sarah 
C,  mother  of  Mrs.  White,  was  the  youngest. 

From  Susannah  Richardson  Hildreth,  her 
maternal  grandmother,  Mrs.  White  traces  her 
ancestry  back,  as  follows:  Lieutenant  Obadiah 
Richardson  was  a  son  of  Moses  Richardson, 
who  was  son  of  Captain  Josiah,  third,  who  was 
son  of  Lieutenant  Josiah,  second,  who  was 
son  of  Captain  Josiah,  first,  who  was  the  sec- 
ond son  of  Ezekiel  Richardson,  who  came  from 
England  in  1630,  and  was  one  of  the  founders 
of  Woburn,  Mass. 

Mr.  White  is  distinctively  an  American  by 
birth,  ancestry,  and  personal  characteristics. 
His  high  standing  as  a  business  man  and  citi- 
zen has  been  wholly  self-achieved.  His  wife 
is  a  woman  of  rare  sagacity  and  exceptional 
business  ability,  and  her  wise  counsels  and 
ready  assistance  have  been  of  great  value  to 
her    husband.      Besides    his    regular    business 


6o2 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


Mr.  White  has  large  real  estate  interests  in 
the  vicinity  of  Brant  Rock.  lie  and  his  wife 
attend  and  help  support  the  Congregational 
church. 


DTrEDERICK  HOWARD,  who,  during 
Plj  his  long  and  active  career  was  one  of 
the  most  esteemed  residents  of  Brock- 
ton, was  born  in  this  town  (then  known  as  the 
North  Parish  of  Bridgewater),  February  14, 
181 5.  He  is  a  descendant  of  John  Howard, 
who  came  from  England,  and  settled  first  in 
Duxbury,  and  later,  about  165 1,  in  West 
Bridgewater.  John  Howard  is  said  to  have 
lived,  when  a  lad,  in  the  family  of  Miles 
Standish.  He  was  a  man  of  great  influence, 
and  was  one  of  the  first  military  officers  in 
Bridgewater.  From  him  Mr.  Howard's  line 
of  descent  is  traced  through  John,  second, 
Robert  (who  held  the  title  of  Captain,  and 
was  one  of  the  first  settlers  of  the  North 
Parish),  Daniel,  and  Darius,  our  subject's 
father. 

Darius  Howard  married  first  Sophia,  daugh- 
ter of  Jonas  Howard,  June  3,  1804,  and  by  her 
had  three  children.  His  wife  dying  August 
15,  1807,  on  June  5,  1808,  he  married  for 
his  second  wife,  Huklah,  daughter  of  Jonathan 
Carey.  Their  family  consisted  of  seven  chil- 
dren, of  whom  Frederick  was  the  fourth.  The 
father,  who  died  in  1836,  was  a  jirominent 
man  in  the  town,  serving  at  different  times  as 
Selectman  and  Deputy  Sheriff. 

Frederick  Howard,  our  direct  subject,  was 
educated  in  the  common  schools  of  North 
Bridgewater.  At  the  early  age  of  thirteen  he 
entered  the  employ  of  Lysander  Howard, 
dressing  and  cutting  shoes,  for  which  he  re- 
ceived only  one  shilling  per  day  for  the  first 
si.x  months.  He  remained  thus  engaged  until 
he  was  twenty-one,  and  earned  in  that  time 
eleven  hundred  dollars,  half  of  which  he  re- 


tained, the  other  half  going  to  his  father. 
He  then  worked  one  year  for  Rufus  E.  How- 
ard, in  the  same  business,  having  charge  of 
the  cutting  department.  In  1S37  he  began 
for  himself  in  a  small  way,  in  the  manufact- 
ure of  boots  and  shoes,  which  he  carried  on 
si.\  years,  when  failing  health  compelled  him 
to  relinquish  it.  P'rom  that  time  until  his 
death  he  dealt  in  real  estate,  and  also  was  en- 
gaged to  some  extent  in  the  settlement  of  es- 
tates. He  was  a  Director  of  the  North 
Bridgewater  Bank  during  its  existence,  from 
1854  to  1865.  A  Republican  in  politics,  he 
became  prominent  in  town  affairs,  and  held 
various  positions  of  responsibility  and  trust. 
He  was  Selectman,  Assessor,  and  Overseer  of 
the  Poor  (one  year,  in  1849),  and  was  Special 
County  Commissioner  nine  years.  Of  a  gen- 
erous and  charitable  nature,  he  expended 
thousands  of  dollars  in  acts  of  private  benevo- 
lence. Though  an  octogenarian,  and  an  in- 
valid for  some  time  prior  to  his  death,  his 
mental  powers  remained  bright,  and  he  pre- 
served a  cheerful  disposition  to  the  end.  His 
memory  will  long  be  honored  by  the  commu- 
nity in  which  he  spent  his  life. 


BED  LINCOLN  RIPLEY,  the  efficient 
Treasurer  of  the  Rhodes  &  Ripley 
Clothing  Company  of  Boston,  and  an 
esteemed  resident  of  Hingham,  Plymouth 
County,  was  born  in  this  town.  May  23,  1831, 
son  of  Ebed  and  Leah  (Jones)  Ripley.  The 
family  are  of  P]nglish  extraction,  the  earliest- 
known  ancestor  being  William,  a  weaver  by 
trade,  who  came  from  England  in  1638,  and 
settled  in  New  Hingham.  The  same  year  he 
had  a  grant  of  four  acres  of  land,  the  greater 
part  of  which  is  still  held  by  his  descendants. 
By  his  first  wife,  whom  he  married  in  Eng- 
land,   he   had  four  children,    who  came    with 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


603 


him  to  America.  John,  the  eldest,  married 
Elizabeth,  daughter  of  the  Rev.  Peter  Hobart, 
and  they  had  seven  children.  He  died  at  the 
age  of  fifty-two,  and  his  wife  at  the  age  of 
sixty.  Peter,  their  fifth  child,  and  next  in 
line,  was  born  in  Hingham  in  1668.  He  was 
a  cooper  by  trade,  and  became  quite  promi- 
nent in  town  affairs,  serving  as  Constable  in 
1708,  and  as  Selectman  in  1725.  He  married 
Sarah  Lassell,  daughter  of  John  and  Elizabeth 
Lassell,  of  Hingham,  and  they  had  si.\  chil- 
dren. The  father  died  at  the  age  of  seventy- 
four,  and  the  mother  at  seventy.  Peter,  their 
second  child,  born  in  Hingham,  married  for 
his  first  wife  Silence  Lincoln,  daughter  of 
Caleb  and  Rachel  Lincoln,  of  this  town,  and 
they  became  the  parents  of  eight  children. 
He  was  prominent  in  town  affairs,  being  Con- 
stable in  1735,  and  Selectman  in  1738  and 
1741.  He  died  at  the  age  of  sixty-nine  years. 
Nehemiah,  their  fifth  child,  married  Lydia 
Hobart,  daughter  of  the  Rev.  Nehemiah  and 
Lydia  Hobart,  and  they  had  seven  children. 
He  was  a  farmer  by  occupation,  served  as 
Constable,  and  died  in  his  forty-third  year. 

Nehemiah,  second  child  of  Nehemiah  and 
Lydia  Hobart  Ripley,  and  the  grandfather  of 
the'subject  of  this  sketch,  was  born  in  Hing- 
ham in  1755.  He  lived  on  the  homestead  all 
his  life,  following  agricultural  pursuits.  He 
married  Priscilla  Lincoln,  whose  mother's 
maiden  name  was  Mary  Burr,  and  they  had 
nine  children.  They  were  members  of  the 
First  Orthodo.x  Church.  He  lived  to  the  age 
of  seventy-four  years. 

Ebed,  seventh  child  of  Nehemiah  and  Pris- 
cilla Lincoln  Ripley,  was  born  in  Hingham, 
November  15,  1793.  He  learned  the  trade  of 
a  box  cooper,  and  was  also  land  surveyor, 
which  profession  he  followed  through  life. 
In  politics  he  was  at  first  a  Whig  and  later  a 
Republican.      He  was  a  hard-working  man,  and 


left  a  good  property  at  his  death,  which  oc- 
curred at  the  age  of  eighty-two  years.  His 
wife,  whose  maiden  name  was  Leah  Jones, 
was  a  daughter  of  Benjamin  Jones,  of  Hing- 
ham. She  had  three  children  —  Mary  Burr, 
Joan,  and  Ebed.  Mary  Burr  Ripley  married 
John  K.  Carthell,  and  died  leaving  three  chil- 
dren— -John  G.,  Henry  R.,  and  Mary  R. 
Joan  Ripley  became  Mr.  Carthell's  wife  after 
the  death  of  her  sister,  and  is  now  his  widow. 
She  has  one  child  living,  Ella.  The  father 
and  mother  were  Unitarians  in  religious  belief; 
and  the  mother  died  at  the  age  of  fifty-eight. 

Ebed  L.  Ripley  was  educated  in  the  public 
schools  and  at  Derby  Academy  in  Hingham. 
He  then  went  to  New  London,  Conn.,  where 
he  was  employed  for  one  year,  after  which  he 
returned  to  Hingham.  He  subsequently  went 
to  Boston,  entering  the  employ  of  Fearing  & 
Whitney,  wholesale  clothing  dealers,  with 
whom  he  remained  seven  years,  finally  suc- 
ceeding them  as  part  proprietor,  the  firm  name 
being  changed  to  Rhodes  &  Ripley  in  July, 
1855.  Later  the  firm  was  known  under  the 
style  of  Rhodes,  Ripley  &  Co.,  until  1896, 
when  it  was  incorporated  as  the  Rhodes  & 
Ripley  Clothing  Company,  Mr.  Ripley  becom- 
ing its  Treasurer.  Mr.  Ripley  is  a  Republi- 
can politically,  and  has  twice  served  as  dele- 
gate to  national  conventions,  helping  to  nomi- 
nate Blaine  and  Harrison.  He  is  I'resident 
of  the  Hingham  Water  Company,  being  one 
of  the  prime  movers  in  getting  the  power  es- 
tablished; President  of  the  Hingham  Agri- 
cultural and  Horticultural  "Society,  having 
held  that  position  for  the  past  sixteen  years; 
President  of  the  Hingham  Cemetery  Corpora- 
tion; and  has  been  President  of  the  Hingham 
Co-operative  Bank  since  its  organization,  hav- 
ing been  actively  interested  in  its  establish- 
ment. He  officiates  also  as  Trustee  of  the 
Hingham  Public  Library. 


6o4 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Mr.  Ripley  has  been  twice  married.  His 
first  wife,  Henrietta  Hersey  by  maiden  name, 
was  a  daughter  of  Seth  S.  and  Betsy  R. 
Hersey,  of  Hingham.  She  died  in  i86S,  at 
the  age  of  thirty-two,  leaving  no  children. 
On  January  3,  1871,  Mr.  Ripley  married  for. 
his  second  wife  Miss  Elizabeth  Henry  Mel- 
ville Hersey,  daughter  of  Henry  and  Betsy 
Hersey,  and  a  niece  of  his  first  wife.  They 
have  seven  children,  namely:  Henry  Francis, 
born  March  2,  1872;  Ebed  R. ,  born  Novem- 
ber 6,  1873;  William  Ripley,  born  March  i, 
1876;  Nettie  M.,  born  April  12,  1878;  Alice, 
born  August  3,  1880;  Bessie  W.,  born  March 
26,  1883;  and  Reginald  L.,  who  was  born 
July  6,  1 891.  Mr.  Ripley  is  a  member  of  the 
Masonic  order.  He  and  his  wife  are  believers 
in  the  Unitarian  faith. 


'AMUEL  HERVEY  CHURCH,  a 

prosperous  agriculturist  and  highly 
respected  citizen  of  Hanover,  Mass., 
is  a  native  of  this  town.  He  was  born  at 
Hanover  Four  Corners,  September  15,  1830, 
and  was  the  eldest  of  the  seven  children  of 
Samuel  S.  and  Sarah  (Sylvester)  Church,  the 
names  of  the  other  si.x  being:  Timothy, 
Julietta  S.,  Sarah  E. ,  Mary  A.,  Robert,  and 
Benjamin.  Their  paternal  grandfather  was 
Timothy   Church. 

After  attending  the  district  school  and  Han- 
over Academy,  at  the  age  of  seventeen  Sam- 
uel H.  Church  began  working  at  the  trade  of 
an  anchorsmith,  at  which  he  served  a  three 
years'  apprenticeship  with  John  Sylvester,  of 
Hanover;  and,  after  remaining  with  him 
another  year  as  journeyman,  went  to  East  Wey- 
mouth. Returning  to  Hanover  at  the  end  of 
twelve  months,  he  worked  at  his  trade  here  for 
a  few  years,  subsequently  going  to  Somerset, 
and   thence   to   Raynham ;  from  which   place. 


four  years  later,  he  again  returned  to  Hanover, 
and  worked  until  1868  at  Curtis's  anchor  works. 
When  the  Hanover  Railroad  was  started  he 
held  the  position  of  assistant  station  agent 
here  about  ten  months,  after  which  he  engaged 
in  the  coal  and  grain  business  for  eight 
months.  Mr.  Church  then  sold  out,  and  in 
1870  he  removed  to  the  farm  where  he  now 
lives,  and  is  engaged  in  the  saw  and  grist  mill 
business  in  addition  to  his  farm  work.  Mis 
homestead  contains  si.xty  acres,  and  he  also 
owns  other  tracts  of  land,  making  in  all  one 
hundred  and  fifty  acres. 

In  1 861  he  was  married  to  Miss  Ellen  C. 
Gardner.  Their  only  child,  a  son,  Edward 
G.,  who  was  born  July  20,  1868,  died  March 
II,  1876.  Mr.  Church  is  a  stanch  Republi- 
can. He  has  served  acceptably  in  various 
minor  town  offices,  also  as  Assessor,  Overseer 
of  the  Poor,  and  Selectman  from  1877  to 
1889  —  twelve  successive  years. 


^APTAIN  JOSHUA  L.  MACOMBER, 
an  old  and  respected  citizen  residing 
in  Mattapoisett,  Plymouth  County, 
is  one  of  the  large  number  of  men  in  this  lo- 
cality who,  after  many  years  of  seafaring  life, 
have  engaged  successfully  in  industrial  pur- 
suits. He  was  born  in  Mattapoisett,  January 
16,  1829,  and  was  reared  in  this  town,  acquir- 
ing a  limited  education.  He  went  to  work  at 
the  early  age  of  fourteen,  and  for  two  years 
was  employed  as  a  clerk  in  a  store  in  New 
Bedford.  Then,  when  a  lad  of  si.xteen,  he 
started  on  his  nautical  career,  engaging  as 
cabin  boy  on  the  ship  "Roman,"  a  New  Bed- 
ford whaler. 

The  vessel  sailed  for  the  whaling  grounds 
of  the  Pacific  Ocean,  and  was  out  from  port 
thirty-two  months  and  twenty-seven  days. 
On  his  return  to  New  Bedford  the  lad  shipped 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


60S 


again,  this  time  engaging  as  boat  steerer  on 
the  ship  "Abraham  Barker,"  which  was  out 
twenty-three  months,  cruising  in  the  Arctic 
and  Pacific  Oceans.  His  next  voyage,  which 
covered  thirty-two  months,  was  as  third  mate 
of  the  same  vessel,  cruising  in  the  Arctic 
Ocean;  and  he  was  subsequently  first  mate  of 
the  "Abraham  Barker"  during  a  forty-five 
months'  cruise  in  the  Arctic  Ocean,  the 
Okhotsk  Sea,  and  the  North  Pacific.  His 
fifth  voyage  was  as  first  mate  of  the  bark 
"Martha  0.,"  of  New  Bedford,  which  was  out 
forty-eight  months  to  a  day,  sailing  the  Arctic 
and  Pacific  Oceans.  On  his  ne.xt  voyage  he 
left  port  as  mate  of  the  same  ship,  and,  the 
captain  dying  when  she  was  out  some  thirteen 
months,  he  was  given  charge  of  the  vessel. 

From  beginning  to  end  the  voyage  was  a  dis- 
astrous one.  On  June  29,  1865,  the  ship  was 
burned  in  Behring  Straits  by  the  "Shenan- 
doah," one  of  the  Confederate  privateers  which 
were  fitted  out  in  Great  Britain,  through  the 
connivance  of  the  British  government,  to  prey 
on  American  commerce;  and  the  crew,  with 
the  sailors  from  seven  other  vessels,  making 
two  hundred  and  forty  men  all  told,  were 
crowded  on  one  vessel.  This  arrangement, 
however,  was  unsafe  for  the  captors,  and  part 
of  the  men  were  afterward  placed  on  another 
vessel.  Captain  Macombcr  landed  at  the 
.Sandwich  Islands,  went  thence  to  San  P'ran- 
cisco,  and  from  there  home.  On  this  voyage 
he  was  injured  by  a  whale,  and  his  hurt  was 
so  serious  that  he  decided  to  retire  from  the 
sea.  Accordingly;  he  located  in  his  present 
home,  and  engaged  in  the  manufacture  of  lum- 
ber and  shingles,  establishing  a  saw-mill  in 
Mattapoisett,  which  is  still  under  his  direc- 
tion. 

Captain  Macomber  was  married  May  23, 
1853,  to  Miss  Sophronia  D.  Cowen,  who  died 
in  1874.      She  was  the  mother  of  two  children 


— -Susan  M.  and  Elizabeth,  who  are  both  with 
her  in  the  world  beyond.  In  1876  the  Cap- 
tain was  united  in  matrimony  with  Miss  Mary 
G.  Hiller,  who  still  presides  over  his  house- 
hold. By  this  union  he  has  three  children: 
Joshua;  Chloe,  a  student  at  Providence  Acad- 
emy ;  and  Seth.  A  popular  member  of  the 
Republican  party,  Captain  Macomber  has 
served  on  the  School  Board  for  twenty  years, 
and  officiated  as  Justice  of  the  Peace  for  si.\- 
teen  years.  In  religion  he  is  a  member  of  the 
Society  of  Friends. 


/3)eORGE  E.  DAVIS,  a  well-known 
\  piT  resident  of  Hingham,  Mass.,  en- 
gaged in  business  as  an  ice  dealer 
and  expressman,  was  born  in  Bombay,  Frank- 
lin County,  N.Y. ,  July  11,  1S51,  son  of 
George  W.  and  Caroline  (Jackson)  Davis. 
His  grandfather,  George  E.  Davis,  first,  was  a 
native  of  Wales,  and  lived  there  until  he  was 
three  years  of  age,  when  his  father,  the  great- 
grandfather of  the  subject  of  this  sketch,  emi- 
grated to  Connecticut,  where  he  engaged  in 
agricultural  pursuits.  Grandfather  Davis 
married  Pamice  Butler,  of  Vermont,  and  they 
had  ten  children.  He  died  at  the  age  of  sixty- 
five,  while  his  wife  lived  to  the  advanced  age 
of  ninety-six  years.  His  political  principles 
were  those  of  the  Republican  party,  and  he 
was  liberal  in  religion.  Serving  as  a  private 
in  the  War  of  18 12,  he  was  wounded,  and  he 
drew  a  pension  for  many  years  thereafter. 

George  W.,  his  second  ehtld,  and  the  fatht-r 
of  George  E.,  of  Hingham,  was  born  in  Grand 
Isle,  Vt.  At  the  age  of  nine  years  he  re- 
moved with  his  parents  to  Bombay,  N.Y. , 
where  he  grew  to  mahood,  being  largely  self- 
educated.  He  studied  law,  and,  besides 
doing  a  large  business  drawing  deeds  and  set- 
tling   estates,     became     prominent    in     town 


6o6 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


affairs,  serving  as  Custom-house  Collector  for 
fifteen  years,  being  appointed  in  1870.  He 
also  officiated  as  Justice  of  the  Peace  for  many 
years.  In  politics  he  affiliates  with  the  Re- 
publican party,  and  in  religion  he  is  liberal. 
Still  a  resident  of  Bombay,  and  somewhat  ad- 
vanced in  life,  he  is  yet  hale  and  hearty.  He 
has  met  with  excellent  financial  success. 

He  married  Caroline  Jackson,  and  five  chil- 
dren were  born  to  them;  namely,  Daniel  C, 
James  B.  (deceased),  Martha  A.,  George  E., 
and  Laura  A.  Martha  A.  is  the  wife  of  Dr. 
H.  S.  Rockwood,  of  Bombay,  N.Y.,  and  has 
two  living  children — -George  and  Henry. 
Laura  A.  married  H.  M.  Bero,  of  Bombay. 
They  have  no  children.  The  maternal  grand- 
father, Eliphalet  Jackson,  was  born  in  Hines- 
burgh,  Vt.  At  the  age  of  twenty-one  he  re- 
moved to  Grand  River,  Canada,  and  was  mar- 
ried to  Martha  Willsie.  In  1882  they  settled 
at  Bombay,  N.Y.,  where  they  reared  a  family 
of  seven  girls  and  two  boys.  Mr.  Jackson  at- 
tained the  age  of  eighty-three  years.  His 
wife  died  at  about  fourscore. 

George  E.  Davis  received  his  early  educa- 
tion in  Bombay,  N.Y.,  and  from  the  time  he 
was  twelve  until  he  was  twenty  worked  on  a 
farm.  For  a  year  and  a  half  after  that  he  was 
employed  in  a  hotel  in  his  native  town.  He 
then  came  East,  and,  settling  in  Cohasset, 
Mass.,  remained  three  years.  In  1878  he 
came  to  Hingham,  where  he  has  continued  to 
the  present  time,  being  engaged  as  an  ice 
dealer  and  jobber,  dealing  in  hay  and  grain. 
In  1 88 1  he  established  an  express  route  from 
Nantasket  to  Boston,  which  he  also  still  runs. 
He  began  his  mercantile  career  in  a  small 
way,  but  he  has  been  so  successful  that  he  is 
now  one  of  the  most  prominent  business  men 
in  town.  In  politics  he  is  identified  with  the 
Republican  party,  but  he  is  not  an  office- 
holder.    Fraternally,    he   belongs  to  the  Old 


Colony  Lodge,  Independent  Order  of  Odd  Fel- 
lows; the  Old  Colony  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M. ; 
the  Royal  Arcanum,  Warren  Council,  Boston; 
the  Hingham  Lodge,  Knights  of  Honor;  and 
the  Golden  Cross  organization  of  Hingham. 

Mr.  Davis  and  Ada  M.  Bero,  daughter  of 
Henry  Bero,  of  Bombay,  N.Y. ,  were  married 
on  Washington's  Birthday,  1881.  They  have 
five  children — William  Harry,  George  W., 
Veda  May,  Hazel  A.,  and  Warren  P. 


LEAN  LINCOLN  SHIRLEY,  M.D., 
of  East  Bridgewater,  is  a  graduate  of 
Bowdoin  College,  and  a  thoroughly 
qualified  physician  and  surgeon.  He  was  born 
in  Fryeburg,  Me.,  February  15,  1865,  son  of 
Franklin  and  Emily  (Page)  Shirley,  and  comes 
of  notable  English  and  New  England  stock. 

His  great-great-grandfather,  Edward  Shirley, 
who  was  born  in  Burton,  Devonshire,  Eng- 
land, about  1743,  was  impressed  into  military 
service,  and  came  to  this  country  just  before 
the  breaking  out  of  the  Revolution.  Dislik- 
ing his  impressment,  and  sympathizing  with 
the  colonists,  he  left  the  British  forces,  and 
fled  to  General  Stark.  Fearing  discovery  and 
punishment  as  a  deserter,  he  was  kept  in  hid- 
ing when  not  assisting  the  General  in  building 
his  house.  Edward  Shirley  subsequently  set- 
tled in  Fryeburg,  Me.,  and  there  Jonathan, 
Edward  (third),  and  P'ranklin,  respectively 
the  great-grandfather,  grandfather,  and  father 
of  Dr.  Shirley,  were  born. 

In  England  the  Shirleys  were  connected  by 
marriage  with  the  Washingtons.  It  is  re- 
corded that  Lawrence  Washington,  of  Gray's 
Inn,  ancestor  of  George  Washington,  who 
served  as  Mayor  of  Northampton,  and  in  1538 
received  from  Henry  VIII.  the  manor  of  Sul- 
grave,  married  a  daughter  of  Shirley,  Earl 
Ferrars.       If    this    is    correct,     Shirley    blood 


BIOGRAPHICAL  REVIEW 


607 


flowed  in  George  Washington's  veins.  Eliza- 
beth Washington,  grand-daughter  of  Sir  Law- 
rence Washington,  of  Garsdon,  Wiltshire, 
second  son  of  the  first  Lawrence,  married 
Robert  Shirley,  Baron  Ferrars,  of  Chartley, 
afterward  Earl  Ferrars. 

Franklin  Shirley,  Dr.  Shirley's  father,  is  a 
well  educated  man.  For  some  time  he  man- 
aged a  farm  of  six  hundred  acres  in  Fryeburg, 
his  own  property;  and  he  was  also  in  trade 
there,  retailing  general  merchandise,  and  was 
engaged  in  the  manufacture  and  sale  of  lum- 
ber. His  wife,  Emily  (Page)  Shirley,  was  a 
descendant  of  Cornelius  Page,  probably  a  na- 
tive of  Dedham,  England,  who  settled  in 
Haverhill,  Mass.,  about  1660.  His  great- 
grandson.  Colonel  David  Page,  the  great- 
great-grandfather  of  Dr.  Shirley,  was  one  of 
the  original  seven  who  went  from  Pennacook 
(now  Concord,  N.H.,)  in  1763,  into  the  Maine 
wilderness,  and  settled  "Seven  Lots,"  now  the 
town  of  Fryeburg.  He  and  others  of  the 
seven  had  been  in  the  French  War  with 
Rogers,  participating  in  the  daring  exploits  of 
"Rogers'  Rangers";  and  in  one  of  the  lake 
fights  he  was  wounded  in  the  leg  by  a  musket 
ball.  Colonel  David  Page  was  for  many  years 
an  acting  magistrate  of  Fryeburg;  and  he  was 
one  of  the  first  Trustees  of  Fryeburg  Acad- 
emy, appointed  in  1792.  Dr.  Shirley's  great- 
grandfather and  grandfather,  Robert  and 
Albion  Page,  lived  and  died  in  Fryeburg; 
and  there  his  mother,  too,  passed  her  life,  and 
closed  her  eyes  in  death. 

It  is,  perhaps,  from  the  maternal  side  of  his 
family  that  Dr.  Shirley  inherited  his  bent  for 
medicine.  Dr.  Horatio  N.  Page,  formerly  of 
Brewer,  Me.,  and  later  of  Chelsea,  Mass.,  was 
his  great-uncle;  Dr.  Alpheus  F.  Page,  of 
Bucksport,  Me.,  and  Samuel  Bradley,  of  Old- 
town,  Me.,  whose  mother  was  a  Page,  were  his 
mother's    cousins;     Dr.     William     Page,     of 


Brunswick,  Me.,  was  his  grandfather's  cousin; 
and  the  Hon.  Jonathan  Page,  M.D.,  who  prac- 
tised in  Brunswick,  Me.,  before  the  medical 
college  was  established  there,  and  who  also 
taught  medicine,  often  having  a  large  number 
of  students  under  his  instruction,  was  a  son  of 
Colonel  David  Page.  He  was  an  original 
member  of  the  Maine  Medical  Society,  and  was 
Overseer  of  Bowdoin  College  for  upward  of 
twenty  years.  He  was  a  statesman  as  well  as 
a  physician,  a  member  of  the  Maine  Senate  in 
18 1 2,  1820,  and  1 82 1,  and  a  member  of  the 
Constitutional  Convention  in  1819-20.  His 
house  in  Brunswick  was  spacious,  and  his  dis- 
position hospitable;  and  many  distinguished 
guests  rested  under  his  roof.  The  celebrated 
Scotch  anatomist,  Dr.  Alexander  Ramsey,  who 
gave  courses  of  anatomical  lectures  in  this 
country,  illustrated  by  his  own  specimens,  was 
entertained  at  Dr.  Page's  house  when  he  lect- 
ured in  Brunswick. 

Allan  Lincoln  Shirley  in  his  boyhood  at- 
tended the  public  schools  of  P'ryeburg,  and 
later  Fryeburg  Academy,  where  he  was  gradu- 
ated in  1886.  Immediately  after  he  took  up 
the  study  of  medicine  with  Dr.  D.  Lowell 
Lanison,  of  Fryeburg,  a  man  of  rare  scholar- 
ship, a  graduate  of  the  University  Medical 
College  of  New  York  City.  A  year  and  a 
half  with  Dr.  Lamson  gave  the  young  man  a 
broad  insight  into  the  theory  and  practice  of 
medicine.  His  studies  were  continued  at 
Bowdoin  College,  from  which  he  graduated  in 
the  spring  of  1890,  and  in  the  Maine  General 
Hospital  in  Portland ;  foLsoon  after  enteung 
college  he  moved  from  Fryeburg  to  that  city. 
In  September,  1890,  he  engaged  in  regular 
practice  in  East  Bridgewater,  succeeding  Dr. 
Asa  Millet  (now  deceased),  who  then  retired; 
and,  though  in  professional  work  here  but  a 
short  time,  he  has  a  large  and  lucrative  prac- 
tice, and  enjoys  the  confidence  of  his  patrons. 


6o8 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Dr.  Shirley  is  an  enthusiastic  student,  and 
embraces  every  opportunity  to  visit  the  Bos- 
ton hospitals,  and  study  the  different  forms  of 
disease,  and  the  latest  methods  of  surgery. 
He  has  been  Chairman  of  the  East  Bridge- 
water  Board  of  Health  two  years,  and  has  been 
a  member  of  that  body  for  a  much  longer 
period;  and  he  belongs  to  the  Village  Im- 
provement Club.  In  politics  he  is  a  Repub- 
lican. 


ILLIAM  L.  CHIPMAN,  clerk  of  the 
Fourth  District  Court  of  Plymouth, 
and  an  esteemed  resident  of  the 
town  of  Wareham,  was  born  November  2, 
1836,  in  Randolph,  Norfolk  County,  Mass.,  a 
son  of  Lloyd  and  Hannah  R.  Chipman. 

Lloyd  Chipman  in  his  early  life  was  a  stage 
driver  between  Providence  and  Boston.  After 
the  completion  of  the  railway  between  those 
cities  he  removed  to  Wareham,  where  he  was 
proprietor  and  manager  of  a  hotel  until  his 
death,  in  1865.  The  maiden  name  of  his 
wife  was  Hannah  R.  White.  She  bore  him 
three  children,  as  follows:  William  L.,  sub- 
ject of  this  brief  biographical  sketch;  Sarah 
E.  ;  and  George  W. ,  who  died  in  1884.  The 
mother,  Mrs.  Hannah  R.  Chipman,  died  April 
26,   1879. 

William  L.  Chipman  was  reared  to  man- 
hood in  the  town  of  Wareham,  receiving  his 
education  in  the  public  schools  and  at  Peirce 
Academy  in  Middleboro.  He  was  subsequently 
employed  as  a  clerk  for  his  father  in  the  hotel 
until  i860,  when  he  was  appointed  Deputy 
Sheriff  and  Constable,  an  office  in  which  he 
served  one  term.  He  then  accepted  the  posi- 
tion of  clerk  in  the  office  of  Trial  Justice 
William  Bates,  afterward  continuing  some 
years  in  the  same  office  with  Seth  Miller, 
Esq.,  who  succeeded  Mr.  Bates  as  Trial 
Justice.      In  addition  to  his  office  duties,  Mr. 


Chipman  was  also  Collector,  as  such  having 
charge  of  a  good  deal  of  business.  In  1874 
he  became  clerk  of  the  Fourth  District  Court 
of  Plymouth,  an  office  which  he  has  acceptably 
filled  for  more  than  a  score  of  years.  Since 
1872  he  has  been  Notary  Public  and  Justice 
of  the  Peace.  In  politics  Mr.  Chipman  is  an 
adherent  of  the  Republican  party,  and  is  an 
advocate  of  the  temperance  cause,  practising 
as  he  preaches  in  this  regard,  as  he  has  never 
used  liquor  in  any  form.  He  has  never  been 
an  aspirant  for  political  honors,  but  served  for 
many  years  as  Town  Auditor. 

Mr.  Chipman  and  Miss  Hannah  J.  Hinck- 
ley, a  daughter  of  Alpheus  and  Abbie  (Bum- 
pus)  Hinckley,  of  Wareham,  were  united  in 
marriage  on  January  14,  1874.  They  have  a 
pleasant  home,  and  are  the  parents  of  three 
children;  namely,  George  W.,  Abbie  F.,  and 
Paul  L.  Chipman. 


/STeORGE  C.  HOWARD,  the  popular 
\J5 1  and  efficient  Superintendent  of 
Schools  in  the  towns  of  East  Bridge- 
water,  West  Bridgewater,  and  Raynham,  who 
resides  with  his  widowed  mother  in  their 
pleasant  rural  home  in  West  Bridgewater,  is  a 
native  of  this  town.  He  was  born  October  2, 
1S60,  a  son  of  Elam  and  Keziah  (Wilbur) 
Howard,  the  former  of  whom  was  born  in  West 
Bridgewater,  and  the  latter  in  Bridgewater, 
Mass. 

Elam  Howard  was  a  son  of  Thomas  Howard, 
and  was  a  lineal  descendant  of  John  Howard, 
one  of  the  early  settlers  of  West  Bridgewater. 
A  lifelong  farmer,  he  died  here  in  November, 
1876,  survived  by  his  widow  and  several  chil- 
dren, namely:  Hepsie,  wife  of  Elijah  Smith; 
Ida,  wife  of  Heman  Stranger;  Helen,  wife  of 
Josiah  W.  Foye;  Edith,  wife  of  W.  H. 
Washburn;  Grace,  wife  of  M.    A.    Kingman; 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


6og 


and  George  C.  Mary  A.,  who  married  Joseph 
Billiard;  and  Alice,  formerly  wife  of  William 
Michie,  are  deceased. 

After  acquiring  a  knowledge  of  the  common 
English  branches  in  the  public  schools  of 
West  Bridgewater,  George  C.  Howard,  having 
decided  to  devote  himself  to  educational  work, 
took  a  complete  course  at  the  State  Normal 
School  at  Bridgewater,  Mass.,  where  he  was 
graduated  in  1882,  having  earned  the  money 
to  defray  his  expenses  during  the  last  two 
years.  For  a  number  of  years  he  was  em- 
ployed as  a  teacher,  being  successively  prin- 
cipal of  the  Sprague  Grammar  School  at 
Brockton,  and  of  the  Mattapoisett  High 
School,  and  all  this  time  making  a  special 
study  of  the  theory  and  practice  of  teach- 
ing. In  April,  1895,  he  was  elected  Super- 
intendent of  the  schools  of  East  Bridge- 
water,  West  Bridgewater,  and  Raynham,  and 
in  1896  he  was  re-elected  to  the  same  posi- 
tion. 

In  political  affiliation  Mr.  Howard  is  a  Re- 
publican, and  in  1892  represented  the  three 
Bridgewaters  in  the  Massachusetts  legislature, 
and  during  his  term  was  clerk  of  the  Commit- 
tee on  Education.  Fraternally,  he  is  a  mem- 
ber of  Howard  Lodge,  Knights  of  Pythias,  at 
West  Bridgewater.  He  is  a  member  of  the 
Baptist  church.  Both  as  a  citizen  and  as  an 
educator  he  enjoys  the  confidence  and  good 
will  of  the  public. 


BNER  WOOD,  a  successful,  practical 
agriculturist  of  Middleboro,  Mass., 
was  born  in  this  town,  January  9, 
1840,  son  of  William  T.  and  Amanda  (Sawyer) 
Wood.  His  grandfather,  Abner  Wood,  was  a 
son  of  Abner,  Sr.,  who  was  the  first  of  this 
branch  of  the  family  to  settle  in  Middleboro. 
He  was  of  English  descent. 


William  T.  and  Amanda  Wood  were  the 
parents  of  three  children,  as  follows:  Catherine 
C,  living  in  Middleboro:  William  H.,  who 
lost  his  life  in  the  battle  of  Petersburg;  and 
Abner,  of  this  sketch.  William  H.  Wood 
left  four  children,  two  boys  and  two  girls. 
One  of  the  boys  at  eight  years  of  age  was 
taken  under  the  care  of  his  uncle  Abner,  for 
whom  he  was  named.  He  grew  to  manhood, 
and  died  at  the  age  of  twenty-nine. 

Having  acquired  his  education  in  the  dis- 
trict schools  of  Middleboro,  Abner  Wood 
when  sixteen  years  of  age  went  to  Taunton, 
Mass.,  to  learn  the  trade  of  Reed  &  Benton, 
and  remained  four  years. 

Returning  to  the  old  homestead,  he  lived 
there  until  1858,  then  removed  to  a  farm  near 
Middleboro  village;  and  two  years  later,  in 
i860,  he  purchased  the  farm  of  one  hundred 
acres,  on  which  he  has  since  lived.  He  owns 
other  tracts  of  land,  aggregating  about  one 
hundred  and  forty-five  acres,  including  the 
home  place.  For  fourteen  years  Mr.  Wood 
has  served  as  Highway  Surveyor,  and  for  five 
years  as  Fire  Warden,  being  an  eminently 
useful  and  much  esteemed  citizen. 


iAL\TN  PRATT,  M.D.,  is  one  of  the 
prominent  physicians  of  Eastern  Mas- 
sachusetts, fitted  by  natural  ability 
and  the  best  of  training  for  the  serious  work 
which  he  is  called  upon  to  do.  He  was  born 
in  the  town  of  Bridgewater,  his  present  home, 
March  24,  1842,  a  son  of  Dr.  Calvin  B.  and 
Mary  T.   (Perkins)  Pratt. 

Phineas  and  Joshua  Pratt,  Englishmen,  one 
or  both  of  whom  sailed  in  the  ship  '"Ann," 
which  arrived  at  Plymouth  in  August,  1623, 
were  the  first  representatives  of  the  Pratt  fam- 
ily in  America.  Savage,  however,  says  that 
Phineas  Pratt  was   in   Massachusetts   in  June, 


6io 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


1622.      He   settled    in    Weymouth,    and   after- 
ward removed  to  Charlestovvn. 

The  line  of  descent  is  thus  continued: 
Matthew  Pratt,  of  Weymouth,  Mass.,  who 
died  in  1672;  his  son  Joseph,  born  in  1637, 
died  in  1720;  Joseph,  Jr.,  born  1665,  died 
1765;  Benjamin,  his  son,  born  1693,  died 
1762;  Benjamin,  Jr.,  born  1719,  died  1776; 
William,  son  of  Benjamin,  Jr  ,  born  1746, 
died  1808;  Calvin,  son  of  William,  born 
1774,  died  1824.  Dr.  Pratt's  great-great- 
grandfather, Benjamin  Pratt,  held  a  commis- 
sion in  the  British  regular  army,  under  George 
III.;  and  Benjamin's  son  Calvin  was  a  Cap- 
tain in  the  Massachusetts  State  militia  after 
the  Revolutionary  War. 

Dr.  Calvin  B.  Pratt,  son  of  Calvin,  first, 
was  born  in  Middleboro,  Mass.  An  able  and 
popular  physician,  he  practised  in  Bridge- 
water  over  twenty  years,  dying  in  1862.  His 
wife  was  a  daughter  of  Jacob  Perkins,  the 
founder  of  the  Lazel  &  Perkins  Iron  Works  at 
Bridgewater,  now  known  as  the  Bridgewater 
Iron  Works.  She  died  June  5,  1875.  Of 
their  children,  four  are  living:  Henry  T.  and 
Sarah  K. ,  in  Bridgewater;  John  W. ,  resident 
physician  and  superintendent  of  the  Massa- 
chusetts General  Hospital  in  Boston;  and 
Calvin,  the  special  subject  of  this  biographi- 
cal sketch. 

Calvin  Pratt  attended  tlie  jniblic  and  pri- 
vate schools  in  Bridgewater,  the  academy  in 
this  town,  and  the  Bridgewater  State  Normal 
School,  where  he  was  graduated.  He  took  a 
six  months'  coiu'se  in  chemistry  in  Harvard 
University,  a  special  course  in  comparative 
anatomy  and  physiology  with  Professor 
Jeffries  Wyman  at  Cambridge,  and  during  the 
Civil  War  was  acting  medical  cadet  at  the 
Judiciary  Square  Hospital  at  Washington  for 
si.x  months.  He  then  took  the  regular  course 
at  the  Harvard   Medical   School,  receiving  his 


degree  in  1866,  and  was  one  year  house  sur- 
geon at  the  Massachusetts  General  Hospital, 
Boston.  He  practised  first  at  St.  Peter, 
Minn.,  remaining  there  some  thirteen  months; 
and  the  five  years  following  he  was  engaged 
in  professional  work  in  Du.xbury,  Mass.  In 
1874  he  returned  to  the  home  of  his  child- 
hood, and  for  nearly  a  quarter  of  a  century  he 
has  worked  faithfully  among  his  townspeople, 
fighting  disease  and  death,  and  winning  grat- 
itude, love,  and  respect.  Dr.  Pratt  is  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Massachusetts  Medical  Society. 
He  has  been  for  twenty  years  a  consulting 
physician  for  the  State  farm. 

He  was  married  in  1866  to  Adelaide  Ed- 
strom,  of  Boston,  and  has  four  children  — 
Calvin  B.,  Emily  L.,  Elise  A.,  and  Mary  B. 
Dr.  Pratt  votes  the  Republican  ticket.  Inter- 
ested in  the  cause  of  education,  he  is  Vice- 
President  of  the  Board  of  Trustees  of  Bridge- 
water  Academy.  He  is  a  'prominent  Mason, 
Past  Master  of  Corner  Stone  Lodge  of  Du.x- 
bury, Mass. 


TTIWELL  W.  I^ANKS,  machinist, 
is  one  of  the  busy  men  of  Brockton, 
that  great  hive  of  manufacturing  in- 
dustry. He  was  born  at  Bear  River,  Digby 
County,  Nova  Scotia,  February  7,  1866,  and 
is  a  son  of  Abram  and  Sarah  (Rice)  Banks, 
both  natives  of  Nova  Scotia.  Abram  Banks, 
who  is  a  farmer,  and  is  now  seventy  years  of 
age,  is  still  living  in  his  native  province. 
He  and  his  wife  were  blessed  with  a  family 
of  ten  children,  six  of  whom  are  living,  the 
subject  of  this  biography  being  next  to  the 
youngest. 

Ottiwell  W.  Banks  in  his  youth  acquired  a 
good  education,  finishing  his  studies  at  the 
Digby  High  School.  For  six  or  seven  years 
after  leaving  school  he  followed  the  pursuit  of 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


6ii 


agriculture  in  the  Provinces,  at  first  on  his 
father's  farm,  afterward  for  wages  on  other 
farms.  In  18S5  he  came  to  the  States,  and 
stopped  for  a  while  in  Boston,  hiring  from 
there  as  a  farm  hand ;  and  one  of  his  engage- 
ments took  him  to  Brockton.  lie  subse- 
quently obtained  employment  in  the  machine 
shop  of  E.  A.  Stiggins  in  this  city,  remain- 
ing six  months,  and  then  went  to  work  in 
Mr.  Gray"s  pattern  shop.  In  1892  he  became 
a  partner  of  W.  L.  &  H.  A.  Dunbar,  and  was 
a  member  of  the  firm  of  W.  L.  Dunbar  &  Co., 
until  the  fall  of  1895,  when  he  sold  his  inter- 
est to  F.  D.  Kelly.  He  now  has  charge  of 
their  shop,  and  owns  a  half  interest  in  the 
patent  known  as  the  "second  row  marker,"  a 
machine  for  marking  shoes.  Mr.  Banks  is  an 
industrious  and  enterprising  man,  and  relies 
on  his  own  exertions  for  success. 

He  was  married  in  March,  1889,  to  Miss 
Elsie  Libby,  and  has  two  children — Daisy 
May  and  Beulah  Mildred.  In  politics  Mr. 
Banks  favors  the  Republican  side.  He  is  a 
member  of  the  Second  Advent  Christian 
church,  and  has  been  an  Elder  for  six  or  seven 
years. 

)EWIS  SHERRETT,  for  a  number  of 
years  a  well-known  resident  of  Carver, 
Plymouth  County,  Mass.,  was  born 
in  England  on  the  15th  of  July,  1835.  At 
the  age  of  fourteen  he  began  to  learn  the  trade 
of  a  stone  mason,  at  which  he  worked  in  his 
native  country  until  he  came  to  America. 
The  voyage,  which  lasted  forty-two  days,  was 
made  on  a  sailing  vessel.  He  landed  at  New 
York  City,  but  immediately  went  to  Lonsdale, 
R.I.  ;  and  there  he  worked  at  his  trade  for 
eleven  months.  After  that  he  went  to  New 
Bedford,  Mass.,  where  he  remained  for  two 
years,  then  to  Chicago,  St.  Louis,  and  other 
Western  cities.     These  wanderings  consumed 


a  period  of  four  years.  He  then  came  to. 
Carver,  his  present  home,  but  left  almost  im- 
mediately and  went  to  Boston,  in  which  and 
other  Eastern  cities  he  sjient  twelve  years 
from  185910  1871.  During  this  whole  period 
he  plied  his  old  trade,  that  of  a  stone  mason, 
some  times  getting  jobs  on  government 
works.  In  1871  he  returned  to  Carver,  where 
he  passed  the  remainder  of  his  days,  dying 
October  i,  1896. 

He  was  married  in  June,  1856,  to  Mary  T. 
Savery;  and  they  became  the  parents  of  three 
children.  One  of  these,  a  daughter,  Susan 
B.,  born  August  7,  1864,  died  on  the  4th  of 
October,  1869.  The  mother,  Mrs.  Mary 
T.  S.  Sherrett,  died  July  31,   1892. 

William  L.  Sherrett,  son  of  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Lewis  Sherrett,  was  born  in  Carver,  Septem- 
ber 9,   1859. 

He  attended  the  public  schools  of  New  Bed- 
ford and  of  other  Eastern  cities  during  his 
youth;  and  at  the  end  of  his  school  career, 
anxious  to  earn  his  living  and  educate  him- 
self still  further  at  the  same  time,  he  took  a- 
four  years'  course  at  a  Massachusetts  State 
Normal  School.  After  his  graduation  on  the 
2 1  St  of  July,  1882,  he  taught  for  three  years 
in  the  public  schools  of  Hull  and  other  towns 
in  Massachusetts,  and  then  went  to  Washing- 
ton, D.C.,  where  he  entered  the  Pension 
Bureau  of  the  Department  of  the  Interior  as  a 
clerk.  He  was  there  employed  for  five  years, 
and  during  this  time  prepared  himself  to  enter 
the  profession  of  the  law,  taking  a  course  of 
study  at  Georgetown  Un-iversity.  He  T/as 
admitted  to  the  Washington  bar  in  1889. 
While  he  was  in  Washington,  besides  attend- 
ing to  his  business  and  the  study  of  law,  he 
also  studied  the  science  of  medicine  and  sur- 
gery at  Howard  University,  and  was  graduated 
from  there  as  an  M.D.  in  the  year  1890. 

Mr.    William    L.    Sherrett    was    a    Deputy 


6l2 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


Grand  Master  of  the  Indepentlent  Order  of 
Odd  Fellows,  and  also  high  up  in  Masonry, 
as  was  also  his  father.  He  died  of  consump- 
tion in  Florida  in  1890;  and  his  remains  were 
sent  back  to  Carver,  and  interred  here  by  the 
Masons. 


ALTER  C.  HAMMOND,  Secretary 
of  the  School  Board  of  Kingston, 
Mass.,  has  been  for  a  number  of 
years  in  business  in  this  town  as  a  contractor 
and  builder,  and  is  a  widely  known  and  highly 
respected  citizen.  A  son  of  Asa  C.  and 
Amanda  (Clark)  Hammond,  he  was  born  in 
Kingston,  May  17,  1S53. 

Asa  C.  Hammond,  who  was  born  in  Pem- 
broke, Mass.,  and  is  now  in  his  seventy-sec- 
ond year,  has  resided  in  Kingston  the  greater 
part  of  his  life.  He  learned  the  carpenter's 
trade  when  a  young  man,  and  worked  at  it  for 
a  number  of  years,  but  has  now  for  some  time 
been  retired.  An  intelligent  and  influential 
citizen,  he  served  for  an  extended  period  on 
the  School  Board  of  Kingston.  His  wife, 
Mrs.  Amanda  C.  Hammond,  was  born  in 
Plymouth,  Mass.  They  are  the  parents  of  the 
following  children:  Eugene  H.,  who  studied 
architecture  at  Cornell  University,  and  is  now 
in  business  as  an  architect  in  New  York  City; 
Walter  C,  the  subject  of  this  sketch;  Isabella 
A.  and  Chester  E.,  in  Kingston. 

Walter  C.  Hammond  was  educated  in  the 
public  schools  of  Kingston.  He  was  em- 
ployed for  two  years  as  clerk  in  the  cordage 
works  at  Plymouth,  and  then  engaged  in  the 
building  trade,  starting  in  business  as  a  con- 
tractor when  he  was  about  twenty-two  years 
old.  He  was  very  successful,  and  has  fol- 
lowed the  same  line  of  business  for  twenty 
years,  erecting  a  great  number  of  private  resi- 
dences. Mr.  Hammond  is  essentially  a  self- 
made  man,  having  carved  his  own  fortune. 


On  June  15,  1878,  he  was  united  in  mar- 
riage with  Eliza  Chandler,  daughter  of  James 
and  Mary  (Peterson)  Chandler,  all  natives  of 
Duxbury,  Mass.  The  Petersons,  Mrs.  Ham- 
mond's ancestors  on  the  maternal  side,  were 
old  settlers  in  Duxbury.  Her  parents  reared 
five  children:  Abbot  C,  now  in  Janestown, 
R.I.  ;  Arthur  J.,  in  Plymouth,  Mass.;  Louisa 
C. ,  wife  of  John  Stegmaier,  of  Kingston; 
Eliza  (Mrs.  Hammond);  and  Elmer  C,  resid- 
ing in  Plymouth.  Mrs.  Hammond,  though 
born  in  Duxbury,  has  lived  in  Kingston  since 
she  was  five  years  old,  and  has  many  friends 
in  this  town.  She  is  the  mother  of  the  fol- 
lowing children :  Lester  C,  James  C,  Helen 
A.,  Elizabeth  P.,  Walter  C,  Jr.,  Asa  C,  Jo- 
sephine P.,  and  Lawrence  C. 

Mr.  Hammond  is  a  member  of  the  Republi- 
can party.  He  has  been  for  several  years  on 
the  School  Board  of  Kingston,  and  has  been 
Secretary  two  years.  An  active  Mason,  he 
has  presided  for  the  past  two  years  as  Master 
of  Corner  Stone  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of 
Duxbury. 

/^TeoRGE  H.  SHAW,  2d,  of  Middle- 
\  I^T  boro,  Mass.,  is  well  known  in  Plym- 
outh County  as  a  retailer  of  shoes. 
He  is  in  the  habit  of  writing  "2d"  after  his 
name,  to  distinguish  him  from  another  George 
H.  Shaw  in  the  same  place,  who  is  two  or 
three  years  his  senior.  Mr.  Shaw  is  a  Grand 
Army  man,  and  is  proud  to  claim  among  his 
kindred  other  gallant  soldiers,  patriots  of  the 
Revolution  and  of  the  second  war  with  Eng- 
land. He  was  born  in  Carver,  Mass.,  August 
24,  1834,  a  son  of  Linus  and  Dicey  (Allen) 
Shaw. 

Many  succeeding  generations  of  the  Shaw 
family  have  lived  and  died  in  Plymouth 
County,  and  the  name  frequently  appears  in 
the    industrial    and     military    records.       Mr. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


613 


George  H.  Shaw's  great-grandfather  was  a 
Captain  in  the  Revolutionary  army;  and  his 
grandfather,  Captain  Joseph  Shaw,  was  an 
officer  in  the  War  of  18 12.  His  father, 
Linus  Shaw,  who  was  born  in  Carver,  Mass., 
and  was  a  moulder  by  trade,  died  in  his  fifty- 
first  year,  four  years  before  the  opening  of  the 
Rebellion,  flis  wife  was  the  grand-daughter 
of  Captain  Jacob  Allen,  a  Revolutionary  pa- 
triot, who  was  killed  in  the  battle  of  Still- 
water (1777).  Captain  Allen  was  at  that 
time  in  the  flush  of  vigorous  manhood,  being 
thirty-eight  years  of  age.  Mrs.  Dicey  Allen 
Shaw  lived  to  the  age  of  fourscore  and  three. 
She  was  the  mother  of  six  children,  five  of 
whom  are  living:  George  H.,  the  subject  of 
this  sketch;  Linus  Allen  Shaw,  chief  of 
police  of  Watertown,  Mass.,  who,  as  a  soldier 
in  the  Eighteenth  Massachusetts  Regiment, 
served  in  the  Civil  War  from  1861  to  1865; 
Jeannette  H.,  residing  in  Whitman;  Arlotha 
M.,  in  East  Bridgewater;  and  Calvin,  now  in 
Oakland,  Cal. 

George  H.  Shaw  was  reared  in  the  town  of 
Carver,  and  his  early  education  was  limited  to 
the  common  schools  of  his  native  place.  He 
went  to  work  when  fifteen  years  of  age,  being 
hired  by  the  month ;  and,  after  his  father's 
death,  as  he  was  the  eldest  of  the  family,  the 
care  of  the  household  devolved  upon  him. 
The  nuitterings  of  the  storm  of  war  stirred  the 
patriotic  blood  in  his  veins;  and  he  joined 
Company  K,  Third  Massachusetts  Volunteer 
Infantry,  enlisting  for  three  months.  He  re- 
mained most  of  the  time  at  Fortress  Monroe; 
and,  after  receiving  his  discharge,  he  enlisted 
again,  being  enrolled  in  Company  B  of  the 
same  regiment.  During  his  second  term  of 
service  he  participated  in  several  important 
engagements,  and  became  familiar  with  the 
terrible  realities  of  war.  In  June,  1863,  he 
was    honorably    discharged;     and,    returning 


home,  he  obtained  employment  in  a  box-mill, 
with  which  he  was  connected  some  thirteen 
years.  He  then  engaged  in  the  shoe  business, 
and,  purchasing  a  wagon,  travelled  from  place 
to  place,  working  up  a  large  trade.  In  this 
way  he  made  many  acquaintances,  and,  while 
accumulating  money,  acquired  a  wide  knowl- 
edge of  human  nature.  Mr.  Shaw  is  now  grad- 
ually retiring  from  business. 

In  1865  he  was  married  to  Miss  Carrie  15. 
Griffith,  of  Carver.  This  union  has  been 
blessed  with  two  children,  one  of  whom, 
Nellie  M.,  is  living.  Mr.  Shaw  votes  the 
Republican  ticket.  He  joined  the  E.  W. 
Pierce  Encampment,  of  the  Grand  Army  of 
the  Republic,  in  1867,  and  has  jaresided  as 
Officer  of  the  Day,  Senior  Commander,  in  fact, 
has  held  most  of  the  offices  within  the  gift  of 
Post   No.  8  of  Middleboro. 


NDREW  D.  DIMMICK,  senior  mem- 
ber of  the  firm  of  Dimmick  &  Perkins, 
dealers  in  gentlemen's  furnishing 
goods,  Brockton,  Mass.,  is  a  native  of  Barn- 
stable County.  He  was  born  February  24, 
1857,  in  the  town  of  Falmouth,  son  of  Charles 
William  and  Esther  (Robinson)  Dimmick. 

In  the  old  country,  long,  long  ago,  this  sur- 
name was  spelled  Dymoke;  and  a  certain 
knight  who  bore  it  was  famous  as  the  champion 
of  England.  The  first  of  the  family  in  Mas- 
sachusetts, so  far  as  known,  was  Colonel  Dim- 
mick, an  American  officer  in  the  Revolution, 
who  by  stratagem  captured-a-n  English  fri^te 
off  the  coast  of  Weymouth.  Among  the  inter- 
esting papers  treasured  by  his  descendants  are 
several  containing  the  signature  of  Washing- 
ton. 

Charles  Dimmick,  father  of  Charles  William, 
was  born  in  Falmouth ;  and  for  many  years 
he  followed  the  sea,  being  for  some  time  the 


6i4 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


captain  of  a  vessel.  Me  passed  his  declining 
years  on  a  farm  in  Falmouth,  where  he  died  at 
seventy-nine  years  of  age.  He  was  not  active 
in  public  affairs,  never  caring  for  office.  He 
belonged  to  the  First  Congregational  Church 
of  Falmouth.  His  children,  all  now  deceased, 
were:  a  daughter,  Mercy,  wife  of  Captain  H. 
I^awrence;  Charles  William  ;  and  another  son, 
who  died  in  California. 

Charles  William  Dimmick  was  educated  in 
the  district  schools  of  his  native  town,  Fal- 
mouth. Preferring  to  be  a  landsman  rather 
than  a  sailor,  and  having  a  natural  bent  for 
mechanics,  he  learned  the  carpenter's  trade, 
becoming  a  skilful  workman  and  a  master 
builder,  and  tiiereafter  successfully  engaged 
in  business  as  a  contractor.  He  died  in  1S90, 
aged  si.xty-eight  years.  He  was  a  member  of 
the  First  Congregational  Church  of  Braintree. 
His  wife,  Esther,  was  a  daughter  of  Fessen- 
den  Robinson,  of  East  Falmouth.  They  had 
four  children,  namely:  a  daughter,  Mercy; 
and  three  sons  —  Thomas,  William,  and  An- 
drew D.  Thomas  and  William  died  in  in- 
fancy. Mercy  Dimmick  married  F"rank  G. 
Hunt,  of  Weymouth,  and  died  in  1892,  at  the 
age  of  twenty-seven  years. 

Andrew  D.  Dimmick  was  the  youngest- 
born,  and  is  now  the  only  surviving  child  of 
his  parents.  He  was  educated  at  Lawrence 
Academy,  Falmouth,  and  at  G.  A.  Sawyer's 
Commercial  College,  where  he  took  a  business 
course.  He  then  became  an  entry  clerk  in  a 
wholesale  pottery  house  in  Boston;  and  later 
on  he  entered  the  employ  of  Edward  Young, 
wholesale  dealer  in  shoe  findings  in  that  city, 
first  making  himself  generally  useful  about 
the  establishment,  and  then  spending  two 
years  on  the  road  as  a  travelling  salesman, 
going  through  New  England.  After  that,  for 
about  a  year,  he  travelled  for  S.  A.  White,  of 
Boston,    manufacturer    of    shoe    dressing,    the 


next  twelvemonth  finding  him  engaged  in  the 
office  of  Russell's  Mercantile  Agency  in  Bos- 
ton as  correspondent  for  the  Southern  and 
Western  States.  After  working  at  book-keep- 
ing in  the  clothing  house  of  Howard  Cald- 
well, of  Brockton,  during  the  ensuing  five 
years,  he  formed  a  copartnership  with  Fred 
Tucker,  and  under  the  name  of  Tucker  & 
Dimmick  opened  a  gentlemen's  furnishing 
store  at  Holyoke,  Mass.  Returning  to  Brock- 
ton one  year  later,  Mr.  Dimmick  again  went 
into  the  store  of  Howard  &  Caldwell,  this 
time  as  clerk  in  their  furnishing  department. 
In  October,  1894,  after  eleven  years  of  valu- 
able ex]5erience,  Mr.  Dimmick  resigned  his 
position  in  the  employ  of  Messrs.  Howard  & 
Caldwell,  and,  in  company  with  Jesse  F.  Per- 
kins, opened  a  furnishing  goods  store  at  his 
present  place.  It  is  now  two  years  since;  and 
their  business  in  this  period  has  so  increased 
that  they  carry  four  times  as  much  stock  as 
when  they  started,  their  establishment  being 
the  largest  in  its  line  of  trade  in  the  county. 
They  employ  eight  clerks  in  the  evening. 

Mr.  Dimmick  is  a  member  of  the  Benevo- 
lent and  Protective  Order  of  Elks,  Brockton 
Lodge,  No.  16,  of  which  he  has  been  Secre- 
tary; and  is  also  connected  with  the  Royal 
Arcanum.  He  married  in  18S0  Carrie  L., 
daughter  of  Freeman  Shiverick.  They  have 
three  children,  namely:  Esther  Nye,  fifteen 
years  of  age;  Clifford  Shiverick,  ten;  and 
Herbert  Russell,  two  years. 


~CJlIIIU  THAYER,  a  retired  gentleman 
^1  of  Hingham,  Plymouth  County,  Mass., 
was  born  in  Ouincy,  Mass.,  October 
25,  181 1,  son  of  Elihu  and  Elizabeth  (Savil) 
Thayer.  His  father  was  a  resident  of  Quincy, 
and  a  carpenter  by  trade.  He  married  Eliza- 
beth    Savil,     and    they    had    four    children: 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


6'5 


Elihu,  the  subject  of  this  biography;  Albert, 
of  Ouincy;  Hiram,  of  Worcester,  Mass.;  and 
Lucy,  who  resides  at  Quincy.  The  father 
died  at  the  age  of  seventy-two  years. 

Elihu  Thayer  had  limited  educational  ad- 
vantages, attending  school  but  three  months 
in  the  winter  and  four  in  the  summer,  accord- 
ing to  the  custom  of  that  time.  Going  to 
Dorchester  at  the  age  of  fourteen,  he  found 
employment  in  a  general  store  and  public 
house  at  Neponset.  Early  in  life  he  came  to 
Hingham  to  work  in  a  mercantile  establish- 
ment; and  here  he  led  a  life  of  constant  activ- 
ity until  about  three  years  ago,  when  he  re- 
tired. He  has  accumulated  a  goodly  share  of 
this  world's  goods,  being  the  owner  of  several 
business  houses  in  this  town.  Like  other 
men  who  have  been  financially  successful,  he 
has  worked  his  way  from  small  beginnings. 
In  politics  at  first  a  Whig,  in  these  later 
years  he  has  affiliated  with  the  Republican 
party. 

On  January  17,  1836,  Mr.  Thayer  was 
united  in  marriage  with  Susan  Hersey,  a 
daughter  of  Isaac  and  Lydia  (Stowell)  Her- 
sey. She  was  born  in  Hingham  on  August  27, 
iSii.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Thayer  have  three  chil- 
dren, namely:  Albert  Elihu;  Susan  Anne 
Frances,  wife  of  Charles  Burr;  and  Charles 
Marion.  Albert  E.  Thayer,  born  here  Janu- 
ary 28,  1839,  became  a  grocer,  and  resided  on 
Lincoln  Street.  On  December  7,  1865,  he 
married  Harriet  Davis  Weston,  who  was  born 
November  27,  1S37,  daughter  of  Coomer  and 
Sally  S.  (Eddy)  Weston,  of  Plymouth.  Three 
children  were  the  result  of  their  union:  Ed- 
ward Weston,  Harriet  Blanche,  and  Anna 
Everett.  Albert  E.  Thayer  died  on  March  7, 
1885.  Charles  Marion  Thayer  was  born  in 
Hingham,  September  2,  1852;  and  on  Janu- 
ary 28,  1880,  he  married  Ida  D.,  daughter  of 
John  D.  Remington.     By  this  marriage  there 


is  one  daughter,  Susie  Burton  Thayer.  In  re- 
ligious faith  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Elihu  Thayer 
are  Universal ists.  They  reside  on  South 
Street,  their  life's  evening  cheered  and 
blessed  by  the  frequent  presence  of  children 
and  grandchildren. 


iHARLES  S.  SMITH,  agent  of  the 
Goodyear  Shoe  Machinery  Company 
at  Brockton,  and  a  machinist  by 
trade,  was  born  at  North  Andover,  Mass.,  De- 
cember 20,  1S60,  and  is  a  son  of  Francis 
Smith.  His  father,  who  was  a  sea  captain 
for  a  number  of  years,  still  lives,  having  now 
nearly  reached  the  age  of  threescore  and  ten. 
He  has  four  children,  three  sons  and  a 
daughter. 

Charles  S.,  the  special  subject  of  this 
sketch,  in  his  boyhood  attended  the  public 
schools  of  Andover.  At  the  age  of  sixteen 
he  entered  the  employ  of  the  McKay  Sewing 
Machine  Company  at  Providence,  R. I.;  and 
after  some  time  there  he  left  to  take  a  course 
in  mechanical  engineering  at  the  Massachu- 
setts Institute  of  Technology  in  Boston.  En- 
tering the  service  of  George  Corliss,  of  the 
Corliss  Engine  Works,  as  machinist,  he  was 
subsequently  made  their  representative  on  the 
road.  Three  years  later  he  accepted  a  posi- 
tion as  engineer  with  the  Edison  Electric 
Light  Company  at  Lawrence,  Mass.,  and 
worked  in  that  capacity  for  about  a  year.  P'ol- 
lowing  that,  he  again  entered  the  emjiloy  of 
the  McKay  Sewing  Maeh+ne  ComiDany,  but 
after  a  time  resigned  his  position  to  associate 
himself  in  1889  with  the  Goodyear  Shoe  Ma- 
chinery Company  as  their  agent;  and  he  has 
been  in  that  position  ever  since.  Mr.  Smith 
and  his  wife,  who  is  a  native  of  Eastport, 
Me.,  have  one  child.  Mr.  Smith  is  a  member 
of    Massasoit     Lodge,    No.    69,    Independent 


6i6 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


Order  of   Odd    Fellows,    of   Brockton;  and    of 
the  Brockton  Commercial  Club. 


LBERT  M.  THAYER,  senior  member 
if  the  mercantile  firm  of  A.  M. 
Thayer  &  Son,  of  West  Duxbury,  is 
a  veteran  of  the  Civil  War,  and  an  ex-Repre- 
sentative to  the  Massachusetts  legislature. 
He  was  born  in  Mansfield,  Bristol  County, 
Mass.,  September  13,  1836,  son  of  Simeon 
and  Martha  (Fuller)  Thayer.  Members  of 
the  Thayer  family  were  early  settlers  in  Bris- 
tol County;  and  Simeon  Thayer  resided  in 
Mansfield  until  his  death,  which  took  place 
when  his  son  Albert  M.  was  thirteen  years 
old.  His  wife  was  a  daughter  of  Isaac 
Fuller,  of  Mansfield,  who  was  a  descendant  of 
Captain  Isaac  Fuller. 

Albert  M.  Thayer,  being  thrown  upon  his 
own  resources  at  an  early  age,  was  brought  up 
by  his  brother-in-law,  John  Mason,  of  Pem- 
broke. He  acquired  a  common-school  educa- 
tion ;  and  at  the  age  of  eighteen  he  went  to 
Hanson,  where  he  served  an  apprenticeship  of 
two  years  at  the  tack-maker's  trade  with  Na- 
thaniel Pratt,  another  brother-in-law,  who 
carried  on  a  tack  manufactory.  After  work- 
ing as  a  journeyman  in  Hanson  for  a  number 
of  years,  he  went  to  Whitman,  Mass.,  where 
he  followed  his  trade  until  October,  1862, 
when  he  enlisted  in  the  Fourth  Regiment, 
Massachusetts  Volunteer  Infantry,  and  was 
assigned  to  duty  in  the  Regimental  Band. 
He  was  present  at  the  siege  and  capture  of 
Port  Hudson,  and  accompanied  General  Banks 
upon  the  Red  River  expedition;  and  at  the 
first-mentioned  engagement  he  sustained  a 
severe  sunstroke,  which  threatened  serious 
consequences.  With  good  medical  treatment 
he  ultimately  recovered,  and  was  discharged 
from  the  service  in  September,   1863. 


Returning  to  Whitman,  he  resumed  his 
trade,  and  later  became  travelling  representa- 
tive of  the  firm  of  Brightman,  Litchfield  & 
Vinand,  for  whom  he  had  previously  worked 
as  a  journeyman.  Four  years  later  he  en- 
gaged in  the  dry-goods  business  in  Whitman, 
which  he  conducted  for  four  years;  and  from 
the  end  of  that  time  until  1881  he  sold  dry- 
goods  and  notions  upon  the  road.  In  that 
year  he  located  in  West  Duxbury,  and  estab.- 
lished  the  present  firm  of  A.  M.  Thayer  & 
Son.  This  concern  does  a  large  and  profit- 
able business,  dealing  in  dry  goods,  clothing, 
small  wares,  boots,  shoes,  furniture,  carpets, 
paper  hangings,  etc.  ;  and,  as  their  patronage 
extends  over  a  wide  circuit,  they  have  devel- 
oped an  extensive  trade,  which  their  honor- 
able business  methods  enable  them  to  steadily 
maintain. 

Mr.  Thayer  was  for  several  years  a  member 
of  the  Republican  Town  Committee,  and  in 
1885  represented  the  towns  of  Duxbury, 
Kingston,  and  Plympton  in  the  Massachusetts 
legislature.  His  honorable  record  as  a  busi- 
ness man  gives  him  a  valuable  prestige  in 
mercantile  centres,  and  his  high  standing  in 
the  community  is  the  result  of  his  natural 
ability  and  upright  principles. 

Mr.  Thayer  married  Josephine  B.  Sampson, 
of  Pembroke,  Mass.,  and  has  two  children, 
namely:  La  Forest,  who  is  in  business  with 
his  father;  and  Emily,  who  is  residing  at 
home.  Mr.  Thayer  is  a  member  of  King.ston 
Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  of  Whitman;  and  a 
comrade  of  Post  Wadsvvorth,  No.  iii,  Grand 
Army  of  the  Republic,  of  Duxbury. 


RANK     M.      REYNOLDS,      of     Hull, 
Mass.,  a  competent  house  painter,  was 
born    in    Boston,    September    12,    1861, 
son    of     Frank    M.,    Sr.,    and     Elizabeth     A. 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


6.7 


(Racy)  Reynolds.  His  paternal  grandfather, 
William  H.  Reynolds,  was  a  native  of  Derry, 
N.H.,  where  he  lived  on  a  farm.  In  politics 
he  was  a  Republican.  He  and  his  wife, 
Ellen  Adams,  of  that  town,  were  highly  re- 
spected members  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
church.      They  had  four  children. 

Their  son,  Frank  M.,  Sr.,  was  born  in 
Derry,  and,  after  acquiring  his  education, 
went  to  Boston  at  the  age  of  eighteen,  to 
make  his  fortune.  Until  the  breaking  out  of 
the  Civil  War  he  was  engaged  as  a  teamster. 
Enlisting  in  the  Third  Massachusetts  Battery 
in  i86t,  he  served  till  the  close  of  the  war, 
being  in  active  service  most  of  the  time. 
Among  the  noted  battles  in  which  he  took 
part  were  Bull  Run,  Gettysburg,  and  Lookout 
Mountain.  On  his  return  from  the  war  he 
resumed  his  old  business,  teaming  for  the 
large  market  in  Boston.  He  was  a  hard-work- 
ing man,  and  acquired  a  competency  for  those 
days.  He  married  Elizabeth  A.  Raey,  a  na- 
tive of  Portland,  Me.  In  politics  he  was  a 
Republican;  and  in  religion  he  and  his  wife 
were  of  the  Methodist  faith,  and  were  both 
members  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  church. 
He  died  at  the  age  of  forty-nine,  survived  by 
his  wife,  who  is  a  resident  of  Brighton,  Mass., 
and  in  good  health,  and  by  I<"rank  M.,  tlieir 
only  child. 

After  he  was  graduated  from  tlie  Cambridge 
High  School,  Frank  M.  Reynolds  learned  the 
trade  of  house  painter;  and  in  1878  he  settled 
in  Hull,  where  he  has  continued  the  business 
ever  since.  He  has  been  prominently  identi- 
fied with  town  affairs,  having  officiated  as 
Constable  twelve  years,  and  being  now  a  mem- 
ber of  the  police  force.  F"or  the  past  five 
years  he  has  been  Captain  of  the  fire  depart- 
ment; and  in  1894  he  was  appointed  Post- 
master, which  office  he  still  holds.  Frater- 
nally, he   belongs   to   the   American   Order   of 


Red  Men  of  Boston  and  to  the  Pilgrim 
Fathers  Lodge  of  Hingham.  In  November, 
1884,  he  was  married  to  Mary  E.  Fitts,  of 
Charlestown,  Mass.  They  have  had  three 
children  —  Frank  M.,  Jr.,  Victor  H.,  and 
Pearl  G.  In  religion  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Reynolds 
affiliate  with  the  Methodist  Episcopal  church, 
of  which  they  are  active  members. 


T^IIARLES  SIMMONS  at  the  present 
I  jr  time  is  successfully  engaged  in  gen- 
^i°  ^  eral  farming  in  a  small  way  in  Nor- 
well,  Plymouth  County,  Mass.,  but  in  years 
gone  by  was  prominently  identified  with  the 
fire  department  of  the  city  of  Boston.  He  was 
born  December  8,  1S25,  in  Norwell,  then 
South  Scituate.  His  parents  were  Sylvanus 
and  Elizabeth  (Wheelwright)  Simmons,  who 
had  seven  other  sons  and  two  daughters. 

The  first  fifteen  years  of  his  life  Charles 
Simmons  passed  with  his  parents  on  the 
homestead  farm,  which  he  then  left  to  try  the 
life  of  a  sailor  for  two  years.  He  next  went 
to  Boston,  and,  after  serving  a  five  years'  ap- 
prenticeship at  the  carpenter's  trade,  took  up 
the  ship-joinery  business,  at  which  he  was 
profitably  engaged  for  twenty-six  years.  P"or 
a  like  period,  from  1848  to  1874,  he  was  a 
member  of  the  Boston  Fire  Department,  be- 
longing to  Hook  and  Ladder  Division  No.  2, 
of  which  he  was  foreman  twenty  years.  This 
was  the  second  fire  company  organized  in  the 
city  of  Boston.  While  connected  with  it,  Mr. 
Simmons  went  through  the  great  fire  of  1873, 
which  destroyed  a  large  part  of  the  business 
centre  of  the  city.  In  1876  he  came  to  Nor- 
well, and  purchased  the  forty-six-acre  farm 
which  he  now  owns  and  carries  on.  From 
1884-85  he  was  a  Selectman  of  Norwell. 
He  has  served  five  years  as  Highway  Sur- 
veyor, and  also  acceptably  filled  the  offices  of 


6i8 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


Assessor  and  Overseer  of   the   Poor.      In   poli- 
tics he  is  a  Republican. 

Mr.  Sininions  was  married  in  1847  to  Miss 
Susan  Seavey.  They  have  had  eight  children, 
of  whom  six  are  now  living. 


ARRKN  PEIRCK,  M.D.,  one  of 
the  leading  medical  practitioners  of 
riyniouth,  and  a  veteran  of  the 
Civil  War,  was  born  in  Tyngsboro,  Mass., 
September  21,  1840,  son  of  Dr.  Augustus  and 
Alicia  O.  (Butterfield)  Peirce. 

Genealogists  speak  of  this  name  as  a  com- 
mon one  in  England,  and  spelled  in  many 
differents  ways,  as  Piers,  Peirce,  Peers, 
Pearce,  Piercy,  and  other  forms.  The  Earls 
of  Northumberland,  a  very  ancient  house,  de- 
rive their  name  "Percy,"  it  is  said,  from 
Percy  Forest  in  Normandy,  their  original  seat. 
Several  of  the  representatives  of  the  Peirce 
family  in  America  have  been  more  or  less 
celebrated.  President  Franklin  Pierce,  it  is 
said,  was  a  kinsman  of  Dr.  Warren  Peirce's 
grandfather,  whose  wife  was  related  to 
Artemas  Ward.  The  Doctor  is  also  de- 
scended from  the  Farrars. 

Augustus  Peirce,  son  of  the  Rev.  Warren 
Peirce  and  father  of  the  subject  of  this  sketch, 
was  born  in  New  Salem,  Mass.,  March  20, 
1803.  His  elementary  studies  were  acquired 
under  a  private  tutor;  and,  when  very  young, 
he  entered  Harvard,  where  he  was  graduated 
previous  to  attaining  his  majority,  being  the 
youngest  member  of  his  class.  During  his 
collegiate  course  he  displayed  rare  literary 
gifts,  which  attracted  the  notice  of  the  profes- 
sors and  the  outside  world ;  and  he  wrote  while 
in  his  Senior  year  a  humorous  epic  poem, 
entitled  "The  Rebellia, "  which  had  the  honor 
of  being  mentioned  by  the  Harvard  Register. 
The  original  manuscript   is  now  preserved  at 


the  Harvard  Library.  He  maintained  through 
life  a  deep  interest  in  literature,  and  was  a 
frequent  contributor  to  the  Nezv  England 
Gazette.  After  graduating  from  college,  he 
studied  medicine  with  Dr.  George  C.  Shat- 
tuck,  of  Boston,  some  time  later  locating  for 
practice  in  Nashua;  and  in  1839,  at  the  re- 
quest of  Dr.  Thomas,  he  removed  from  there 
to  Tyngsboro,  where  he  resided  until  his 
death,  which  took  [dace  May  20,  1849.  He 
joined  the  Boylston  Medical  Society  in  1822, 
and  was  also  a  member  of  the  Massachusetts 
State  Medical  Society.  Dr.  Augustus  Peirce 
was  twice  married;  and  by  his  union  with  his 
first  wife,  Mary  Clark,  a  ward  of  the  elder 
George  C.  Shattuck,  of  Boston,  he  had  three 
children.  His  second  wife,  Alicia  O.  Butter- 
field,  daughter  of  Joseph  Butterfield,  who  was 
Deputy  Sheriff  in  Lowell,  Mass.,  for  nearly 
fifty  years,  became  the  mother  of  five  children, 
of  whom  Warren,  the  subject  of  this  sketch, 
was  the  second-born. 

Warren  Peirce  attended  Winslow  Academy, 
where  he  completed  the  usual  course  of  study, 
later  fitting  for  college  under  the  tutorship 
of  Nathaniel  Cootheran ;  and,  after  spending 
some  time  with  his  grandfather  in  Lowell,  he 
studied  medicine  for  a  year  with  Dr.  Edward 
A.  Perkins,  of  Boston.  On  July  29,  1862,  he 
enlisted  as  a  private  in  Company  K,  Four- 
teenth Regiment,  Massachusetts  Volunteers, 
which  later  became  known  as  the  First  Massa- 
chusetts Heavy  Artillery;  and  three  weeks 
after  his  enlistment  he  was  detailed  as  Hos- 
pital Steward,  in  which  capacity  he  served  for 
nearly  two  years.  He  was  then  appointed 
Second  Lieutenant  in  the  Thirty-sixth  Lhiited 
States  Colored  Infantry,  stationed  at  Point 
Lookout,  where  fifty  thousand  prisoners,  in- 
cluding the  Confederate,  General  J.  B.  B. 
Stewart,  were  confined;  and  in  July,  1864, 
his  regiment  was  attached  to  the  Twenty-fifth 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


5ig 


Corps,  and  ordered  to  the  front  at  Petersburg. 
Lieutenant  Peirce  remained  at  the  principal 
seat  of  ojierations,  which  finally  culminated  in 
the  surrender  of  General  Lee  at  Appomattox 
Court-house;  and,  coming  up  in  the  rear  of 
the  Confederate  Army,  he  was  the  third  I<"ed- 
eral  soldier  to  enter  Richmond.  His  regi- 
ment was  then  stationed  along  the  Weldon 
Railroad  for  a  while,  later  going  to  Lincoln 
Camp  at  Light-house  Point,  from  which  place 
it  was  ordered  to  Texas,  where  it  remained  for 
a  considerable  length  of  time.  Lieutenant 
Peirce  received  his  discharge  from  the  service 
October  28,  1866,  having  been  in  active  clutv 
nearly  every  day  since  his  enlistment;  and  the 
only  injuries  he  received  were  a  slight  wound 
in  his  little  finger,  and  another  in  his  leg. 
Upon  his  return  from  the  army  he  resumed 
the  study  of  medicine  with  Dr.  John  G.  Met- 
calf;  and  after  graduating  from  the  Harvard 
Medical  School,  March  10,  1869,  he  in  1S70 
began  the  practice  of  his  profession  in  Sterl- 
ing, Mass.  Removing  to  West  l^oylston  in 
1S73,  he  remained  there  until  18S0,  when  he 
took  up  his  residence  in  Plymouth,  where  he 
has  practised  with  the  most  gratifying  success 
for  the  past  sixteen  years. 

On  October  10,  1867,  Dr.  Peirce  was  united 
in  marriage  with  Anna  Warren  Hastings, 
youngest  child  of  C.  P.  Hastings,  a  prominent 
lawyer  of  Worcester  County,  and  a  niece  of 
the  Hon.  William  S.  Hastings,  formerly  a 
member  of  Congress  from  this  State.  Dr.  and 
Mrs.  Peirce  have  two  sons  living,  namely: 
Arthur  W.  K.,  who  is  now  in  South  Africa, 
where  he  is  electrical  engineer  at  the  Limmer 
and  Jack  Gold  Mine,  which  is  the  largest  of 
its  kind  in  the  world;  and  Thomas  Hastings 
Gage  Peirce,  a  graduate  of  the  Plymouth  High 
School,  who  is  now  with  the  Electric  Light 
Company  here. 

In   politics   Dr.    Peirce   is   a   Democrat,  and 


while  residing  in  Sterling  he  was  a  member  of 
the  Board  of  Health.  He  has  been  for  several 
years  a  member  of  the  Massachusetts  Medical 
Society,  of  which  he  was  at  one  time  a  Coun- 
sellor; was  a  comrade  of  James  A.  Pratt  Post, 
Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  of  SterliTig, 
which  he  named,  later  joining  George  A. 
Wells  Post  at  Boylston;  was  connected  with 
Centennial  Lodge,  LTdependent  Order  of  Odd 
Fellows,  of  West  Boylston,  and  has  advanced 
in  Masonry  to  the  Knight  Templar  degree, 
having  been  a  member  of  Worcester  Com- 
mandery. 

ARREN  A.  HOWARD,  formerly  a 
shoe  manufacturer,  now  a  retired 
farmer  of  Brockton,  was  born  in 
North  Bridgewater,  now  Brockton,  in  Decem- 
ber, 1839.  He  is  a  son  of  Darius  Howard,  a 
prominent  business  man,  who  is  still  living 
here. 

Warren  A.  Howard,  after  attending  public 
schools  in  his  native  town,  completed  his  edu- 
cation at  a  private  school  in  Medford,  where  he 
was  graduated.  I-jTtering  his  father's  factory 
in  1858,  he  remained  three  years;  and  in  1861 
he  began  the  manufacture  of  shoes,  managing 
the  plant  alone  for  two  years,  then  becoming 
associated  with  D.  S.  Howard,  under  the 
style  of  D.  S.  &  W.  A.  Howard.  Seven  years 
later  he  built  a  factory  on  Crescent  Street, 
where  he  remained  twenty  years,  being  one  of 
the  first  men  to  introduce  machine  work  in 
the  city,  using  the  first  McKay  Sewing  Ma- 
chine. In  1890  Mr.  Howard  retired  to  his 
farm,  where  he  has  resided  ever  since. 

He  was  united  in  marriage  with  M.  Agnes, 
daughter  of  Lorenzo  Stetson,  of  Kingston,  in 
1862.  They  have  three  children,  one  of 
whom  married  Dr.  Ripley.  One  son,  a  grad- 
uate of  the  Massachusetts  Institute  of  Tech- 
nology, is  now  employed  by  the  Erie  Railroad 


620 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


as  civil  engineer.  In  politics  Mr.  Howard  is 
a  Republican.  Fraternally,  he  is  a  member 
of  Paul  Revere  Lodge,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.,  Sa- 
tucket  Royal  Arch  Chapter,  and  also  Bay 
State  Commandery,   Knights  Templars. 


FRNARD  GLANCY,  one  of  the 
brave  "boys  in  blue"  who  fought 
in  the  Civil  War  for  the  preserva- 
tion of  the  Union  and  the  freedom  of  the 
slave,  and  who  is  now  a  resident  of  Middle- 
boro,  Mass.,  is  a  native  of  this  town,  having 
been  born  here,  August  25,   1842. 

In  his  infancy  Bernard  Glancy  was  taken 
by  his  parents  to  Boston,  where  he  grew  to 
manhood  and  was  educated.  When  si.xteen 
years  of  age,  he  began  working  at  cabinet-mak- 
ing, which  he  followed  in  Boston  for  nine 
months,  and  then  in  Springfield,  Mass.,  for  a 
like  period.  Returning  to  Boston,  he  was 
engaged  in  carpentering  until  1861,  when  he 
enlisted  in  Company  E  of  the  "Roxbury 
Rifles."  They  first  went  to  Fort  Indepen- 
dence, and  afterward  were  made  a  part  of  the 
Thirteenth  Massachusetts  Regiment.  Mr. 
Glancy  subsequently  joined  Company  D  of 
the  Eighteenth  Massachusetts  Volunteers. 

The  first  engagement  in  which  he  took  part 
was  at  Fairfa.x  Court-house;  and  from  that 
time  on  he  was  present  at  every  battle  in 
which  the  Army  of  the  Potomac  took  part, 
until  at  Chancellorsville,  May,  1863,  he  was 
made  prisoner.  He  was  taken  to  Libby 
Prison.  After  fifty-si.\  days'  confinement 
there,  days  of  extreme  privation  and  suffering, 
he  and  another  soldier  succeeded  in  getting 
out,  and  he  rejoined  his  regiment  the  5th  of 
July.  At  the  battle  of  Bull  Run  he  received 
a  bullet  wound  in  the  right  leg  above  the 
ankle.  A  few  hours  later  he  was  struck  by  a 
shell,   and  on   regaining   consciousness  found 


himself  a  prisoner.  He  was  first  taken  to 
Robinson's  tavern,  where  he  remained  three 
days,  then  to  Lynchburg  for  a  few  days,  and 
from  there  to  Orange  Court-house.  He  was 
next  confined  in  Downsville,  N. C,  and  a  few 
days  later  taken  to  Anderson\'ille  Prison, 
where  he  was  kept  from  May  i  to  September 
30,  when  he  again  began  his  enforced  journey- 
ings  from  one  Rebel  prison  to  another,  going 
first  to  Florence.  From  there  he  succeeded 
in  making  an  escape,  but  only  to  be  recaptured 
and  taken  to  Salisbury,  N. C,  and  thence  to 
Mobile,  Ala.  The  same  night  of  his  arrival 
in  Mobile,  he  again  succeeded  in  eluding  his 
captors,  but  was  retaken.  Undaunted  by  his 
former  fruitless  attempts,  he  made  a  third 
trial,  which  proved  successful,  and  he  wended 
his  way  on  foot  to  the  Northern  Army,  finally 
reaching  it  in  safety. 

After  his  honorable  discharge.  May  23, 
1865,  Mr.  Glancy  returned  to  Massachusetts, 
and  went  to  Waltham,  but  was  unable  to  per- 
form any  labor  until  the  fall  of  the  next  year, 
when  he  went  to  work  in  the  Waltham  woollen 
factory.  In  18S5  he  came  to  Middleboro,  and 
purchased  the  homestead  on  which  he  now  re- 
sides, a  farm  of  thirty-five  acres.  He  is  a  re- 
spected member  of  Post  No.  8,  Grand  Army 
of  the  Republic,  of  Middleboro;  also  of  the 
Union  Veteran's  Union,  in  which  he  is  "Colo- 
nel of  the  command." 


LFRh:D  HENRY  HERSEY,  a  well- 
known  summer  resident  of  Hingham, 
Mass.,  was  born  in  Boston,  April 
18,  1 84 1,  son  of  Alfred  C.  and  Mary  Ann 
(Barrett)  Hcrsey.  He  is  a  lineal  descendant 
of  William  Hersey,  who  settled  in  Hingham 
in  1635.  Laban  Hersey,  father  of  Alfred  C, 
was  a  native  of  Hingham  and  a  tanner,  his 
plant  being  located  on  the  land  now  owned  by 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


621 


Alfred  Henry,  the  subject  of  this  biography. 
In  politics  he  was  a  Whig,  and  he  served  as 
Captain  of  the  militia.  Me  married  Celia 
Barnes,  daughter  of  Cornelius  Barnes;  and 
they  had  eight  children.  Laban  Hersey  died 
at  the  age  of  seventy-eight,  while  his  wife 
lived  to  be  eighty-nine  years  old.  In  relig- 
ious belief  they  were  Unitarians. 

Alfred  C. ,  their  youngest  son,  was  a  native 
of  this  town.  For  the  first  few  years  of  his 
commercial  career  he  was  engaged  in  the  dry- 
goods  business,  thereafter  becoming  a  ship- 
owner in  Boston,  and  trading  with  the  East 
Indies  and  Southern  ports.  He  built  two 
vessels  in  Hingham,  at  one  time  being  owner 
in  over  forty  vessels.  In  1S66  he  retired,  con- 
tinuing to  spend  his  winters  in  Boston  and 
the  summers  in  Hingham,  where  he  owned 
one  hundred  and  fifty  acres  of  land,  and  car- 
ried on  farming.  In  politics  he  was  a  Repub- 
lican, but  he  was  not  prominent  in  political 
affairs.  In  his  younger  days  he  served  as 
Captain  of  the  militia.  He  was  a  Director  of 
the  United  States  Insurance  Company,  also  a 
Trustee  of  the  Nautical  School  Ship;  and  he 
built  the  South  Shore  Railroad  in  1S49,  be- 
coming its  first  president,  and  being  for  seveli 
years  the  largest  stockholder.  Mr.  Hersey 
was  also  a  Director  of  the  Hingham  Steamboat 
Company  for  several  years.  In  Boston  he  was 
an  extensive  holder  of  real  estate,  being  one 
of  the  largest  owners  on  Commercial  Wharf, 
where  his  office  was  located  for  twenty  years; 
and  he  was  also  lessee  of  Mercantile  Wharf 
during  that  time.  Financially,  he  was  very 
successful,  leaving  a  large  property  at  his  de- 
mise. He  married  Mary  Ann  Barrett;  and 
they  had  one  child,  Alfred  Henry.  They 
were  Unitarians  in  religion.  Mr.  Alfred  C. 
Hersey  died  at  the  age  of  eighty-four;  and  his 
wife,  when  she  was  seventy-four. 

Alfred    Henry    Hersey   in    his  early    years 


attended  Chauncy  Hall  School,  Boston,  and 
later  completed  his  education  at  Dummer 
Academy  in  Byfield,  Mass.  He  then  entered 
his  father's  employ,  remaining  four  years, 
when  ill-health  compelled  him  to  seek  past- 
ures new.  He  then  began  farming  on  the  old 
homestead  in  Hingham,  to  which  he  gladly 
returns  each  summer  from  his  home  in  Boston. 
He  employs  several  men,  who  work  the  farm 
under  his  supervision.  In  politics  Mr.  Her- 
sey affiliates  with  the  Democratic  party. 
Fraternally,  he  is  identified  with  various  or- 
ganizations, among  them  the  Agricultural  and 
Horticultural  Society  of  Hingham,  the  Massa- 
chusetts Horticultural  Society,  the  New  Eng- 
land Historical  Society,  and  the  Bostonian 
Society.  He  is  a  Trustee  of  the  Pilgrim  So- 
ciety of  Plymouth,  Mass.  Personally,  he  is  a 
man  of  quick  perception,  and  is  a  great  lover 
of  literature,  owning  a  fine  library,  in  which 
he  spends  considerable  time. 

On  March  i,  1862,  he  was  united  in  mar- 
riage to  Mary  H.  Gibson,  of  New  Ipswich, 
N.  H.,  a  daughter  of  Dr.  Henry  Gibson.  By 
this  alliance  there  were  two  children,  both  of 
whom  are  dead.  In  religion  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Hersey  are  of  the  Unitarian  faith. 


Up  RED  L.  SPRAGUE,  D.D.S.,  a  suc- 
\^\^  cessful  and  popular  dentist  of  Rock- 
land, Mass.,  is  the  only  son  of  Frank- 
lin and  Sarah  E.  (Farrar)  Sprague,  and  was 
born  in  Boston.  Franklin  Sprague  was  a  na^ 
tive  of  Hingham,  and  his  wife  also  was  born 
in  Plymouth  County.  They  became  the  par- 
ents of  two  children:  Helen  Francis  who  is 
the  wife  of  Charles  Emsen;  and  Fred  L.  Dr. 
Sprague's  father  is  at  present  living  in  Han- 
over, Mass.,  where  he  is  a  special  agent  for  a 
large  life  insurance  company. 

Fred  L.  Sprague  spent  the  greater  part  of 


622 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


his  youth  in  Boston,  where  he  enjoyed  the 
best  of  opportunities  for  obtaining  a  good  edu- 
cation. He  was  graduated  from  the  grammar 
schools,  and  subsequently  from  the  English 
High  School  of  that  city.  Having  marked 
musical  talent,  he  was  sent  by  his  father  to 
the  Boston  Conservatory  of  Music,  where  he 
studied  for  a  long  time,  acquiring  great  profi- 
ciency in  the  art.  Unfortunately,  he  now  has 
little  time  to  devote  to  this  accomplishment. 
In  1889,  the  same  year  that  he  left  the  Con- 
servatory of  Music  with  graduation  honors,  he 
began  the  study  of  dentistry  at  the  Boston 
Dental  College.  On  coming  to  Rockland,  he 
entered  the  office  of  Dr.  Saville,  where  he  re- 
mained for  a  period  of  two  years.  He  then 
opened  an  office  of  his  own,  and,  establishing 
himself  on  an  independent  basis,  has  built  up 
a  successful  practice  within  a  very  short  time. 
He  keeps  abreast  of  all  modern  ideas  and  im- 
provements, and  his  business  has  increased  to 
such  an  e.xtent  that  he  is  usually  obliged  to 
employ  two  assistants. 

Dr.  Sprague  is  a  stanch  Republican  in  his 
political  principles,  although  he  will  not  con- 
sent to  take  any  active  part  in  politics.  Fra- 
ternally, he  belongs  to  the  Ancient  Order  of 
United  Workmen  of  Rockland. 


■Tt:^OBERT  T.  C.  SPOONER,  plumber, 
I  S[^  steam  and  gas  fitter,  with  place  of 
li^  V  ^  business  at  257  Main  Street,  Brock- 
ton, was  born  in  New  Bedford,  Mass.,  March 
29,  1863.  His  father,  Benjamin  Spooner, 
was  born  in  Newport,  R.I.  In  his  early  man- 
hood he  was  a  tallow  chandler,  and  the  latter 
part  of  his  life  was  spent  on  a  farm  in  West- 
port,  Mass.  He  attended  worship  at  the  Bap- 
tist church.  His  wife,  whose  maiden  name 
was  Allen,  is  a  native  of  Westport,  Mass. 
She  is  the  mother  of  two  children,   namely: 


Robert  T.  C.  ;  and  a  sister,  who  is  married 
and  lives  in  New  Bedford. 

Robert  T.  C.  Spooner  was  educated  in  the 
common  schools  of  Westport.  He  went  to 
work  at  the  age  of  sixteen  as  a  farm  hand  in 
Westport,  and  after  si.x  months  of  agricultural 
labor  began  to  learn  the  plumber's  trade.  He 
served  an  apprenticeship  with  Wood  Bright- 
man,  of  Westport,  remaining  si.x  months 
longer  than  the  required  time,  and  then  en- 
tered the  employ  of  R.  G.  Shepard,  of  Brock- 
ton, with  whom  he  remained  six  years. 
Forming  a  partnership  then  with  Mr.  Fred 
Brown,  under  the  name  of  Brown  &  Spooner, 
he  was  in  business  for  six  months  on  Centre 
Street.  Then,  purchasing  his  partner's  in- 
terest, he  removed  to  the  building  now  occu- 
pied by  the  Brockton  Times,  and  there  for 
four  or  five  years  he  managed  a  growing  and 
prosperous  business.  On  New  Year's  Day, 
1895,  he  opened  his  present  establishment  to 
the  public,  who  continue  to  give  him  a  liberal 
patronage.  When  Mr.  Spooner  started  in 
business  he  and  his  partner  did  all  the  work 
themselves.  He  now  employs  twelve  men  on 
an  average,  plumbing,  gas  fitting,  and  set- 
ting up  heating  apparatus.  Some  of  the  larg- 
est contracts  in  the  city  have  been  awarded 
him,  including  the  plumbing  in  the  W.  L. 
Douglas  factory,  and  that  in  C.  C.  Merritt's 
new  residence,  for  which  he  received  two 
thousand  dollars.  A  careful  and  reliable 
workman,  he  takes  pains  to  satisfy  his  pa- 
trons, and  the  success  which  he  has  achieved 
is  honestly  earned. 

Mr.  Spooner  was  married  on  Thanksgiving 
Day,  1886,  to  Myra,  daughter  of  Seth  Delano, 
of  East  Fairhaven,  Mass.  Politically,  he 
favors  the  Republican  party,  but  has  inde- 
pendent views,  and  votes  for  the  candidate 
best  calculated  to  further  the  interests  of  the 
people.      He  is  a  member  of  Massasoit  Lodge, 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


623 


No.  69,  Independent  Order  of  Odd  Fellows; 
and  belongs  to  the  New  England  Order  of 
Protection. 


"ENRY    M.     BOSWORTH,     a    repre- 
sentative citizen  of  the  town  of  Hali- 

li®  V^ fax,  Plymouth  County,  where  he  is 

engaged  in  farming  and  conducts  a  saw-mill, 
was  born  here,  September  11,  1840.  His  par- 
ents were  Martin  and  Susan  (Post)  Bosworth, 
the  mother  a  native  of  Virginia.  They  had 
one  other  son,  Daniel  O.,  and  the  two  brothers 
are  in  partnership.  By  a  previous  marriage 
with  Miss  Mary  Churchill,  their  father  had 
two  children  —  Mary  E.  and  Seba  S. 

Henry  M.  Bosworth  acquired  his  education 
in  the  public  schools  of  Halifax  and  at  Plymp- 
ton  Academy.  When  eighteen  years  of  age 
he  went  to  work  at  the  butcher's  trade,  which 
he  followed  for  three  years.  He  then  settled 
on  a  farm  near  the  Halifax  post-ofifice,  remov- 
ing from  there  to  a  place  near  his  mills,  and 
a  few  years  later  coming  to  the  homestead 
farm,  which  he  has  occupied  for  the  past 
seventeen  years.  It  contains  about  fifty  acres, 
and  he  and  his  brother  own  together  about  six 
hundred  acres,  mostly  woodland.  Mr.  Bos- 
worth purchased  his  saw-mill  in  1878,  since 
which  time,  in  company  with  his  brother,  he 
has  carried  on  a  large  business  in  getting  out 
box-boards. 

Mr.  Bosworth  was  married  in  December, 
1873,  to  Miss  Julia  Washburn.  They  have  no 
living  children,  the  only  child  born  to  them 
having  died  in  infancy. 


VOTIIROP  C.  KING,  a  retired  master 
mechanic  residing  in  Plymouth, 
Mass.,  was  born  in  this  town,  Feb- 
ruary 3,  1815,  a  son  of  Obadiah  and  Nancy 
(Clark)  King. 


His  father  followed  the  trade  of  carpenter- 
ing at  Manomet,  Mass.,  for  many  years.  He 
and  his  wife,  Mrs.  Nancy  Clark  King,  had  a 
family  of  six  children,  four  sons  and  two 
daughters,  of  whom  the  subject  of  this  biog- 
raphy is  the  only  survivor. 

Lothrop  C.  King  passed  his  early  years  at 
the  paternal  home  at  Manomet,  a  part  of  the 
town  of  Plymouth,  and  obtained  his  education 
in  the  common  schools.  Commencing  at  the 
ase  of  fourteen  to  work  for  his  father  at  car- 
pentering,  he  continued  with  him  for  about 
two  years.  Energetic,  capable,  and  ambi- 
tious, in  his  seventeenth  year  he  embarked  in 
a  business  career  for  himself;  and  at  the  age 
of  twenty-one  he  migrated  to  the  State  of 
Louisiana,  where  he  prosecuted  his  calling  for 
five  years.  Returning  then  to  Plymouth,  he 
engaged  in  building  and  contracting  for  sev- 
eral years;  and  in  1854  he  entered  the  employ- 
ment of  the  Russell  Mills  Company,  in  which 
he  acted  as  the  general  mechanic  of  the  factory 
until  1889.  Since  that  time  he  has  been  liv- 
ing a  retired  life. 

Mr.  King  wedded  Miss  Nancy  P.  Morton, 
and  to  them  were  born  four  children,  all  of 
whom  are  still  living.  They  are  as  follows: 
Nancy  P.,  Helen  A.,  Mary  L.,  and  Clara  P. 
In  religious  faith  and  sympathy  Mr.  King  is 
at  one  with  the  Congregational  church  of 
Plymouth,  of  which  he  is  a  jnember. 


/^^TeORGE  J.  FEARING,  a  success- 
\  fs  I  ful  farmer  of  Ifingham,  Plymouth 
County,  Mass.,  was  born  here,  Febru- 
ary 7,  1834,  son  of  John  and  Mercy  B.  (Fear- 
ing) Fearing.  His  paternal  grandfather,  Abel 
Fearing,  was  a  native  of  Hingham,  where  he 
was  an  extensive  land-owner  and  farmer. 
John,  the  father  of  George  J.,  learned  the 
wheelwright's    trade,    which    he   followed    for 


624 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


many  years,  until  he  lost  his  eyesight,  there- 
after engaging  in  farming.  In  politics  he 
affiliated  for  some  time  with  the  Democratic 
party,  afterward  became  a  Free  Soiler,  and 
later  was  identified  with  the  Republicans.  He 
was  a  Surveyor  of  Highways  for  many  years. 
His  wife,  Mercy  B.  Fearing,  died  at  seventy- 
eight  years  of  age;  and  he,  surviving  her 
about  a  year,  attained  the  age  of  fourscore. 
They  were  both  members  of  the  Unitarian 
church,  and  always  able  and  willing  to  do  all 
they  could  to  promote  its  growth  and  prosper- 
ity. They  had  seven  children,  but  three  of 
whom  are  living  —  Mercy  B. ,  John  C,  and 
George  J.  Mercy  married  David  Cobb,  of 
this  town,  and  has  four  children  —  David, 
Jr.,  Henry  H,,  George  W. ,  and  Mercy  B. 
John  C.  Fearing  married  Mary  S.  Doane,  of 
Scituate.      They  have  no  children. 

George  J.  F'earing,  after  acquiring  his  edu- 
cation in  the  Hingham  schools,  worked  on  the 
paternal  farm,  where  he  has  remained  ever 
since.  He  owns  fifty  acres  of  land,  twenty  of 
which  are  under  cultivation,  the  special  crop 
being  hay.  In  politics  he  is  a  member  of  the 
Republican  party,  and  he  has  been  Surveyor 
for  many  years.  He  is  very  industrious,  as 
his  fine  farm  testifies,  and  is  highly  esteemed 
by  his  neighbors  and  the  community  at  large. 
In  the  autumn  of  1861  he  was  united  in  mar- 
riage with  Lydia_  L.  Gushing,  daughter  of 
Stephen  and  Elizabeth  Gushing,  of  Hingham. 


lARCUS  ATWOOD,  a  prosperous 
farmer  of  the  town  of  Carver,  is  a 
native  of  Middleboro,  Plymouth 
County.  He  was  born  July  17,  1827,  son  of 
Levi  and  Bethia  (Shurtleff)  At  wood.  His 
mother  was  a  daughter  of  Captain  Gideon 
.Shurtleff.  His  paternal  grandfather  was  Sam- 
uel, son  of  William  At  wood. 


Levi  Atwood  was  an  iron  moulder  by  trade. 
He  died  at  seventy-nine  years  of  age,  and  his 
wife  at  fifty-eight.  They  were  th-e  parents  of 
thirteen  children,  namely:  Elbridge  (de- 
ceased); Levi,  who  died  in  1893;  Patience, 
wife  of  David  Vaughn ;  Bethia  and  Stephen 
(twins),  both  deceased;  Lucy,  widow  of  David 
Jenkins;  Elkanah;  Rasanda  (deceased);  Mar- 
cus; Martin,  who  died  in  1891;  Betsey,  wife 
of  Josiah  Kennicut;  Laura,  who  died  in  18S4; 
and  a  child  that  died  in  infancy. 

Marcus  Atwood  spent  his  early  years  in  the 
town  of  Middleboro,  and  at  the  age  of  thirteen 
began  working  on  a  farm,  his  wages  going  to 
his  parents  until  he  was  twenty-one.  On  at- 
taining his  majority,  he  came  to  Carver,  and 
entered  the  employ  of  Jesse  Murdock  as  a 
farm  hand.  He  continued  thus  engaged  until 
Mr.  Murdock's  death,  between  twenty-five 
and  thirty  years  later,  and  has  lived  there 
since.  Mr.  Atwood  owns  land  in  Middleboro 
and  Carver,  his  property  comprising  from  one 
hundred  and  fifty  to  two  hundred  acres,  situ- 
ated in  different. places.  For  several  years  he 
has  served  as  Fire  Warden  of  Carver.  He  is 
not  a  party  politician,  but  is  accustomed  to 
vote  for  the  candidates  whom  he  considers  best 
qualified  for  the  respective  duties  of  th'e  vari- 
ous positions  to  be  filled. 


OHN  SMITH,  Superintendent  of  Streets, 
and  one  of  the  Selectmen  of  Hull, 
Plymouth  County,  Mass.,  was  born 
here,  May  15,  1857,  son  of  John  H.  and 
Letitia  (McGinness)  Smith.  His  father,  a 
seafaring  man,  came  to  America  from  Ger- 
many, and,  settling  in  this  town,  has  since  en- 
gaged in  freighting  and  fishing  business.  In 
politics  he  affiliates  with  the  Democratic 
party,  and  he  has  been  one  of  the  Park  Com- 
missioners several  years.      He  was  twice  mar- 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


625 


ried,  Letitia  McGinness,  the  mother  of  the 
subject  of  this  biography,  being  his  second 
wife.  She  has  had  five  children,  three  of 
whom  are  now  living — -Esther  C,  Jennie  C, 
and  John.  Esther  C.  Smith  married  John  L. 
Mitchell,  and  has  three  children  —  Fred  L., 
Oscar,  and  Letitia.  Jennie  C.  is  the  wife  of 
Captain  A.  A.  Galiano,  of  Hull,  and  has  two 
boys  —  Andrew  and  Alfred  R.  The  father 
and  mother  are  still  living. 

John  Smith,  after  acquiring  his  education 
in  the  schools  of  his  native  town,  went  fishing 
with  his  father  until  1881,  when  he  was  ap- 
pointed on  the  police  force  of  Hull,  being  the 
first  Chief  of  Police  in  this  town.  This  posi- 
tion he  resigned  in  1890  to  accept  the  appoint- 
ment of  Superintendent  of  Streets,  which  he 
has  held  ever  since.  Since  1893  he  has 
officiated  as  Selectman,  having  been  re-elected 
in  1896  for  another  term  of  tliree  years. 

On  June  12,  1883,  he  was  married  to  Mar- 
garet E.  Moore,  of  Cambridge,  Mass.  They 
have  three  children  —  Daniel  Alfred,  John 
Francis,  and  Lilian  Florence  Smith.  In  re- 
ligion Mr.  Smith  is  liberal  like  his  parents. 
His  wife  is  a  Catholic.  Mr.  Smith  is  a  man 
of  energy,  promptness,  and  steady  application 
to  business,  one  who  has  made  his  own  way  in 
the  world,  and  is  not  afraid  of  work. 


ILLIAM  R.  SWIFT,  who  lost  an 
arm  while  gallantly  serving  as  a 
defender  of  the  Union  in  the  Civil 
War,  is  a  well-known  resident  of  Plymouth, 
Mass.  He  was  born  at  Cedar\ille,  in  this 
town,  January  31,   1839. 

He  attained  to  maturity  in  his  native  town, 
and  at  the  age  of  thirteen  years  he  began  in 
life  for  himself  by  shipping  on  board  a  fishing 
schooner  in  the  capacity  of  cook.  After  going 
on    several    voyages    he,     in    company    with 


another  man,  purchased  a  vessel,  on  which   he 
sailed  until  1861. 

Shortly  after  the  breaking  out  of  the  war  he 
enlisted  in  Company  E,  Twenty-third  Regi- 
ment, Massachusetts  Volunteers,  being  mus- 
tered in  at  Lynnfield,  Mass.  Faithful  to  his 
duties,  he  kept  his  place  in  the  ranks,  and  took 
part  in  several  engagements,  the  first  of  which 
was  at  Roanoke  Island,  N.C.,  the  second  at 
New  Berne,  N.C.,  the  third  at  Kingston,  in 
the  same  State,  and  the  fourth  at  White  Hall, 
where  he  was  wounded  by  a  rifle-ball.  As  a 
result  he  was  obliged  to  have  his  arm  ampu- 
tated near  the  shoulder,  this  being  done 
within  a  few  hours  on  the*  battlefield.  He 
was  soon  removed  to  the  hospital  at  New 
Berne,  where  he  remained  about  si.\-  weeks, 
and  was  then  sent  home  on  a  furlough.  He 
received  his  final  discharge  in  Boston,  August 
II,  1S63.  After  residing  at  Chiltonville, 
Mass.,  for  a  few  years,  he  purchased  his  pres- 
ent farm  in  the  town  of  Plymouth,  comprising 
nine  acres,  on  which  he  is  extensively  and 
successfully  engaged  in  the  culture  of  cran- 
berries. 

On  November  28,  1873,  Mr.  Swift  was 
united  in  matrimony  with  Miss  Isabelle  II. 
Niehtinsale.  Of  their  union  four  children 
have  been  born;  namely,  Hattie,  Mabel, 
William,  and  one  that  died  in  infancy.  Mr. 
Swift's  political  views  identify  him  with  the 
Republican  party. 


HOMAS  G.  GAMMONS,  a  veteran'of 
the  American  conflict  of  1861-65,  the 
marks  of  which  he  must  always  carry, 
having  been  twice  wounded  while  engaged  in 
the  service  of  his  country,  has  during  recent 
years  devoted  himself  to  general  farming  in 
the  town  of  Middleboro,  Plymouth  County. 
He    was    born    here,    November    15,     1S43. 


626 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


He  remained  nt  home  until  a  few  montlis  after 
the  breaking  out  of  the  Southern  Rebellion, 
when  on  October  i8,  1861,  he  enlisted  in 
Company  D,  of  the  Twenty-fourth  Regiment, 
Massachusetts  Volunteers,  being  mustered  in 
at  Readville  as  a  private.  The  first  engage- 
ment in  which  he  took  part  was  at  Roanoke 
Island,  N.C.,  which  was  followed  by  others  at 
New  Berne,  Little  Washington,  Rollo  Mills, 
Whitehall,  Kingston,  Goldsboro  Bridge,  and 
the  siege  of  Morris  Island,  where  his  regiment 
charged  the  rifle  pits.  They  were  next  sent 
to  charge  upon  Fort  Sumter  in  conjunction 
with  the  marines,  but  this  plan  was  abandoned, 
and  they  went  instead  to  Jacksonville,  Fla. , 
where  they  spent  the  winter,  and  took  part  in 
the  battle  of  St.  Augustine.  The  following 
spring  they  returned  to  Virginia,  and  under 
General  Butler  were  in  the  engagement  at 
the  rear  of  Fort  Darling,  and  in  the  three 
days'  fight,  three  battles,  near  Malvern  Hill. 
In  the  battle  of  Deep  Bottom  Mr.  Gammons 
was  wounded  by  a  minie-ball,  which  struck 
the  bone  just  above  the  knee,  and  passed 
through  the  leg.  Disabled  for  field  service  he 
was  taken  on  board  the  hospital  boat,  on 
which  he  remained  three  years.  After  leav- 
ing her,  and  while  at  Beverly,  N.J.,  in  Au- 
gust, he  was  again  wounded  and  obliged  to  re- 
main there  until  October.  He  received  his 
honorable  discharge,  with  the  rank  of  Ser- 
geant, in  October,  1864.  His  first  promotion 
after  entering  service  was  to  the  position  of 
Color  Corporal,  a  year  later  he  was  made  Ser- 
geant, and  when  he  was  wounded  he  was  act- 
ing as  Orderly  Sergeant. 

For  several  months  after  his  return  home, 
Mr.  Gammons  was  obliged  to  go  on  crutches, 
and  he  was  unable  to  engage  in  regular  work 
for  two  years.  He  then  took  up  shoemaking 
for  a  short  time,  and  since  then  he  has  fol- 
lowed  carpentry  and   farming,   purchasing  the 


farm  on  which  he  resides  in  1874.  Politi- 
cally, he  is  a  stanch  Republican;  and,  frater- 
nally, he  is  a  member  of  Post  No.  8,  Grand 
Army  of  the  Republic,  of  Middleboro.  Mr. 
Gammons  married  Miss  Bessie  Bumpus,  and 
three  daughters  have  been  born  to  them; 
namely,  Susan  E.,  Grace  W.  (deceased),  and 
Bessie  M. 


■  4^«^» 


APTAIN  CHARLES  C.  DELANO, 
a  fine  representative  of  the  brave  and 
skilful  seamen  upon  whom  the  com- 
mercial wealth  of  our  nation  so  largely  de- 
pends, was  born  February  25,  1847,  on  the 
farm  where  he  now  resides,  he  being  the  fifth 
master  of  a  vessel  born  on  this  same  home- 
stead. His  father,  the  late  Captain  Isaac 
Delano,  was  a  successful  whaler  in  his  day, 
and  a  type  of  the  industrious  and  hardy  people 
of  the  coast  towns  whose  sturdy  virtues  left 
their  impress  on  New  England  character.  To 
him  and  his  wife,  whose  maiden  name  was 
Mary  Briggs,  four  children  were  boin; 
namely,  Sarah,  Charles  C,  Isaac,  Jr.,  and 
William. 

At  thirteen  years  of  age,  Charles  C.  Delano 
having  received  his  education  in  the  public 
schools  of  Marion,  began  his  seafaring  life. 
Shipping  on  board  an  emigrant  vessel,  he  re- 
mained as  a  common  seaman  four  years,  being 
subsequently  promoted  from  rank  to  rank  until 
twenty-six  years  old,  when  he  was  made 
master  of  a  vessel.  Since  1S73  he  has  fol- 
lowed the  sea  in  that  capacity,  and  in  each  of 
the  vessels  he  has  commanded  has  owned  a 
goodly  interest.  Captain  Delano  has  sailed 
all  the  seas,  having  circumnavigated  the 
globe  four  times,  doubling  Cape  Horn  and  the 
Cape  of  Good  Hope.  He  has  walked  the 
streets  of  the  larger  maritime  cities  of  the  dif- 
ferent continents,  and  seen  the  principal 
points    of    interest    in    both    hemispheres,    ac- 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


627 


quiring  a  vast  fund  of  information   that   makes 
him  a  most  interesting  companion. 

Captain  Delano  was  married  in  1873  to  Miss 
Sarah  Briggs,  who  has  borne  him  three  chil- 
dren; namely,  Charles  C,  Jr.,  Amos,  and 
Howard.  The  Captain  and  his  family  occupy 
the  house  in  which  so  many  of  his  ancestors 
have  lived  and  died,  and  which  is  now  more 
than  a  century  old,  but  is  in  a  good  state  of 
preservation. 


[J^OAH  J.  CHANDLER,  the  proprietor 
and  manager  of  the  Manomet  Hotel  at 
^  \^  Plymouth,  Mass.,  was  born  in  the 
adjoining  town  of  Duxbury  in  1842,  a  son  of 
Noah  and  Abigail  (I'hilliijs)  Chandler. 

His  father  followed  agricultural  pursuits  at 
Du.xbury  throughout  lite.  He  married  Miss 
Abigail  Phillips,  and  they  became  the  favored 
parents  of  seven  children,  six  sons  and  one 
daughter. 

Noah  J.  ChantUer  passed  his  boyhood  at 
Duxbury  on  his  father's  farm,  acquiring  his 
education  in  the  common  schools.  At  the 
age  of  twelve  he  applied  himself  to  the  trade 
of  shoemaking,  which  he  plied  at  Duxbury 
until  a  few  months  after  the  outbreak  of  the 
Civil  War,  when,  in  September,  1861,  he  en- 
listed as  a  private  in  Company  I,  of  the 
Fourth  Regiment  of  Massachusetts  Infantry. 
He  went  South  with  the  regiment,  and  in 
the  battle  of  Brashear  City  he  sustained  a 
severe  wound  in  the  left  shoulder  by  being 
struck  by  a  shell.  He  remained  a  few  weeks 
in  the  vicinity  of  Port  Hudson.  Discharged 
as  a  private  at  Duxbury  in  August,  1862,  he 
then  returned  to  his  trade,  working  at  Rock- 
land, and  at  Boston,  Mass. 

In  1893  he  moved  to  Manomet  Point,  and 
in  the  following  year  he  assumed  the  manage- 
ment of  the  Brooks  House  at  that  place.      Mr. 


Chandler  is  now  the  proprietor  and  manager  of 
the  Manomet  House,  which  accommodates 
about  fifty  guests,  and  which  has  a  livery  con- 
nection. Two  pleasure  boats  also  are  run  for 
the  enjoyment  of  the  patrons.  Mr.  Chandler ' 
is  affiliated  with  the  fraternity  of  Odd  Fel- 
lows, and  in  politics  he  is  numbered  among 
the  followers  of  the  Republican  party. 


HARLES      H.     CHURCHILL,     who 

conducts  a  thriving  retail  fruit  busi- 
ness in  Plymouth,  was  born  in  this 
town,  December  31,  1836,  son  of  Elkanah 
Churchill,  who  was  for  many  years  master  of  a 
fishing-vessel. 

At  the  age  of  ten  years  young  Churchill 
began  work  in  the  rope-walk,  where  he  was 
employed  during  the  summer  season,  winding 
rope  from  five  o'clock  in  the  morning  until 
seven  in  the  evening,  with  a  recess  of  two 
hours  for  meals,  receiving  twenty-five  cents 
per  day  for  his  labor.  Having  learned  to  peg 
shoes,  he  followed  that  employment  in  the 
winter  season,  during  the  hours  which  were 
not  occupied  in  attending  school;  and  he  was 
thus  engaged  until  he  was  fifteen  years  old, 
when  he  went  to  the  Grand  Banks  on  board  a 
fishing-vessel.  He  later  became  a  sailor  in 
the  merchant  service,  making  voyages  to  the 
West  Indies  until  reaching  the  age  of  twenty- 
five,  when  he  met  with  an  accident  which 
compelled  him  to  relinquish  sea  life;  and,  re- 
turning to  Plymouth,  he  entered  mercantile 
business  as  a  clerk  in  Bradford  Barnes's  gio- 
cery  store,  where  he  remained  for  ten  years. 
He  then  engaged  in  a  similar  capacity  with 
Stephen  Lucas,  proprietor  of  a  retail  fruit 
store,  receiving  at  first  five  dollars  per  week, 
which  was  soon  increased  to  six  .dollars,  and 
the  following  year  his  wages  were  advanced  to 
seven  dollars  per  week. 


628 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


He  remained  with  Mr.  Lucas  as  clerk  until 
January,  iSSo,  when  he  bought  the  business 
outright.  Successful  from  the  start,  he  con- 
tinued to  run  the  old  store  until  November, 
18S5,  when  he  completely  remodelled  its  in- 
terior, put  in  a  large  show  window,  and  other- 
wise improved  his  facilities  for  carrying  on  a 
flourishing  and  constantly  increasing  business, 
to  which  he  devotes  his  entire  time,  employ- 
ing no  assistant.  Never  having  connected 
himself  with  outside  matters  which  would  pre- 
vent him  from  attending  personally  to  its 
every  detail,  he  has  been  able  to  successfully 
compete  with  his  rivals,  who  have  been 
obliged  to  withdraw,  and  he  is  now  enjoying 
a  clear  field  for  the  carrying  on  of  a  large  and 
profitable  enterprise. 

In  politics  Mr.  Churchill  is  a  Republican, 
having  voted  with  that  party  since  becoming 
of  age,  but  has  never  entertained  any  desire 
for  public  office.  In  his  religious  views  he  is 
liberal. 


Uf  RED  HANSON,  a  prominent  citizen  of 
p",  Brockton,  where  for  many  years  he  has 
conducted  a  marble  business,  was  born 
in  Weymouth,  Mass.,  May  2,  1835,  a  son  of 
Thomas  R.  and  Clarissa  (Dudley)  Hanson, 
from  both  of  whom  he  inherited  many  noble 
traits  of  character. 

Thomas  R.  Hanson  was  the  first  cashier  of 
the  Union  Bank  of  Weymouth  and  Braintree. 
He  was  also  Secretary  of  the  Mutual  Insurance 
Company  of  Weymouth,  and  Treasurer  of  the 
Savings  Bank  of  that  place,  besides  holding  at 
various  times  many  of  the  principal  town 
offices.  He  died  at  si.xty-five  years  of  age. 
His  wife,  whose  maiden  name  was  Clarissa 
Dudley,  bore  him  seven  children,  all  sons, 
but  only  two  survive:  Fred,  of  this  sketch; 
and  his  brother,  of  the  firm  of  Hanson  & 
Greene,  the  wholesale  and  millinery  house  of 


New  York.  This  brother  fitted  for  college 
and  entered  Amherst;  but,  changing  his  mind, 
he  left  college,  went  to  Boston,  and  learned 
the  millinery  business  in  the  store  of  Will- 
iam H.  Mann  &  Co.  on  Milk  Street. 

He  subsecjuently  went  to  New  York  with 
Mr.  Cluden,  the  junior  member  of  the  firm, 
and  after  a  time  was  admitted  to  partnership. 

Fred  Hanson  prepared  for  the  work  of  life 
in  the  common  schools  of  Weymouth  and  at  a 
private  academy  in  Braintree,  Mass.  On  May 
I,  185  I,  the  day  before  his  si.xteenth  birthday, 
he  came  to  Brockton,  and  began  a  five  years" 
apprenticeship  with  Howard  &  Clark  in  the 
cabinet-making  and  furniture  business,  work- 
ing three  years  at  the  bench,  and  the  remain- 
ing two  years  in  the  counting-room,  keeping 
books.  After  that  he  continued  with  them 
four  years  as  salesman,  and  then  went  to 
l^ridgewater,  and  started  in  the  furniture  busi- 
ness on  his  own  account.  Returning  to 
Brockton  at  the  end  of  two  and  a  half  years, 
he  carried  on  business  here  in  that  line  for 
some  time.  In  1864  he  enlisted  in  Company 
C  of  the  Sixtieth  Massachusetts  Volunteers. 
After  his  return  from  the  war  in  1S65,  he  em- 
barked in  the  marble  business  with  George 
W.  Bryant,  under  the  firm  name  of  Bryant  & 
Hanson,  and  they  continued  together  until 
January  i,  1875,  when  Mr.  Hanson  assumed 
the  entire  control  of  the  business,  which  is 
one  of  the  oldest  in  this  part  of  the  State. 

On  March  i,  1857,  Mr.  Hanson  married 
Abbie  J.  Bryant,  of  Brockton.  She  died  in 
1 87 1,  survived  by  a  daughter,  their  two  sons 
having  died  in  childhood.  In  July,  1873, 
Mr.  Hanson  married  Miss  Margaret  C. 
Hooper,  of  Bridgewater,  Mass. 

A  Republican  in  political  affiliation,  Mr. 
Hanson  was  elected  Representative  to  the 
State  legislature  from  the  Eleventh  Plymouth 
District    in    1895,    and    served    on    the    State 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


629 


House  Committee.  He  has  also  served  as 
clerk  and  as  Inspector  of  Elections  from  Ward 
2.  He  was  the  first  to  propose  that  Perkins 
Park  should  be  lighted  by  electricity,  and  did 
much  toward  making  it  a  success.  He  was 
Chairman  of  the  Committee  during  the  fair 
held  there  by  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Repub- 
lic, and  made  a  contract  with  the  New  England 
Weston  Electric  Light  Company  of  Boston  to 
light  the  park.  They  brought  dynamos, 
which  they  put  in  the  old  Keith  factory  at  the 
west  end  of  the  park,  then  occupied  by  W.  L. 
Douglass.  These  were  the  first  electric  lights 
used  in  the  town.  Mr.  Hanson  was  also  in- 
strumental in  getting  trains  run  in  to  the 
entertainment.  P"raternally,  he  is  a  member 
of  Webster  Post,  No.  13,  Grand  Army  of  the 
Republic,  of  which  he  has  been  Commander 
seven  or  eight  years,  and  has  served  on  various 
committees.  He  is  a  member  of  the  New 
Jerusalem  (Swedenborgian)  church. 


(s^OHN  F.  SCHUBERT,  an  expert  cus- 
tom shoemaker  of  Plymouth,  Mass., 
who  has  been  in  the  employ  of  one 
concern  here  for  forty  years,  was  born  in  the 
Province  of  Silesia,  Germany,  December  14, 
1826.  His  father,  Joseph  Schubert,  was  a 
mason  by  trade  He  gave  his  children  a  good 
education  in  the  national  schools,'  and  young 
Schubert  after  graduating  from  the  high  school 
learned  the  trade  of  a  shoemaker.  At  the  age 
of  twenty  years  he  entered  the  Prussian  Army, 
and  during  his  five  years  of  military  life  his 
regiment  was  called  into  active  service  to 
quell  the  Polish  Revolution  of  1848. 

After  his  discharge  from  the  army  in  185  i, 
John  F.  Schubert  emigrated  to  the  United 
States,  and,  settling  in  Boston,  was  employed 
on  custom  shoe  work  by  John  F.  Pray,  propri- 
etor of  an  extensive  establishment  located  on 


Washington  Street  in  that  city.  In  1S56  Mr. 
Schubert  came  to  Plymouth,  where  he  entered 
the  employ  of  Benjamin  Bramhall,  later  con- 
tinuing with  Benjamin  L.  Bramhall,  and  he  is 
still  one  of  the  most  valued  and  skilful  em- 
ployees of  the  Bramhall  establishment. 

In  1853  Mr.  Schubert  wedded  Catherine 
Connor,  a  native  of  Ireland,  and  has  reared  a 
family  of  seven  children,  five  sons  and  two 
daughters,  all  of  whom  are  residing  in  Plym- 
outh and  are  useful  and  respected  members  of 
society.  One  of  his  sons  is  a  dentist,  another 
follows  shoemaking,  another  is  a  harness- 
maker,  and  the  remaining  two  are  connected 
with  the  iron  industries.  Mrs.  Schubert  died 
in  1879. 

P'or  the  past  eight  or  nine  years  Mr.  Schu- 
bert has  been  a  Trustee  of  the  Plymouth  Pub- 
lic Library,  and  he  also  takes  a  deep  interest 
in  other  public  institutions.  Politically,  he 
is  independent,  and  supports  the  candidates 
whom  he  considers  best  qualified  to  hold  pub- 
lic office. 


ON.  ALBERT  FRANCIS  BARKER, 
of  Hanson,  was  born  in  this  town, 
October  24,  1859,  son  of  Benjamin 
and  Deborah  (Sacherick)  Barker.  His  grand- 
father, also  named  Benjamin,  was  born  in  the 
town  of  Pembroke,  now  Hanson,  and,  after  re- 
ceiving a  common-school  education,  engaged 
in  farming.  He  was  a  prominent  citizen, 
serving  as  Selectman,  Overseer  of  the  Poor, 
and  Assessor,  for  a  number  of  years.  He  was 
also  an  active  member  of  the  Congregational 
church.  His  son  Benjamin,  father  of  the  sub- 
ject of  this  sketch,  was  born  in  Hanson,  Janu- 
ary 17,  181 1,  After  leaving  school  he  learned 
the  carpenter's  trade,  which  he  followed  for 
seven  or  eight  years,  subsequently  turning  his 
attention  to  farming.  He  was  very  prominent 
in  town  affairs. 


^3° 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


Albert  F.  Barker  received  his  education  in 
the  schools  of  Hanson.  When  about  twenty 
years  old  he  went  to  Colorado,  where  he  en- 
gaged in  mining.  Returning  home  in  1881, 
he  went  to  farming,  and  also  began  the  study 
of  law.  Being  admitted  to  the  bar  in  1892, 
he  began  the  practice  of  his  profession  in 
Brockton,  and  has  since  been  thus  successfully 
engaged.  Mr.  Barker  married  Lucie  C.  Reyn- 
olds, and  he  and  his  wife  have  become  the 
parents  of  three  children  —  Albert  D. ,  Maggie 
D.,  and  Robert.  Mr.  Barker  has  served  as 
member  of  the  Board  of  Selectmen,  Overseer 
of  the  Poor,  member  of  both  branches  of  the 
State  legislature  and  in  other  ofifices.  He  is 
a  member  of  Plymouth  Rock  Lodge,  Knights 
of  Pythias. 


*^»^> 


INFIELD  S.  SOULE,  the  well- 
known  foreman  of  the  Lilly  Brack- 
et! &  Co.  Shoe  F'actory,  and  an  in- 
ventor of  several  machines  to  facilitate  the 
shoe  industry,  was  born  in  Bowdoin,  Sagada- 
hoc County,  Me.,  July  29,  1864.  He  is  a  son 
of  the  late  Reuben  Soule,  a  native  of  New 
Gloucester,  Me.,  where  ancestors  of  the  fam- 
ily, which  is  of  English  descent,  settled  in 
1700. 

Reuben  Soule  was  a  farmer  and  carriage 
manufacturer  for  a  quarter  of  a  century.  His 
farm  was  large,  requiring  the  aid  of  several 
men.  Mr.  Soule  was  previously  engaged  in 
teaching  for  a  time;  and  he  also  served  as 
Captain  of  a  military  company.  He  married 
a  daughter  of  Joel  Allen,  of  Webster,  Me., 
and  they  had  five  children,  three  of  whom  are 
living.  Reuben  Soule  died  at  the  age  of 
fifty-seven  years. 

VVinfield  S.  Soule,  after  acquiring  his  edu- 
cation in  the  public  and  private  schools  of  his 
native  town,  learned  shoe  stitching  in  the 
Burt     &     Packard    Shoe     Factory,    remaining 


there  four  years.  In  18S4  he  entered  the  em- 
ploy of  Lilly  ]3rackett  &  Co.,  and  was  pro- 
moted four  years  after  to  be  foreman  of  their 
stitching-room,  which  he  still  has  in  charge. 
Being  of  an  inventive  turn  of  mind,  in  April, 
1895,  he  made  a  machine  for  marking  rows 
and  stay  work,  which  also  graduates  the  sizes 
and  widths  of  shoes;  and  later  he  made 
another  machine  for  attaching  faces  on  uppers, 
the  operator  being  obliged  only  to  guide  the 
work.  This  he  intends  to  put  out  on  a  roy- 
alty. Mr.  Soule  has  also  invented  an  eyelet 
machine,  and  two  or  three  kinds  of  snipping 
machines,  besides  others,  which  are  not  yet 
patented. 

On  July  5,  1891,  Mr.  Soule  was  united  in 
marriage  with  a  daughter  of  Joseph  Eldridge, 
of  Bucksport,  Me.  Fraternally,  he  is  a  mem- 
ber of  Massasoit  Lodge,  No.  69,  Independent 
Order  of  Odd  Fellows.  He  and  his  wife  at- 
tend the  Porter  Congregational  branch  church. 


OHN  S.  WILLIAMS,  an  esteemed 
resident  of  Middleboro,  Mass.,  where 
he  established  himself  in  business  in 
April,  1896,  was  born  in  Fall  River,  Mass., 
May  10,  1875.  He  is  a  son  of  John  W.  and 
Ellen  (Sherman)  Williams,  of  that  city.  His 
father  is  in  the  grocery  business  at  Fall 
Brook.  Mrs.  Ellen  S.  Williams,  who  came 
originally  from  Farmington,  Me.,  is  well 
known  and  respected  in  South  Weymouth, 
Mass.,  where  she  lived  before  her  marriage. 
She  is  the  mother  of  three  children:  John  S., 
whose  name  appears  at  the  head  of  this  article; 
Nathaniel  E.,  residing  in  F'all  River,  his 
father's  assistant  in  the  store;  and  Harold, 
who  is  yet  with  his  parents. 

John  S. ,  the  eldest  son,  passed  his  early 
boyhood  in  the  bustling  town  of  Fall  River. 
He  received  a  good   education,  attending  the 


BIOGRAPHICAL    REVIEW 


631 


grammar  and  high  schools  of  Middleboro,  and 
taking  a  two  years'  course  of  study  at  Amherst 
College.  As  a  first  attempt  at  earning  a  live- 
lihood, he  obtained  employment  in  a  paper  box 
factory  at  South  Weymouth,  and  after  a  year 
and  a  half  of  that  work  he  went  to  New  York 
to  perfect  himself  in  the  science  and  art  of 
undertaking,  making  a  special  study  of  the 
latest  and  best  methods.  He  was  graduated 
from  the  United  States  School  of  Kmbalming, 
and  about  a  year  ago  he  established  himself  in 
business  in'  Middleboro  as  an  undertaker 
and  funeral  director.  Although  he  has  been 
here  but  a  short  time,  he  has  already  demon- 
strated his  ability  in  his  profession;  and  his 
quiet,  pleasing  manner,  his  refinement  and 
delicacy  have  won  for  him  many  friends. 

Mr.  Williams  belongs  to  the  Independent 
Order  of  Odd  Fellows,  and  to  the  Middleboro 
Commercial  Club.  He  attends  the  Congre- 
gational church,  and  is  a  prominent  member 
of  the  local  branch  of  the  Young  Men's  Chris- 
tian Association. 


"CjUGENE  LINEHAN,  a  well-known  drug- 
JQ[  gist  of  Brockton,  was  born  in  West 
Bridgewater,  February  2,  1859,  son 
of  Timothy  and  Ellen  Linehan.  Timothy 
Liiiehan,  who  was  a  shoemaker,  was  a  highly 
respected  citizen  of  Brockton,  where  he  re- 
sided for  half  a  century.  He  was  about 
seventy  years  old  at  the  time  of  his  death. 

Eugene  Linehan  was  the  youngest  son  of 
his  parents.  He  was  given  the  best  educa- 
tional advantages,  attending  the  common 
schools  of  West  Bridgewater,  Bridgewater 
Academy,  and  Bryant  &  Stratton's  Commer- 
cial College,  Boston,  and  when  his  studies 
were  finished  was  well  cjualified  for  a  business 
career.  In  1881  he  opened  a  drug  store  near 
his  present  location,  and   in  the  fifteen  years 


that  have  elapsed  since  that  time  he  has  built 
up  a  lucrative  business.  Mr.  Linehan  is  mar- 
ried and  has  had  two  children,  a  boy  and  a 
girl.  The  girl  died  in  childhood.  The  boy, 
whose  name  is  Eugene,  is  a  student  in  the 
Brockton  High  School.  Mr.  Linehan  is  in- 
depenilent  in  politics.  He  was  in  the  City 
Council  two  years,  being  elected  from  Ward 
7,  and  the  second  year  was  nominated  by  both 
the  Republicans  and  Democrats.  He  belongs 
to  one  social  organization,  the  Knights  of  Co- 
lumbus. 


DVVIN  T.  CLARK,  a  leading  business 
man  of  Hanson,  was  born  in  this  town, 
August  I,  1S49,  son  of  Edwin  and 
Louisa  (Bowker)  Clark.  His  grandfather, 
Thomas  Clark,  was  a  native  of  Hanson,  where 
he  followed  the  trade  of  a  wheelwright.  He 
married  Sarah  Keith,  of  West  Bridgewater, 
and  they  became  the  parents  of  seven  chil- 
dren. 

Their  son,  F3dwjn,  father  of  Edwin  T.,  was 
born  in  W^est  Bridgewater,  Mass.,  in  1825. 
He  was  educated  in  the  schools  of  his  native 
town,  and  learned  the  trade  of  a  shoemaker, 
which  he  followed  the  greater  part  of  his  life. 
In  1862  his  patriotism  led  him  to  enlist  in  the 
Twentieth  Massachusetts  Infantry,  and  he  per- 
formed his  duty  as  one  of  the  grand  army  of 
citizen  soldiers  who  fought  for  the  preserva- 
tion of  the  Union.  He  is  a  Republican,  po- 
litically, and  he  is  a  member  of  L.  T.  Bonney 
Post,  No.  127,  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic. 
His  wife,  Louisa,  reared  thTe"c  children. 

Edwin  T.  Clark,  who  is  the  eldest  son  of 
his  parents,  was  educated  in  a  school  at  South 
Hanson.  His  first  business  experience  was 
gained  as  clerk  in  a  store,  in  which  position 
he  remained  for  several  years.  Then,  consid- 
ering himself  equipped  for  an  independent 
start    in    life,    he   opened   a    grocery    store    at 


632 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


Bryantville.  This  venture  proved  a  success, 
and,  Mr.  Clark  thus  encouraged,  subsequently 
opened  another  store  at  South  Hanson,  which 
also  proved  successful.  He  conducts  both 
stores  at  the  present  time,  and  ha.s  a  large  and 
increasing  trade,  the  result  of  his  straight- 
forward business  methods  and  his  thorough 
knowledge  of  the  wants  of  his  patrons.  He 
is  one  of  the  most  prosperous  and  substantial 
citizens  of  Hanson.  He  takes  a  prominent 
part  in  local  affairs;  and  that  he  stands  high 
in  the  community  may  be  inferred  from  the 
fact  that  he  has  served  one  year  as  a  Repre- 
sentative to  the  State  legislature. 


p^ATHANIEL   MORTON,  a  well-known 
resident    of    the   town    of    Pembroke, 

\}p  \^  ^  Plymouth  County,  Mass.,  present 
Chairman  of  the  Board  of  Selectmen,  was  born 
ill  the  neighboring  town  of  Halifa.x,  in  1841. 
He  comes  of  old  New  England  stock,  and  from 
the  best  information  obtainable  is  a  lineal 
descendant  of  George  Morton,  a  native  of 
England,  who  came  to  Plymouth  in  the 
"Ann"  in  1623.  Mr.  Morton's  paternal 
grandfather,  Elbridge  Morton,  was  born  in 
Freetown,  Bristol  County,  Mass.,  and  subse- 
quently located  in  Halifa.x,  Plymouth  County, 
where  he  was  engaged  in  the  practice  of  medi- 
cine. He  married  Johanna  Thompson,  and 
they  reared  seven  children.  Mr.  Morton's 
father  followed  farming  in  Halifax  for  many 
years. 

Nathaniel  Morton,  after  attending  the  pub- 
lic schools  of  his  native  town,  took  a  commer- 
cial  course   of    study    in    Boston.      In    April, 

1861,  at  the  first  call  for  troops,  he  enlisted 
for  three  months  in  Company  A,  Third  Regi- 
ment, »Massachusetts  Volunteer  Infantry,  and 
served  until  the  expiration  of  the  term,  when 
he  was   honorably  discharged   with   the   regi- 


ment, and  came  home.  In  the  autumn  of 
1862  he  re-enlisted  for  nine  months  in  the 
same  company,  being  commissioned  Lieuten- 
ant, and  serving  in  that  capacity  until  again 
receiving  an  honorable  discharge.  Returning 
to  Halifax,  he  engaged  in  farming,  remaining 
a  resident  of  that  town  until  1883,  when  he 
removed  to  his  present  home  in  the  village  of 
Bryantville.  Mr.  Morton  takes  a  practical  in- 
terest in  public  affairs.  He  served  twelve 
years  on  the  Board  of  Selectmen  in  Halifax, 
and  he  is  now,  as  already  mentioned,  at  the 
head  of  the  official  board  of  Pembroke.  He 
is  also  a  member  of  J.  E.  Symonds  Post,  No. 
Ill,  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic.  On  Janu- 
ary I,  1868,  he  was  united  in  marriage  with 
Martha  C.  Harring-ton. 


OHN  WILLIAMS,  a  well-to-do  farmer 
and  dairyman  of  Lakeville,  formerly  a 
part  of  Middleboro,  Mass.,  was  born 
August  28,  183 1,  on  the  valuable  estate  of  one 
hundred  and  seventy  acres  where  he  now 
lives.  Mr.  Williams  received  his  early  edu- 
cation in  a  district  school,  acquiring  there  a 
practical  knowledge  of  reading,  writing,  and 
arithmetic,  which  served  as  a  basis  for  the 
larger  knowledge  acquired  in  the  work  of 
every-day  life  and  intercourse  with  iliffercnt 
classes  of  men.  He  went  to  work  on  the  Old 
Colony  Railroad  when  nineteen  years  of  age  — 
that  is,  about  1850  —  and  may  claim  to  have 
worked  on  some  of  the  first  miles  of  railroad 
laid  in  New  England. 

The  first  steam  locomotive  put  in  service  in 
this  country  made  its  initial  trip  in  August, 
1829,  on  the  Delaware  &  Hudson  Canal  Rail- 
road. Following  this,  came  the  Baltimore  & 
Ohio,  the  Albany  &  Schenectady,  and  a  road 
connecting  Charleston,  S.C.,  with  Hamburg. 
In  1830  there  were  but  twenty-three  miles   of 


BIOGRAPHICAL   REVIEW 


^53 


railroad  in  this  country;  in  i<S40,  two  thou- 
sand eight  hundred  and  eighteen;  and  in 
1850,  when  Mr.  Williams  was  engaged  in 
railroad  work,  nine  thousand  and  twenty-one 
miles.  The  present  mileage  is  so  great  that, 
if  all  the  railroads  in  our  country  were  ex- 
tended in  a  straight  line,  they  would  exceed 
more  than  five  times  the  circumference  of  the 
globe. 

I\Ir.  Williams  was  employed  on  the  road 
from  Myrick's  to  Bridgewatcr,  Mass.,  about  a 
year  and  a  half,  and  then  returned  to  the  home 


farm,  where  he  has  since  resided.  He  owns 
eighty-five  acres  of  land  in  Lakeville,  and 
eighty-five  acres  in  Taunton,  and  is  exten- 
sively engaged  in  general  farming  and  dairy- 
ing, owning  some  fine  live  stock.  He  is  one 
of  the  prominent  citizens  of  Lakeville,  and  as 
a  Republican  has  long  been  interested  in 
town  matters,  at  one  time  efiRciently  fill- 
ing the  ofifice  of  Road  Surveyor.  One  of 
the  old  residents  of  the  town,  Mr.  Williams 
is  well  known  in  the  locality  and  highly 
esteemed. 


INDEX. 


BIOGRAPHICAL. 


Alger,  Albert  L- 565 

Allen,  George  D 453 

Allen,  George  0 419 

Allen,  Henry  D 251 

Allen,  John  M S'^ 

Ames,  Elijah 552 

Anderson,  James  F •  236 

Angerer,  Frank  E 262 

Anglim,  Henry  T 162 

Archibald,  Thomas 35 

Ashley,  John  E 2S4 

Ashley,  Silas  P 3>3  ! 

Atttood,  Benjamin  S 33° 

Atwood,  Gustavus 199 

Atwood,  Ichabod  F 483 

Atwood,  Josiah  W 235 

Atwood,  Marcus 624 


Bailey,  George  W 519 

Bailey,  Thomas  F 508 

Baker,  George  M 35° 

Baker,  Horace  E 401 

Banks,  Oltiwell  W 610 

Barker,  Albert  F 629 

Barker,  John 433 

Barrows,  Pelham  W 513 

Barstow,  Henry 425 

Barstow,  Thomas 587 

Bartlett,  Horace 195 

Bartlett,  Joshua  K 3S 

Batchelder,  John  C,  M.D.     .     .  102 

Bates,  De  Witt  C 236 

Bates,  Henry  S 504 

Bates,  William 426 

Bates,  William  H 123 

Battles,  Nahum  A 314 

Beal,  Bernard  C 301 


Beal,  George  A 254 

Beal,  Samuel  L 3° 

Beals,  Joseph  E 208 

Beals,  William  E 20 

Bearse,  Augustus  M 165 

Besse,  Alden 229 

Blackmer,  Garrison  H 442 

Blackstone,  Hollis  M 61 

Bonney,  Edward  H 565 

Bonney,  William  F 444 

Bosworth,  Henry  M 623 

Bourne,  Sylvanus 313 

Boyden,  Albert  G 24 

Brackett,  Frederick  G.       ...  153 

Bradford,  Alden  S 168 

Bradford,  Cornelius  F.       ...  563 

Braley,  Jason  L 447 

Braley,  Lorenzo  D 442 

Brett,  Henry  A 196 

Briggs,  Joseph  W 292 

Brooks,  John  S 467 

Brooks,  Peleg  T 3S4 

Brown,  Daniel  E.,  M.D.     ...  579 

Brown,  E.  Coleman,  M.D.      .     .  117 

Brown,  Edward  1 306 

Brown,  George  H 333 

Brown,  George  H 434 

Brown,  William loi 

Bryant,  Charles 326 

Bryant,  Henry  L 5S4 

Burdett,  Joseph  0 595 

Burgess,  James 350 

Burr,  Fearing 324 

Burrell,  Jarvis 1S5 


Cannon,  David  H.,  M.D.   .     .     .     336 
Carver,  Henry 569 


Gary,  George  C 259 

Chamberlain,  James  N.      ...  530 

Chandler,  Algernon  S 377 

Chandler,  Elbridge  H 387 

Chandler,  Horatio 423 

Chandler,  Noah  J 627 

Charles,  Orlando  W.,  M.D.    .     .  74 

Chipman,  William  L 618 

Church,  Nathaniel 599 

Church,  Samuel  H 604 

Churchill,  Charles  H 627 

Churchill,  John  D 226 

Churchill.  Lucius  R 97 

Clapp,  Elijah  T 498 

Clapp,  Eugene  H 573 

Clark,  Abner  J 532 

Clark,  David 576 

Clark,  Edwin  T 631 

Clark,  Nicholas  A 53 

Clark,  Walter  L 210 

Cleaveland,  Walter  F 255 

Cobb,  David 207 

Cobb,  Oliver 160 

Cobb,  Otis 116 

Cobb,  Philander 553 

Cole,  Augustus 383 

Cole,  Charles  H 54(> 

Cole,  Elmer  B 361 

Cole,  Theron  M 409 

Collamore,  Francis,  M.D.       .     .  424 

Colman,  Moses  B 581 

Constans,  Frank  E.,  M.D.      .     .  207 

Cook,  Ernest  L 408 

Cook,  Randall  W 50 

Cook,  Robert 4° 

Copeland,  Lyman  E 518 

Copeland,  William  W 534 

Cornish,  Ellis  H.,  M.D.     ...  378 

Crane,  Ebenezer 419 

Crane,  Henry  L 21 


636 


INDEX 


PAGE 

Crocker,  Harvey 546 

Crocker,  Zenas  H 493 

Cross,  Nathaniel  H 46S 

Cross,  William  W 32 

Culver,  Albert 230 

Curtis,  Henry  J 526 

Curtis,  Lewis  N 4S2 

Curtis,  Minot  S 329 

Cushing,  Alonzo 30S 

Cusliing,  David 216 

Cushing,  Nathaniel  W.      .     .     .  493 

Cushing,  Reuben  P 38 

Cushman,  George  I' 362 

Cushman,  Jesse  M 472 

D 

Dakin,  Archibald 586 

Damon,  Daniel  E 220 

Damon,  Edmund  T 136 

Damon,  George  H 500 

Damon,  James 560 

Damon,  John  B 5S5 

Damon,  Walter  E 557 

Danforth,  Allen 269 

David,  Charles  F 114 

Davis,  Charles  G 391 

Davis,  George  E 605 

Davis,  William  T 550 

Dawes,  James  H 302 

Dawes,  John  C 476 

Dawes,  Josephus 515 

Dean,  EUery  C 37 

Dean,  Joshua 590 

Defrees,  George  T 245 

Delano,  Charles  C 626 

Delano,  David 158 

Delano,  John  W 388 

Delano,  Robert  T 426 

Denhani,  Andrew 473 

Devereux,  Daniel  D 507 

Dexter,  John  G 503 

Dick,  H.  G •     ■  SS9 

Dimmick,  Andrew  D 613 

Doten,  Lucius  H 307 

Doten,  Samuel  H 16 

Douglas,  Charles  E 159 

Douglas,  Luther  A 41S 

Douglas,  William  L 241 

Drew,  Winslow 157 

Drohan,  Thomas 84 

Dunbar,  George  B 414 


PAGE 

Dunham,  John 263 

Dyer,  George  G 372 

E 

Eames,  John  H 592 

Eldridge,  J.  A.,  M.D 532 

Eldridge,  Thomas  N 26S 

Ellis,  Elisha  W 520 

Ellis,  Nathaniel 377 

Ellms,  Charles  0 436 

Emery,  George  W 487 

Estes,  Rufus  T 584 

Ewell,  Judson 516 

F 

Faunce,  Walter  H 533 

Fearine,  William  H 334 

Fearing,  George  J 623 

Fearing,  Hawkes 294 

Fearing,  William,  id      ....  358 

Field,  Barzillai 269 

Field,  Charles  C 369 

Field,  Charles  T 290 

Field,  Daniel  W 75 

Field,  Fred  F 14 

Flagg,  Wallace  C 166 

Fletcher,  Henry  L 316 

Fogg,  Ebenezer  T 523 

Ford,  Rev.  David  B 336 

Foster,  John 456 

Frame,  Joseph,  M.D 1S8 

French,  Walter  L 107 

G 

Gaffiekl,  Thomas 364 

Gale,  Andrew  .......  167 

Gammons,  Benjamin      ....  474 

Gammons,  Edward  A 234 

Gammons,  Thomas  G 625 

Gardner,  Andrew  J 115 

Gardner,  Francis  B 451 

Gardner,  John  C 186 

Gates,  Samuel  P 140 

Gibbs,  Benjamin  F 393 

Gibbs,  Nathan  P 500 

Gilmore,  Patrick 60 

Glancy,  Bernard 620 

Gleason,  Charles  S.,  M.D.     .     .  529 

Gleason,  Edwin  P.,  M.D.       .     .  iSi 


PAGE 

Glover,  Amasa  S 138 

Goddard,  George  B 95 

Goddard,  Rev.  Henry  E.   .     .     .  171 

Godfrey,  Job  H 432 

Griffin,  Alfred 212 

Griffith,  James  H 299 

Groce,  William  K 194 

Gurney,  Alexander  R 234 

Gurney,  Ansel  S 407 

Gurney,  Henry 222 

H 

Hadley,  Joseph  E 404 

Hadley,  Peleg  B 595 

Hall,  Elisha  W 554 

Hall,  Robert  B 11 

Hall,  Samuel  M 211 

Hall,  Sylvanus  W 545 

Hall,  Walton 376 

Hammond,  Henry  T 301 

Hammond,  James  F 392 

Hammond,  L.  Franklin      .     .     .  575 

Hammond,  Walter  C 612 

Hancock,  Portus  B 36 

Hanson,  Fred 628 

Harding,  Henry  C 327 

Harden,  I5enjamin 221 

Hardy,  Cyrus  H 227 

Harlow,  Jesse 102 

Harrington,  Z.  Taylor   ....  161 

Harvill,  Elisha  T 22 

Haskins,  George  S 108 

Hastings,  Alton  B 56 

Hatch,  Franklin  W 502 

Hatch,  Martin 540 

Hathaway,  Judah 152 

Hayward,  Bela  B 47 

Henry,  Stephen,  M.D 371 

Hersey,  Alfred  H 620 

Hersey,  Edmund 347 

Hersey,  Edmund,  2d      .     .     ...  412 

Hewett,  Joseph 135 

Hogan,  Edward 5S6 

Holbrook,  Samuel  A 145 

HoUis,  John  B 359 

Holmes,  Freeman  H 293 

Holmes,  Philander  J 143 

Hooper,  George  M 248 

Howard,  Cyrus 11 

Howard,  Francis  E 62 

Howard,  Frederick 602 


INDEX 


637 


PAGB 

Howard,  George  B 79 

Howard,  George  C 60S 

Howard,  Hovendon  L 255 

Howard,  Samuel  H 56S 

Howard,  ^.  Nelson 314 

Howard,  Warren  A 619 

Howes,  Woodbridge  R.,  M.D.    .  480 

Howland,  Cliarles  H iiS 

Howland,  Charles  VV 59 

Humphrey,  Galen 270 

Humphrey,  George  W.      .     .     .  481 

Humphrey,  Martin  A 173 

Hunt,  George,  M.D 414 

Hunting,  Amos 96 

J 

Jackson,  Prescott  H 526 

James,  Joshua 175 

James,  Washington  1 179 

Jones,  Joseph  D 222 

Joslyn,  Elisha  H 542 

K 

Keene,  Benjamin  F.  H.      .     .     .  508 

Keene,  Luther 566 

Keith,  George  M.      .....  145 

Keith,  Lemuel  M 200 

Keith,  Myron  L 394 

Keith,  Rufus  P 180 

Keith,  Samuel 189 

Keith,  Sumner 71 

Keith,  Ziba  C 146 

King,  Lothrop  C 623 

Kingman,  Abel  W.,  M.D. .     .     .  154 

Kingman,  Elizabeth  A 541 

Kingman,  Rufus  P 9 

Kinsley,  John S3 

Knight,  Charles  E.,  M.D.  .     .     .  243 

Knight,  Edward  G 310 

L 

Lagergren,  Eniil 132 

Latham,  Eliab 289 

Lazell,  Silvanus 402 

Leach,  Ira  A 176 

Leach,  James  C 68 

Leavitt,  Charles  T 593 

LeBaron,  Thomas  J 282 

Leonard,  Bennie  C 300 


PAGE 

Leonard,  Spencer 49 

Lilley,  Theodore 342 

Lincoln,  Everett  T 244 

Lincoln,  Rev.  Nelieniiah    .     .     .  194 

Linehan,  Eugene 631 

Litchfield,  Melvin  S 443 

Litchfield,  Ward 490 

Litchfield,  Warren 513 

Litchfield,  William  H 476 

Little,  Henry  0 93 

Long,  John  D 577 

Loring,  Lewis  P 131 

Loud,  Hulda  B 98 

Lucas,  Lot  S 187 

Luce,  John  F 525 

Lumbert,  Alberto  W 315 

M 

Macomber,  Joshua  L 604 

Maglathlin,  Edwin  L 588 

Maglathlin,  Henry  B 287 

Maglathlin,  Horace  B 190 

Maglathlin,  Onslow  W.     .     .     .  410 

Maglathlin,  Philemon  W.  .     .     .  490 

Magoun,  Horatio  B 366 

Manley,  Albert 215 

Manson,  Charles 411 

Marble,  Charles  H 252 

Marble,  Demerick 334 

Marston,  Arthur  B 328 

McFarlin,  Peleg 12 

McFarlin,  William  S 238 

McLauthlen,  Samuel,  Jr.    .     .     .  283 

Merritt,  Asa  J 509 

Merritt,  Henry 475 

Miller,  Henry  J 104 

Mitchell,  Herbert  1 575 

Moorehead,  Robert  H 499 

Morse,  Charles  E.,  M.D.   .     .     .  299 

Morse,  George  F.,  M.D.    .     .     .  305 

Morse,  Nahum  F 453 

Morton,  Nathaniel 632 

Mott,  Paul 564 

Mulready,  Edwin 146 

Murdock,  Albert  L 242 

Myrick,  William  H 494 

N 

Nason,  William   P 129 

Nelson,  Sydney  T 404 


Nesmith,  Franklin  E 254 

Newcomb,  George  L.,  M.D.  .     .  3S5 

Newhall,  Joseph  A 385 

Nickerson,  Ebenezer     ....  211 

Niles,  Albert  M 261 

Northey,  Henry  H 530 

O 

Oakman,  Hiram  A 431 

Oakman,  Israel 497 

O'Neil,  James  W 517 

Osgood,  Gilman,  M.D.       ...  no 

Otis,  Job  P 318 

P 

Packard,  Charles  R 204 

Packard,  Fred  H 173 

Packard,  Henry  B 144 

Packard,  Isaac 109 

Packard,  Josiah  Q 48 

Packard,  Robert  H 23 

Packard,  Rufus  E 82 

Paine,  Charles  H 482 

Parker,  Z.  T 225 

Paun,  Amos  B.,  M.D 246 

Paun,  John  H 103 

Peckham,  Henry  C 282 

Peirce,  E.  Foster 462 

Peirce,  Job 22 1 

Peirce,  Warren,  M.D 618 

Perkins,  William 459 

Perry,  Edward  V 351 

Peterson,  Walter 441 

Phillips,  Lot 504 

Phillips,  Morrill  A 371 

Pierce,  Charles  S 260 

Pierce,  Ethan  E 430 

Pratt,  Augustus 429 

Pratt,  Calvin,  M.D 605; 

R 

Randall,  George  S 397 

Rapp,  William 127 

Raymond,  Edgar  C 202 

Reed,  George  F 73 

Reed,  Horace 321 

Reed,  William  L 379 

Reynolds,  Frank  M 616 


638 


INDEX 


Rice,  Charles  L 548 

Rice,  John  A 15 

Richards,  Lysander  S 454 

Richardson,  George  L 190 

Richmond,  Jeremiah  T.     ...  339 

Ripley,  Ebed  L 602 

Ripley,  Joseph 272 

Robbins,  Benjamin  W.       .          .  244 

Robbins,  Caleb  T 29S 

Robbins,  Frederick  \V.      .     .     .  1S2 

Robinson,  Morrill,  i\I.D.    .     .     .  435 

Rodgers,  Clift 366 

Rogers,  Charles  C 284 

Rounesville,  Alden 4S3 

Ryder,  Henry  H 55 

Ryder,  John  H 109 

Ryder,  John  S 447 

Ryder,  Rev.  W.  C 354 

S 

Sampson,  Isaac 271 

Sampson,  Miranda  R 47 

Sanborn,  Jacob  0 247 

Sanderson,  William  H.      .     .     .  326 

Sanford,  Baalis 113 

Sanford,  George  B 305 

Sawtell,  Edwin 354 

Schubert,  John  F 629 

Sears,  Henry  W 264 

Seaverns,  Henry  A 264 

Shaw,  E.  Watson 317 

Shaw,  Francis  M 65 

Shaw,  George  H.,  2d     ....  612 

Shaw,  John  F 287 

Shaw,  John  J.,  M.D 46S 

Shaw,  Joseph 514 

Shaw,  Nathaniel 81 

Shaw,  Wilson 174 

Sherman,  Albert  A 86 

Sherman,  John 361 

Sherman,  Joseph  W 218 

Sherrett,  Lewis 6u 

Shirley,  Allan  L.,  M.D.      ...  606 

Shurtlilf,  Albert  T 209 

Simmons,  Charles 617 

Small,  Albert  F.    .     .     .     .     .     .  203 

Smith,  Charles  J 581 

Smith,  Charles  S 615 

Smith,  Ezra 501 

Smith,  Henry  T 58S 

Smith,  John 624 


Smith,  Warren  B 341 

Soule,  Charles  W 567 

Soule,  George  L 259 

Soule,  Otis  W 256 

Soule,  Winfield  S 630 

Southworth,  .Isabel 309 

Sparrell,  Charles  W 284 

Sparrow,  Fred  C 228 

Sparrow,  William  E.,  M.D.    .     .  344 

Spooner,  Robert  T.  C 622 

Sprague,  Albert  T 411 

Sprague,  Charles  J 559 

Sprague,  Elisha  P.    .     .     .     .     .  343 

Sprague,  Fred  L.,  D.D.S.       .     .  621 

Sprague,  Seth 23 

Standish,  Winslow  B 218 

Stanley,  Frederick 558 

Starrett,  Arthur  P 449 

Stetson,  Isaac  G 347 

Stetson,  John  M 73 

Stetson,  Samuel  C 340 

Stetson,  Warren  B 484 

Stetson,  William 274 

Stockbridge,  Hosea  J 502 

Stoddard,  Enos  M 558 

Stott,  Thomas iio 

Strong,  Benjamin  0 129 

Strong,  Frederick  S 274 

Studlej',  Ezekiel  R 120 

Studley,  Gideon 137 

Sturgis,  Walter  H.,  M.D.  ...  460 

Sweeny,  Edward  M 473 

Swift,  Forest  W 309 

Swift,  Joshua  W 510 

Swift,  William  R 625 

Sylvester,  Robert 594 

T 

Taylor,  Nathaniel 408 

Terry,  Burgess  P 153 

Thayer,  Albert  M 616 

Thayer,  Elihu 614 

Thomas,  Flavel  S.,  M.D.  ...  462 

Thomas,  George  H 589 

Thomas,  William  H 139 

Thompson,  Jabez  P 509 

Thompson,  William  A.       ...  29 

TilLson,  Z.  Albert 201 

Tilton,  Charles  W 130 

Tinkliam,  Herbert  L 152 

Tisdale,  Cliarles  E 524 


rAGB 

Torrey,  Josiah  A 31 

Torrey,  Willard 5S2 

Townsend,  Charles  A 54 

Turner,  Azro 448 

Turner.  James  N 3S6 

V 

Vaughn,  Adoniram 104 

Vaughn,  James  A 396 

Vaughn,  Theodore  T 151 

Vincent,  Jason  K 292 

Vining,  Alexander 89 


W 

Wadsworth,  Alexander      .     .     .  420 

Walbach,  George  G 401 

Ward,  Frederick  A 180 

Washburn,  Cephas 591 

Watson,  George  H.,  M.D.      .     .  46 

Weatherbee,  George  H.     .     .     .  492 

Webster,  Daniel 43 

Welch,  E.  Parker 398 

Welch,  George  F 557 

West,  Charles  E 188 

West,  James  H 370 

Weston,  Joshua 491 

Wheeler,  George  A 72 

Whipple,  John  J 124 

Wliite,  Joseph 600 

White,  Luther 349 

White,  Otis  * 3S3 

White,  Samuel  C 55 

Whiting,  Edwin  W 168 

Wliiting,  John  M 201 

Whiting,  Oren  T 193 

Whiting,  Tryphenn 417 

Williams,  H.  Leander    ....  433 

Williams,  John 632 

Williams,  John  S 630 

Williamson,  Charles      ....  479 

Wing,  George  F 297 

Winslow,  Leander 570 

VVinsor,  Edward  W 474 

Wood,  Abner 609 

Wood,  Andrew  M 341 

Wood,  George  A 28 

Woodward,  George  A 372 

Wright,  Augustus  II 94 

Wright,  William  J 534 


PORTRAITS. 


/  Anglim,  Henry  T 163  XGleason,  Charles  S 52S 

"f^Atwood,  Benjamin  S.  (steel)  .     .     331  vGriffin,  Alfred 213 

Atwood,  Gustavus 198-^urney,  Ansel  S 406 

-Bates,  William  H.     .....     l22>vGurney,  Henry 223 

•  Boyden,  Albert  G 25XHall,  Elisha  W 555 

yj3radford,  Cornelius  F.       .     .     .  562  j-Hall,  Robert  B.  (face)    ....  11 

Burrell,  Jarvis l84-(Hall,  Sylvanus  W 544 

-^Chandler,  Horatio 422(i,Hastings,  Alton  B 57 

SvChurcli,  Nathaniel 599  THersey,  Edmund 346 

-VCole,  Augustus 382  -Hooper,  George  M 249 

Cook,  Randall  W 51  -Howard,  Francis  E 63 

>- Cross,  William  W 33    Howard,  George  B 78 

■•  Culver,  Albert 231  ■J'Ceith,  Ziba  C 147 

-/-Dawes,  James  H.      .     .     .     .     .     3o3-i.Kingman,  Abel  VV 155 

\Delano,  John  W 3S9    Kingman,  Mrs.  Abby  (steel)  .     .  6 

~>kDoten,  Samuel  H 17    Kingman,  Rufus  P.  (steel)      .     .  7 

Douglas,  William  L 24crU<night,  Edward  G 311 

,i4Junbar,  George  B 4i5\Lagergren,  Emil 133 

^Dyer,  George  G 373~vLeach,  Ira  A 177 

>-Ellis,  Elisha  W 521 /^Leach,  James  C.  (steel)      ...  69 

XEllm.s,  Charles  O.      .....     437    Maglathlin,  Henry  B 286 

"/~Emery,  George  W.  (sieel)      .     .     486^(MagIathlin,  Horace  B 191 

"Foster,  John 457^k.Oakman,  Israel 496 

ifFrench,  Walter  L lofr  Otis,  Job  P 319 

+  Gates,  Samuel  P t41-fJ^ackard,  Charles  K 205 


PAGE 

Phillips,  Lot 505^^ 

Pratt,  Augustus 428-/^ 

Richmond,  Jeremiah   T.     .     .     .  338.- 

Rodgers,  Clift 367-T- 

Ryder,  John  S 44&K 

Sanford,  Baalis II2<C 

Sawtell,  Edwin 355  . 

Seaverns,  Henry  A 265- 

Shaw,  John  J 469 

Soule,  Otis  W.      ...  .     .  257\ 

.Strong,  Charles  P.  (steel)  .     .     .  2791 

Strong,  Frederick  S.  (steel)   .     .  275 

Swift,  Joshua  W 51  r+- 

Thomas,  Flavel  S 4''3-^ 

Vining,  Ale.xander S8-1., 

X'ining,  Miss  Floretta    ....       91 

Webster,  Daniel 42. 

Welch,  E.  Parker 399"^ 

Whipple,  John  J 125^ 

Whiting,  Edwin  W l(x)~f- 

Williamson,  Charles      ....  478^- 

Wing,  George  F 296^— 

Winslow,  Leander 57i~K 

Wright,  William  J 535-V. 


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